According to Javier Vich, the president of the Palma and Cala Major Hoteliers Association, the 100% increase in the tourist tax as from Tuesday took tourists by surprise. "The tourists had no kind of information about the increase in the rates, which was why they were surprised."
Receptionists and hotel directors had to explain the new charges to guests, and many repeat clients couldn't understand the reason for the increase. Vich suggests that the surprise turned to indignation in one instance, with a group of guests refusing to pay the tax. The hotel, it would seem, assumed the cost.
Although other tourists paid, some indicated that they would weigh up the cost of a family holiday and consider going somewhere else. "It is a very significant increase, more so when one takes account of prices in competitor destinations," notes Vich.
President Armengol, meanwhile, was saying that the sustainable tourism tax (to give the tax its official title) is being paid without fuss, that it has "great social support" and is not generating problems for tourists. She gave a reminder that the tax is creating a fund for improving the quality of the environment in the Balearics and that the increase took account of the "reality of our tourism market".
While it may be the case that some tourists have been taken by surprise, this will not have been because of a lack of media attention given to the tax increase. An issue may be how well accommodation providers, tour operators, regular travel agencies and online travel agencies are giving advance information about the tax - the fact that there is one and that the rates have doubled.
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I myself tried to search for the new increase in this rip off tax and couldnt find the information anywhere on line. I have a friend that works for a massive holiday company and she knew nothing about the increase. I sent her the updated charge which I copied from this site and she was well surprised. So if travel agents dont know about it, hotel companies are not showing the price increases why are hotels surprised that people know nothing about this. I am pretty sure that Majorca will be hit very soon with a shortage of tourists at this rate, not only do we tourists have this over priced tax to pay we have hold ups in Palma airport, lack of security in some resorts as well as activists not wanting tourism any more. My Majorca forum is showing more and more people turning away from the Island, many have stopped having multiple holidays now and choose to go else where, infact most of us only go for 3 to 4 nights once a year off season now favouring the likes of the canary islands and Benidorm for our holiday fix. Majorca is digging its own grave, word gets about and people are sick of it, how many of them tourists that knew nothing about the new tax do you think will visit again.
And as things bite there will be an increased bias against businesses owned by foreigners by the way. Another prediction, let’s see.
By the way, if you are choosing a place for retirement, Greece is FAR cheaper than here, far less frenetic, and friendlier. You just need to do some good research on the right location. The Greeks are wonderful people.
Lawrie you are right, mea culpa, I went too far. Bu really, I don’t think we merit the ‘paradise’ reference anymore. If I were younger yes, I’d probably move to Italy or Greece, although of course they both have their own issues. Ultimately though, my frustration stems from the complete inability of this government to find the optimal balance between revenue for local businesses and jobs for locals, and long term preservation. my prediction is that in 20 years AI will dominate even more, global brands will take over existing and new retail sites, local businesses will be closed down, there will be more pollution, etc etc. We are on a slippery slope down...
Yes, VAT on tax, has to be Mallorca. Meanwhile the main roads are like cart-tracks, no proper bus stops, the pavements all broken up by tree roots, and no gondolas on the streets for when it rains. Good old Tourist Tax for the politicians pockets.....
Michael, it depends on the hotel star rating. As it is boutique, one assumes it is at the top end (four star superior or five star), in which case - for seven nights - the tax would be 28 euros per person plus 10% VAT.
I have already asked this question, with no response so far. Could someone tell me how much it will cost my wife and I for one week`s stay in a boutique hotel in late September?
Five days of wet weather in the month of May. Paying €4 a night in a hotel eg. in Magaluf, Palma Nova, that have quite rightly improved there facilities to attain a 4 star rating. But it is not La Residencia in Deia or St Regis Mardavall. However, tourists will be charged the same.We all know the Tourist money will disappear into the coffers and useless projects which are open to a lot of fraud.
Richards comments are always first class but I'm bemused by his "Majorca is a dump" comments. He is obviously very wealthy so why whould he continue to stay somewhere he hates?....strange! Also lets get this straight, its the travel companies that have been shy in coming forward with the tax information not the hoteliers that most of you have problems with. It's they who should make absolutely sure holidaymakers are aware of all this before they travel.
Frank & Jan - I just want to clarify that actually I don’t have an issue with paying this tax. I love Mallorca and I won’t stop going. I just hope my money is well spent in keeping this beautiful island just that. My only point was that, Jet2 (and maybe others) don’t seem to be making it clear how much the tax with be. I would prefer Jet2 to make is clearer.