Tourists staying in so-called non-market accommodation were responsible for most of the growth in tourist numbers in the Balearics in 2025.
Figures from the Balearics Statistics Institute indicate that between January and November 3.3 million tourists stayed in homes they own on the islands or in homes of friends and family. This represented an increase of 10.4% compared with the same eleven months of 2024.
The surge in numbers in this category is a cause for concern for authorities and for both the hotel and the legitimate holiday rental sectors. The suspicion is that many of these supposed stays with friends and family are tourist accommodation in disguise. They are illegal because the accommodation isn't registered for tourist purposes.
Over the eleven months, the market accommodation, which includes hotels and licensed holiday rental properties, registered barely any growth; this was just 0.12%. Hotels accounted for just over 13 million of the 15.4 million tourists in this category, a reduction of nearly 2%.
Holiday rentals, on the other hand - legal ones, that is - grew by almost 15% to 1.8 million; 237,736 more tourists over the eleven months. For non-market accommodation, the increase was 314,936 more than in 2024. This type of visitor now accounts for almost one in five tourists visiting the Balearics.
Both the hotel sector and Habtur, the holiday rentals association, argue that much of the illegal supply is for fake friends and family. Properties are marketed in countries of origin and are very difficult for the authorities to detect.
The Balearic Government, meanwhile, is seeking the cooperation of Spain's interior ministry in providing more reliable figures for tourist arrivals and stays. These, the government believes, would give a more accurate snapshot of the amount of illegal supply. The police have the most accurate data, more so than that provided by the monthly Frontur reports provided by the National Statistics Institute.
It should be pointed out that it has long been accepted that there are genuine friends and family who either stay with people on the islands or in properties that are owned in the Balearics. These friends and family have never been an issue. But now, and increasingly so, there are the fake friends and family.