Whether for hiking, a beach holiday or for days of partying: Mallorca is and will remain the favorite island of Germans. After two years of Corona, restaurateurs and hoteliers celebrated a record season last year. Never before have so many tourists come to the island – and never have they paid so much money for it. In particular, the hotels on the famous Playa de Palma sometimes called up prices that would have been completely utopian in other years.
A circumstance that fits into the new strategy of the island government. The times of drunken tourists, who sometimes even come to the island with cheap flights without an overnight stay, should be numbered. But even the high prices haven’t stopped the party-goers from spending their holidays in relevant establishments such as the “Bierkönig” or the “Mega Park”. Now the authorities are trying to put a stop to celebration tourism with even stricter rules.
The plan to turn Mallorca into a “new Ibiza” by 2030 for well-heeled tourists interested in sustainable holidays is still in place. The island government is probably the area “El Arenal” and the Playa de Palma the biggest thorn in the side. Playa has already changed. Although countless bars, clubs and discotheques still invite (German) tourists to party wildly, the framework has changed massively. Just a few years ago, inexpensive hotels in the one to three star categories lined up next to each other. They have since been replaced by expensive four and five star hotels.
But apart from the more expensive hotels, the authorities have passed additional laws in recent years that are intended to steer drinking tourism in an orderly manner:
Since 2021, there has been a general ban on smoking in public places and in outdoor restaurants in Mallorca. Smoking on the street while walking, in playgrounds, near schools, kindergartens or hospitals, in public buildings and in the airport is also prohibited. The rule was originally introduced to prevent crowds during the Corona period.
In addition, more and more beaches on the Balearic Islands have banned cigarette butts. Smoking is prohibited on the following beaches in Mallorca:
Anyone who still smokes on the said beaches must expect fines. In the case of minor violations of the anti-tobacco law, 30 to 600 euros are due. Serious violations can be punished with up to 10,000 euros.
As in the previous year, special rules apply to the popular Playa de Palma, which are intended to limit drinking tourism. For example, common motto jerseys or shirts are just as unwelcome as going for a walk on the promenade or in the city center of Palma in swimwear. The dress code also applies in bars and restaurants, which are no longer allowed to be entered topless or with flip-flops.
T-shirts that glorify alcohol consumption, call for violence or contain xenophobic or insulting slogans are also taboo. The largest shops on Playa de Palma have also agreed not to allow entry to people with racist, homophobic or anti-Semitic tattoos.
Basically, alcohol can be consumed in public on Mallorca. This also applies to beaches – with the exception of so-called “ZEIT” zones (Zona d’Especial Interès Turistic – zones with special tourist interest). These have been expanded again for the current season, especially on Playa de Palma. It is now also forbidden to buy, sell or drink alcohol on the streets Carrer de Miquel Pellisa (Beer Street), Carrer Missió de San Diego, Carrer del Llaüt and on the sea promenade Carretra de s’Arenal. So in the entire district between Mega Park and Promenade. The ban has also been in effect on the “Schinkenstraße” since 2019. Anyone caught drinking alcohol here has to pay a fine of up to 3,000 euros.
Whether it’s a dignified cocktail in a bar or a beer mug in the “Mega Park” – you shouldn’t overdo it with alcohol in these zones anyway. The authorities are particularly sensitive to disturbances of the peace and “harassment as a result of alcohol or drug intoxication”. Anyone who rows through the streets of Mallorca or endangers road traffic by being drunk can expect fines of up to 3,000 euros. A fine can be just as high if you leave rubbish behind or disturb public order in any other way. For example, through inappropriate props such as inflatable sex dolls, lewd towels, megaphones, or through wild peeing or having sex in public. How high such a penalty is is at the discretion of the respective police officer.
The times of flat-rate parties and all-inclusive offers in Mallorca are not quite over yet. But in the said “ZEIT” zones such as Playa de Palma, the “Ballermann” or in Magaluf, which is popular with British tourists, strict rules have been in force for some time.
In these locations, no-drink parties are prohibited, as is public drinking. But even apart from the drunken tourists, many holidaymakers are repeatedly confronted with a condition for hotels: They are no longer allowed to offer all-inclusive offers for sale in the said zones.
Only soft drinks may be served here without limitation. Alcohol is limited to three drinks per guest and only during meal times.
In other locations, such as the popular town of Cala Rajada, “real” all-inclusive offers are still available, as are flat-rate parties.
Also new is an initiative for residents, shopkeepers and workers to report violations of local rules. Already decried by some vacationers as “denunciation”, the program “Por una Playa de Palma Cívica” (“For a decent Playa de Palma”) has made it its task to support the police and law enforcement authorities and those who are rowdy or have fallen asleep intoxicated get rid of tourists. Violations of the rules are to be publicly denounced via a Twitter page, while lawyers are to prosecute them in the background.
So if you want to be on the safe side, you should behave yourself in Mallorca this year and not drink too much.
Quellen: Mallorca Magazine, MDR.de, Mallorca Zeitung, Travelbook
