A file photo of tourists watching the sunset from a beach in Sant Antoni de Portmany in Ibiza. — Reuters
The number of short-term tourist bookings on Ibiza almost halved in 2025 from a year earlier as Spain’s crackdown on holiday homes and overtourism started to bite.
The supply of short-term rentals on the popular tourist island is now 80% lower than in 2017, tourism lobby Exceltur said. Across Spain, listings fell 4% in the second half of 2025 versus a year earlier – the first nationwide drop – though trends varied among the 25 biggest cities.
Authorities are tightening rules as locals complain soaring rents and home prices are being driven by tourist demand.
Ibiza has ramped up inspections to weed out unauthorised listings, according to the local government’s website, while Barcelona plans to ban all holiday homes by 2028.
Ibiza and Mallorca posted the steepest declines in short-term rentals, while coastal hubs like Malaga and Almeria continued to increase their tourist accommodation supply, Exceltur said.
New rules requiring landlords to register properties before listing them on platforms such as Airbnb are driving the shift, according to Exceltur vice president Oscar Perelli.
Holiday homes have been outpacing hotel growth for years as Spain’s tourism boom put it neck-and-neck with France for the world’s top destination. Nearly one-third of tourists still opt for homes, which remain cheaper than hotels.
Ibiza delivered Spain’s highest hotel revenue per room last year at €170 (RM802), up 6% from 2024, according to Exceltur. – Reuters
