A German influencer on holiday in Palma de Mallorca says a horse-and-carriage driver exploded at her, branded her a Nazi, mocked her appearance and hurled water in her face, all because she asked him to give his horse a drink.
Xenia Denise spotted what she described as a skinny, thirsty horse standing in the heat, hitched to one of the city’s traditional tourist carriages. She asked the driver if he would water the animal. According to her account, he immediately lost his temper.
In a video shared online, she can be seen in a white sundress, holding a water bottle and gesturing toward the horse while several men stand nearby with carriages and a blue bucket on the cobbles. The clip captures a tense stand-off in a busy Palma square, with palm trees and old buildings in the background.
Xenia later wrote that the man “completely flipped out,” called her a Nazi, told her to go to McDonald’s and eat a burger with meat, and pointed at her body “from top to bottom.” When she kept asking for the horse to be given water, she said he eventually fetched some, then threw it in her face and touched her face with his hands.
“In Palma there are still skinny, thirsty horses!” she posted. “Don’t give these animal abusers any money.”Local Spanish media reported the same sequence: a tourist approached a calesero after deciding the horse looked thirsty, a heated argument followed, and she later alleged slurs, comments about her physique, water thrown at her face and physical contact. The available footage confirms a loud confrontation, though not every specific insult can be independently verified from the clip alone.
The incident has poured fresh fuel on a long-running row over Palma’s horse-drawn carriages. Animal-welfare campaigners have spent years arguing that the animals work too long in high summer temperatures, pulling tourists over hot stone streets. Horses have collapsed in the city centre in previous summers, and pressure has grown for the traditional galeras to be replaced by electric carriages. City authorities have already begun that transition, but horse-drawn vehicles were still operating when the clash was filmed.
Carriage drivers have previously insisted the horses have access to water at stands and that extra protections apply during heat alerts. Critics say the latest video shows how quickly a simple request on behalf of an animal can turn ugly.
Xenia’s footage has drawn angry comments from viewers who praised her for speaking up and condemned the driver’s behaviour toward both the tourist and the horse. Palma’s town hall has reportedly opened an information file on the incident.
The clip is another reminder of why the picturesque carriage rides that still line Palma’s old streets remain one of the island’s most bitterly contested tourist attractions.
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