AIRBNB has signed an agreement with the Consell de Mallorca to stop illegal holiday lets being advertised on the online portal.

The general director of Airbnb Marketing Services, Jaime Rodriguez de Santiago met with island president, Llorenc Galmes, on Friday to seal the deal.

The accord means that online holiday listings that don’t publish license details will be immediately removed.

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Airbnb has pledged to also strike out adverts that violate other Mallorca laws including accommodation offers for vans and tents.

The platform says it has removed over 130 listings in recent weeks that have been pointed out to them by the Consell.

A new system will be put in place allowing local authorities in Mallorca to directly notify Airbnb about any transgressions.

The Consell de Mallorca sees the cooperation as part of measures already under way that include sanctions against illegal rentals and increased inspections.

As of this Monday, any new short-term rental listing in Mallorca that is published on Airbnb must include an official registration number.

The system will not allow postings that that do not include a valid code approved by authorities.

In addition, Airbnb will implement a system that will only accept registrations with a pre-established format, which will help with inspections and counter fraud.

The platform will also launch a publicity campaign for landlords on Mallorca which will brief them on all of the new legal requirements.

Llorenc Galmes said: “Tourism must be compatible with the quality of life of residents, the protection of the territory and current regulations.”

“This agreement with Airbnb is a firm step in that direction,” he added.

Airbnb’s Jaime Rodriguez de Santiago said: “This agreement is key to implementing the new European framework on short-term rentals and demonstrates Airbnb’s commitment to collaborate with local authorities in the transition towards more responsible tourism”

Similar agreements have been struck in Ibiza, the Canary Islands, and the Murcia region.

A SEMINAL photo of superstar DJ Seth Troxler sleeping on a bench at Barcelona airport and others spread on the floor at Ibiza airport are the highlight of a new book launched this week in the Balearic Islands.

In Between, by fellow DJ Bill Patrick, highlights the less glamorous unseen side of a world dance music tour.

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Featuring 250 photos taken during a gruelling ten-month, 20 country, four continent whirl alongside American Troxler, many were taken in Spain.

“Ibiza seemed the perfect place for a book party,” Patrick, 47, from New York, told the Olive Press at the party at the hip Standard Hotel, in Ibiza Town.

“I lived for many years in Berlin, inspired by its creative and music side, and Ibiza has similar creative vibes,” he added.

Patrick, who has developed his photography career while battling cancer, took the photos between February and November 2023.

The snapshots – featuring everything from camels in Egypt to drag queens in America – offer an intimate glimpse of life on the road and an ode to friendship. 

One picture shows a couple arguing on a street corner in New York during Halloween, while another has a ballerina adjusting the ribbons of her pointes in Athens. 

Patrick’s work, shot on half a dozen 35mm cameras, has been exhibited in New York, London and Budapest. 

“We wanted to make a book that was the antithesis of social media,” explained Troxler at the glitzy launch this week.

He added it was entirely using celluloid and the one time Patrick tried to use a digital camera ‘someone spilled liquid over it and it broke,’.

“The world was telling him something,” he joked.

The pair, who are close friends, regularly visit Ibiza, where Troxler has over a dozen slots booked in this summer, including seminal headlining shows at Pacha and Amnesia.

He is also playing in Mallorca and Barcelona in August and Madrid in October.

“Seth is a dynamo with so much energy,” Patrick told the Olive Press. “I spent a year on tour with him taking these pics – and that’s why he’s got his name on the book. I’m top billing though.”

He continued: “It is incredibly hard work DJ’ing – and for most jobbing, working class DJs, it’s dealing with economy class and cheap hotels – after a dozen years it takes it out of you … and these photos hopefully show that.”

READ MORE: Real Madrid star Jude Bellingham parties in Ibiza with footballer brother and Wayne Lineker 

PALMA Police have enacted the city´s new ordinance which places fines of up to 750 euros on people who buy products from illegal street sellers.

The new ordinance came into force on May 26, and updates existing regulations from 2018.

Sellers are also subject to fines of between 750 and 1500 euros, and for buyers it can range from 100 to 750 euros.

READ MORE: Tourist warning: Person gets fined for buying sunglasses from illegal street seller in Mallorca

The announcement from the City of Palma, published on social media channels, said that ´anyone buying items such as sunglasses, jewelry, counterfeit clothing, drinks, or other goods from illegal street vendors will face a fine of up to €750.´

The ayuntamiento has also launched an information campaign to warn residents and tourists of the risks that unauthorised vendors pose, arguing that licensed vendors are harmed by this type of trade.

Criticism of the new regulation has pointed to an imbalance of how fines are imposed, as residents and tourists may be more likely to pay the fine. Illegal sellers may also have no known address to which they can be sent the fine notice.

Whilst running for mayoral candidacy back in 2023, current mayor Jaime Martinez and his party Partido Popular mandated that he would give priority to the security of the Playa de Palma and tackle illegal street selling with ´total impunity´.

The statement confirmed that the new regulation ´applies throughout the entire municipal area, including the city center and tourist zones like Playa de Palma, Arenal, and Sant Miquel pedestrian areas.´ The police´s Litoral district covers the area by the sea from Can Pere Antoni to S´Arenal. 

Other issues tackled in the ordinance include the use of electric scooters, graffiti, prostitution, nudism, and balconing. The civic ordinance lists an extensive number of criminal offenses that tourists and residences should now be weary of.

In the past, the Balearic ministry for social affairs has established a training programme called ´T´acompanyo´, to give training and assistance to illegal street vendors.

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