All-Inclusive And Holiday Rentals Order

Earlier this week there were ministerial pronouncements which reinforced the direction in which government policy is heading. President Armengol said that order is to be put into rules for all-inclusive hotels. Principally, these will introduce some form of limit on the consumption of alcohol - the means of doing this has not been set out - as the government seeks a general raising of the quality of tourist. Through these rules, she hopes, there will be more business for bars and restaurants outside all-inclusive complexes and a reduction in "booze tourism". Will there be? Or will it be the case that some tourist elements merely head for the nearest supermarket and see what offers are available in order to top up on the limits imposed? And a note for Calvia town hall in this regard. Getting supermarkets to eliminate front-of-house displays of booze won't make any difference. Meanwhile, there are other tourism municipalities where there is no ban on displays.

On holiday rentals, Biel Barceló announced that the legislation will enable the possibility of renting out apartments in a legal and commercialised fashion, which was not the case under the Partido Popular's 2012 tourism law. He's right, it does raise the possibility. The problem is that there are all the strings that are attached. One of these is the principle of zoning. About this he remarked that "the most saturated zones will be protected" and rentals in apartments will be in municipalities where there is low tourism activity.

I have always believed that this would be the case. Indeed we already know that there are some coastal areas which have been classified as "saturated" and where there won't be any zoning - Playa de Palma, Cala Millor, Magalluf, for example. The Council of Mallorca, responsible for zoning, is now applying yet more principles for zoning to the nine broadly determined areas of Mallorca. These principles relate to the type of land and to the level of "saturation". The upshot is, in essence, that the interior will get the lion's share of apartment rentals.

I'd said that this would be the case, and it now seems certain that it will be the case. Consequently, what will it mean for coastal resorts, e.g. Puerto Pollensa or Colonia Sant Jordi, where there are more special cases to be made for apartment rentals? No new rentals? It could well be.