Ibiza holidays are becoming increasingly mired in controversy as tourism chiefs are stunned by the shocking offers for Ibiza accommodation which are appearing on sites such as Airbnb. The online marketplace and hospitality service has already been told to clean up its act and remove any illegal rentals from its site.
One rental apartment on the Spanish island has been advertised as “turning into a mini hostel each summer” and offers nine beds – yet the reality is bunk beds squeezed into a tiny space, with one even out on the balcony.
The flat is offered at €25 (£22) a night per person, but for July and August, the busiest and hottest months for the island, that price doubles to €50 (£44).
Located in Platja d’en Bossa – a major holiday resort on Ibiza – the airbnb rental has a security camera in the living room to monitor the tenants and warns of a fine of €15 (£13) if any of the residents lose the key.
According to island newspaper Diario de Ibiza, this is just the tip of the iceberg over which controversy continues to rage. One week’s rental in Ibiza is said to be the equivalent of a whole month in Lanzarote in the Canaries.
Last summer, a thatched hut was reportedly rented for €21 (£18) a night, offering no bathroom apart from a bucket as a toilet.
Other offers currently on Airbnb for a single Saturday night in July for one person include: a wigwam tent for €99 (£87), a caravenette for €90 (£79), €360 (£316) on a boat, €600 (£527) a night for a plush apartment in the centre of Ibiza and even a former shop turned into a “den” without a shower.
Further strange rentals include wooden shacks where renters have to walk to an outside loo, greenhouses, make-shift shelters of wood and scrap and a storeroom described as “ideal for yoga and nature lovers,” all of which are illegal.
Am Airbnb spokesperson told Express.co.uk, “The typical daily rate for a listing in Ibiza is €115 per night – which covers everything from a spare room in a host’s home to a luxurious villa. Fluctuation in the price of any accommodation is natural and appropriate but on Airbnb, supply and demand tend to increase at the same time, which helps ensure consumers have access to affordable options.”
Locals have been complaining that because people with any sort of property can rent them out to tourists for vast sums, they cannot draw in long-term rentals and are being priced out of the market.
Hoteliers themselves admit that Ibiza is becoming known as an “expensive” resort which is likely to backfire as Europeans seek alternative destinations such as Egypt, Tunisia, Turkey and Croatia.
Ibiza 2018: Some of the rent accommodation offer holidaymakers to the island little to no amenities
Ibiza 2018: Some rented accommodation on the island is simply bunkbeds crowded into a small room