Renting a villa on Mallorca

The tourist registration number

Every legal holiday rental in the Balearic Islands needs a tourist registration number, and the law requires that number to appear in every advert, whether on a booking platform, an agency's listing or a printed brochure. It shows that the property has been declared to the tourism authorities for holiday letting, with a set number of guest places.

Treat a missing number as a warning sign. Unregistered lets are illegal, the authorities pursue them, and an illegal booking leaves you with little protection if something goes wrong. Check that the house you are booking shows the number in its own listing, and that your party does not exceed the capacity it is registered for. If an advert is vague, ask directly; a genuine host answers without hesitation.

Palma and holiday flats

Palma has its own, stricter rules. The city council has banned holiday letting in apartment buildings, so a city flat offered for a week's holiday should make you cautious, however attractive the photographs. Only certain houses may be let to holidaymakers in the city, and hotels, including the small town-house hotels of the old town, are a separate matter altogether. Longer lets for work or study fall under a different legal framework, and a seasonal contract is no substitute for a tourist registration when the real purpose is a holiday.

Elsewhere on the island the rules on holiday lets in apartment blocks are also strict, and the regulations have tightened in recent years. That makes the registration number even more important for a flat than for a house. If you want a city stay, our guide to luxury stays looks at the town-house hotels in Palma's old mansions.

Location, access and the road in

Photographs show the pool; a map shows the life around it. Before booking, find the exact location, not just the nearest village, and study it on a satellite view. Note how far it is to a supermarket, a bakery and a beach, and whether those distances are walkable or mean a drive every time. Our drive times tool shows how long the trips you have in mind will really take, and our guide to choosing your base explains how each region suits a different kind of stay.

The access road deserves its own question. Many rural houses are reached by narrow lanes between dry-stone walls, or by unpaved tracks that are dusty in summer and rutted after rain. They are part of the charm, but less so in a wide hire car, late at night, after a long flight. Ask whether the last stretch is paved, whether there is parking for every car you will bring, and how the gate opens. Look, too, for anything nearby that might be noisy: a main road, a flight path towards the airport, or a village square that hosts summer fiestas.

Pool, cooling and comfort

Inside and around the house, a few checks matter more than the décor. Ask for recent photographs of the bedrooms and the pool area, not only the terrace at sunset, and read guest reviews for mentions of noise, insects, heat or damp.

• Pool safety: ask whether the pool is fenced or covered and whether the gate locks, especially if you travel with small children.
• Pool and sun: a pool in shade by mid-afternoon stays cold in spring and autumn; ask whether it is heated.
• Air conditioning: confirm which rooms have it. In July and August, bedrooms without it can be hard to sleep in, particularly inland.
• Heating: for stays between November and April, ask how the house is heated, since stone houses can be cold and damp.
• The small things: reliable Wi-Fi, mosquito screens, outdoor lighting, and a shaded table for lunch.

Saturday changeovers and arrival

In high season most villas are let by the week, and changeover day is very often Saturday. That means cleaners racing between houses, a fixed check-out in the morning and check-in in the afternoon, and roads and car hire desks at their busiest. A morning flight can leave you with hours to fill, so plan a long lunch on the way, or a visit to one of the Saturday markets in Sóller, Santanyí or Cala Ratjada; our market days tool lists them by weekday.

If you can choose your flights, avoid arriving in the evening rush hour around Palma and on the main roads out of the city, especially in July and August. Arriving after dark on an unfamiliar rural lane is the other thing to avoid: ask for a pin on a map, a description of the gate and a contact who answers on arrival day. Outside the high season, many owners are more flexible about arrival days and shorter stays.

Deposits and contracts

Terms vary between owners and agencies, but the pattern is familiar: a booking deposit to secure the dates, the balance some weeks before arrival, and a refundable security deposit held against breakages. Ask for a written contract or booking confirmation that names the property, the dates, the number of guests, the cancellation terms and exactly what is included: cleaning, linen, towels, pool and garden care, heating and air conditioning. Ask, too, what happens if the pool pump or the air conditioning fails: who to call, how quickly someone comes, and how a lost day is handled.

Pay by traceable methods, keep every message in writing, and be wary of any last-minute request to send money to a different or private account. On arrival, note any existing damage and photograph it, so the security deposit comes back without discussion.

The sustainable tourism tax

On top of the rent, the Balearic Islands charge a sustainable tourism tax, levied per person and per night on stays in tourist accommodation, holiday rentals included. The amount depends on the type of accommodation and the time of year, and children under 16 are exempt. The host or agency collects it, sometimes within the total price and sometimes separately, often on arrival.

Ask before you book whether the price you see already includes it, so the final bill holds no surprises. The revenue goes into a fund for projects on the environment, heritage and sustainable tourism across the islands, which is why the tax carries the word sustainable in its name.