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A tourist couple taking a selfie in Palma de Mallorca, Source: Depositphotos

Mallorca will slash 18,000 tourist beds from its accommodation offer

Mallorca will slash 18,000 tourist beds from its accommodation offer

The island is dead set on doing something about the problem of overtourism

While many destinations are trying to figure out ways to attract a larger share of the tourist market in the upcoming summer season, Mallorca is taking the opposite approach. The island’s regional council announced last Friday that it will reduce the cap on tourist accommodation by 18,000 beds.

Overall, this means that Mallorca will lose 4% of its tourist accommodation capacity in an effort to stem the flow of tourists flocking to the Balearic island. Media reports have pointed out that 18,000 beds equal half of the accommodation capacity in Playa de Palma, the beachside district of the island’s capital Palma – to put things into perspective.

“It is time to set limits,” said Llorenç Galmés, president of the Council of Mallorca, quoted by Majorca Daily Bulletin. Speaking at a press conference, he indicated that the tourism growth had put the coexistence between tourists and residents “at risk”.

Mallorca may impose strict fines on tourists’ misbehaviour

The Balearic authorities are not afraid to make a stand in trying to preserve some form of manageability in the tourism industry in a way that doesn’t interfere with daily life for the local residents. You might recall that two years ago, the regional government started seriously considering the idea of banning the sale of properties to non-residents – something which, however, would clash with EU market rules.

What’s more, this spring the mayor of Palma, Jaime Martinez, threatened that he will institute an ordinance to punish anti-social public behaviour by tourists with up to 3,000 euros citing the increasing numbers of vandalism, street drinking and fights involving foreign visitors.

However, he admitted that the new bylaw he envisages must go through a series of procedures that will make it difficult for it to be approved in time for the tourism season. 

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