A popular holiday destination coming from Bristol Airport could be hit with an additional tax as local authorities step up their battle against overtourism. The President of the Balearics, Marga Prohens, has announced that the tourist tax will rise during the peak summer months of June, July, and August, although the exact rate is yet to be revealed.
Majorca has a reputation as an increasingly expensive holiday spot, however, the new tax hike may see some Bristolians reconsidering a trip to the Spanish hotspot. At present, guests at five-star and four-star superior hotels are charged £3.30 (€4) per person per day, while those staying at four-star and three-star superior hotels pay £2.50 (€3) during the summer. Guests at other types of accommodation face a daily charge of £1.67 (€2), reported the Express.
In contrast, the tax will be lowered during the quieter months of December, January, and February in a bid to attract more visitors to islands such as Majorca and Ibiza outside of the summer season. It’s not yet clear whether this reduction will bring the current tax level down or simply result in a smaller increase compared to the summer rate.
A tourism official stated: “Since July 1, 2016, the Tax for Sustainable Tourism is levied on all overnight stays in tourist accommodations on the Balearic Islands. Thanks to the contribution, we are able to make major investments to compensate the territorial and environmental impact of tourism on Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza, and Formentera.”
Tourists currently pay a flat rate of tourist tax throughout the year, regardless of whether it’s peak or off-peak season. The fee can be as much as €5 euros per night, payable upon arrival, and varies based on the quality of the accommodation.
Another measure that the Executive plans to introduce is a ban on new holiday rentals in all multi-family homes once the current moratorium is lifted and each island council sets their respective limits. At present, this restriction only applies in Palma, the capital of Majorca, but it will soon extend across the entire island. It’s important to note that this ban won’t affect existing holiday homes, but rather new applications.
Despite this, Jet2.com and Jet2holidays have revealed that flights from Bristol Airport to Palma, Majorca will be- taking off a whopping 13 times a week. This is compared to destinations such as Tenerife with 8 flights per week, Lanzarote with 4, Corfu with 3 and Preveza with one.
Jet2.com and Jet2holidays launched their “biggest-ever summer programme” for 2026. With flights and holidays to 35 sun and city destinations being on sale right now for Summer 26, customers and independent travel agents in the South West and Wales can go ahead and lock in some summer sun nice and early.
To meet with customer demand, the companies have increased capacity to four popular sunshine destinations, with additional flights operating to Alicante, Faro, Madeira and Palma (Majorca) during Summer 26.
The full list of destinations from Bristol Airport:
35 destinations on sale (peak number of flights per week in brackets)
- Antalya (6)
- Bodrum (2)
- Dalaman (7)
- Izmir (1)
- Tenerife (8)
- Lanzarote (4)
- Fuerteventura (3)
- Gran Canaria (4)
- Reus (2)
- Alicante (5)
- Malaga (4)
- Girona (1)
- Costa de Almeria (1)
- Palma (Majorca) (13)
- Ibiza (5)
- Menorca (3)
- Faro (Algarve) (7)
- Madeira (2)
- Crete (Heraklion) (2)
- Crete (Chania) (2)
- Corfu (3)
- Kefalonia (2)
- Skiathos (2)
- Kos (3)
- Preveza (1)
- Rhodes (3)
- Kalamata (1)
- Halkidiki (1)
- Zante (3)
- Larnaca (2)
- Paphos (2)
- Verona (2)
- Bulgaria (Bourgas) (1)
- Malta (2)
- Agadir (1)
Steve Heapy, CEO of Jet2.com and Jet2holidays, said: “Customers are telling us they want to book ahead and secure that all-important holiday, so they can have the best choice of hotels, rooms and dates. We have responded to the strong demand from holidaymakers wanting to lock in their getaways, by putting our biggest and best Summer programme on sale from Bristol Airport for 2026, earlier than ever before.
“Our Summer 26 programme from Bristol Airport represents a huge expansion with more seats on sale, meaning holidaymakers have never had so much choice and flexibility. As well as offering customers and independent travel agents a greater selection of flights and holidays to choose from, our enormous Summer 26 programme allows them to book in advance and get a date in their diary now. We have every confidence our Summer 26 programme will be a huge success.”