Holidays in Menorca, Ibiza and Majorca to get much pricier as islands cap number of beds for tourists
The authorities want to limit the number of holiday rentals available on websites like AirBnB, as anti-tourism feeling sweeps across Spain
HOLIDAYING in the Balearic islands could soon get much more expensive as a cap is introduced on the number of beds available for tourists.
From next Tuesday, landlords who rent out space in their flats on sites like AirBnB without a licence could be hit with huge fines.
Islands including Ibiza, Menorca, Majorca and Formentera will penalise anyone illegally renting apartments to tourists with fines of up to €40,000.
The new rules have been introduced as a wave of anti-tourism sentiment sweeps across the country.
The authorities are trying to crackdown on home-sharing websites because of the effect they have on rent prices for local people.
In the Balearic Islands, which drew more foreign visitors than any other region in Spain this June, rental costs have jumped and there are fears of a housing shortage for residents.
Rental prices in Palma de Mallorca, the Mediterranean archipelago's biggest city, have risen 40 per cent in the last five years, according to property platform Mitula.
The island of Ibiza has the biggest density of Airbnb rentals, with a tourist apartment for every 30 residents, data from analytics firm Airdna showed.
But with less people able to rent out properties, the price of those remaining are likely to increase for holidaymakers.
Renting apartments without a licence was banned in the region in 2012 under a previous administration but enforcement was largely nonexistent, according to the Balearic government.
The region's tourism chief Biel Barcelo said: "We want balanced and sustainable tourism so that it can keep being our lead economic activity for many years to come."
MORE STORIES ABOUT THE BALEARICS
People who offer short-term rentals to tourists without a licence will now receive fines of between €20,000 and €40,000.
Local residents will be able to report suspected illegal flats though a website, and online platforms such as Airbnb and Homeaway could also face fines of up to €400,000 if they are found to advertise rentals without a license number.
The Balearics' four islands will each have a year to decide if and where they will allow licensed tourist rentals to continue.
Airbnb said the new rules were complex and confusing as they did not distinguish between local families sharing their homes and professional operators running a business.
They said: "By working together, we can help build sustainable tourism models that spread benefits to many - not keep them in the hands of a few."
Barcelona, in the northeastern Spanish region of Catalonia and another tourism magnet, has also introduced controls on tourist apartments.
