News

HOTELS in the Balearics are ready to bypass the new eco-tax being introduced next week with gift vouchers for guests.

Clients will be handed vouchers for drinks and food in the hotel during their stay as a way of making up for the inconvenience of the charge, which starts on May 1.

Federation of Tour Operators secretary-general Alan Flook said: “This is clever. It costs the client nothing and yet it is a way for hotels to collect the tax.”

He said the scheme would also make it easier to refund the tax if the hotels win their court battle to prove that it is illegal. “It will be easier to refund the money to hotels rather than individual guests,” added Flook.

Operators have written to clients about the new tax on arrival. They have refrained from explaining the proposed voucher scheme until it has been confirmed.