Mallorca steps up crackdown on tourists as plot to ban cars on Spanish island revealed

Mallorca steps up crackdown on tourists as plot to ban cars on Spanish island (Image: Getty)

Mallorca has initiated a crackdown against holidaymakers as it plans to limit the number of vehicles in the popular tourist hotspot. The Council of Mallorca said that it is looking at ways to reduce the number of cars not registered in the Balearics, which will follow measures already agreed in Ibiza. 

People with homes in Ibiza whose vehicle is registered outside the Balearics are allowed to have only one vehicle per property. This is intended to reduce the number of foreign-registered cars and cars registered elsewhere in Spain. The limit on the vehicles in Mallorca is likely to be implemented from 2026, reports the Majorca Daily Bulletin. 

Locals in Majorca have been protesting about overtourism (Image: Getty)

A working party from different Council departments is currently assessing the measures, following in the footsteps of Ibiza, where regulations are coming in this year.

Visitors who are relatives of island residents and wish to bring their own car must apply for authorisation and pay the required fee through an upcoming online system established by the Council of Ibiza.

According to the officials, the regulations in Mallorca, once implemented, will include mandatory annual studies to update each year's vehicle limit.

In 2023, Mallorca's ports saw 324,623 vehicles with drivers arrive, marking a 108 % increase from 2017. 

Additionally, 55,000 more vehicles entered as freight, collectively accounting for 40 % of the island's total cars.

During peak days in August, the roads handled 1.3 million trips, with some days seeing over 75,000 hire cars in circulation.

The study found that on the busiest dates, the island's roads had between 90,000 and 120,000 excess vehicles, surpassing their capacity to manage such high traffic volumes.