CRUISE stops in Majorca and Ibiza may soon be a thing of the past thanks to a battle between tourist organisations and the Balearic government.
The Balearic Islands, a group of islands including Formentera, Ibiza, Menorca and Majorca, has long been a haven for tourists.
However, the government last summer announced they were doubling their controversial tourist tax, forcing holidaymakers to pay up to €4 extra a day.
Previously, cruise passengers were exempt from this tax as long as they were on land for less than 12 hours.
However, the proposed changes will force them to pay €2 a day – ignoring the fact they are there for less than a day period.
Now, according to Balearic press, the Cruise Lines International Association, the largest body of its kind in the world, has threatened legal action against the Balearic government.
The line looks after a number of cruise companies such as Norwegian, Royal Caribbean and Tui, which often bring visitors to the island.
It has dubbed the tax illegal and urged the government to change its mind, warning that liners might go elsewhere if the tax comes in.
The changes are planned to come in to effect during the summer of 2018, unless something changes in the mean time.
It could encourage tourists to travel to rival holiday destinations such as Turkey and Greece.
Turkey was recently announced as the third most popular holiday destination for Britons this summer, despite terrorist activity earlier this year.
It is home to Istanbul, a popular city for tourists to visit because of its rich cultural history.
Earlier this year, the Balearic tourism chief Biel Barcelo also announced a campaign to tackle unruly behaviour on the Balearic islands.
He said: “The tourism sector must also collaborate to improve tourism and to improve our image and the first step to collaborate is to comply with the rules.”
While it is unclear what these rules are, it is likely they will apply to the party image associated with the island.
This might include restrictions on what constitutes acceptable public behaviour and stricter alcohol laws.
