IBIZA – The British press reports on the first complaints from tourists who have noticed a new restriction on the consumption of alcohol in all-inclusive hotels during their holiday in the Balearic Islands.
In particular, hotels in the tourist areas of the Balearic Islands such as Magaluf and Playa de Palma in Mallorca and Sant Antoni in Ibiza impose a restriction on the alcohol consumption per hotel guest and per meal.
Drunken tourists
This restriction is the result of a legislative decision by the regional government. And was created to end the nuisance caused by drunken tourists to the local population. Jason Walker is quoted in the British newspaper Daily Mail. This 42-year-old Briton discovered last Easter the regulations already approved by the Balearic government in January 2020. By decree, the consumption of alcoholic drinks in the all-inclusive hotels is limited to a maximum of six per day. This is three at lunch and three at dinner – without the possibility of accumulating the unconsumed amounts.
“Angry” and “annoyed”
The UK tourist admitted to the British newspaper he is “angry” and “annoyed. As a result of his ignorance of the new rules, he has had to incur unforeseen costs. “I understand that they are trying to prevent alcohol abuse and noisy behaviour. However, this seems to have been done very secretly; I was not informed and did not know the law, lamented Walker. “We came as a family of eight to celebrate my cousin’s 40th birthday. And although we still had a good time, we incurred extra costs as a result,” explains this tourist.
Check the fine print about alcohol consumption
Walker wanted to use the newspaper to warn other tourists from the UK travelling to the Balearic Islands to check the fine print of their travel contracts. It can be disappointing if people have booked all-inclusive and eventually have to pay for extra drinks. “It should then be sold as half board or something like that,” Walker said.
Furthermore, this ignorance about the ‘new’ rules applies to more tourists. This is despite the fact that the regulations have been in force for two years. The corona pandemic and the resulting travel restrictions meant the new rules were forgotten or not known by most tourists.
Communication problem
This points to a communication problem between the authorities of the Balearic Islands and the tour operators and other travel agencies. Although some travel companies, including EasyJet, have warned about the restrictions. Tourists should be made more aware of the new restrictions and fines that have been put in place to curb excessive tourism and drunkenness.
Related post: Drunkenness prohibited in the Balearics
