Spain may finally be seeing a slowdown in the unchecked growth of tourist flats, according to a new report by Exceltur.
In its latest quarterly outlook, presented this week, the business tourism alliance reports that 15,963 tourist accommodation places disappeared in the second half of 2025 compared with the previous year.
Between July and November, the average number of places offered in holiday rentals across Spain’s 25 most touristic cities fell to 366,375, a 4.1% year-on-year decline.
According to Exceltur, this marks a potential shift after more than a decade of relentless growth.
‘The tourist housing market in Spain is beginning to rationalise its behaviour, starting to eliminate part of the illegality on which it has grown in recent years,’ the report states.
The data shows a sharp seasonal drop as summer demand faded, but one that was far steeper than in previous years.
From July to November 2025, advertised places fell from around 390,000 to 344,000 – a reduction of nearly 47,000 beds, almost double the fall recorded over the same period in 2024.
Exceltur argues that the uncontrolled spread of tourist apartments has been one of the main drivers behind the ‘overflow’ of tourism in many cities, damaging the residential rental market, neighbourhood coexistence and public perceptions of tourism itself.
Since 2010, holiday rentals have grown from being almost non-existent to matching the size of Spain’s hotel sector, which currently offers around 409,000 beds after only modest growth over the same period.
The association attributes much of the recent decline to the introduction of the Digital One-Stop Shop for Rentals, a national registry launched last July.
The system requires all properties advertised online as tourist, seasonal or room-by-room rentals to display a specific identification number proving they comply with national, regional and local regulations.
Exceltur also credits tougher enforcement by regional governments and city councils – though it notes that progress has been uneven across the country.
‘There are cities that have spent years tackling illegal supply and are now seeing sharp drops, such as Ibiza, Mallorca or Barcelona,’ said Exceltur’s executive vice-president Oscar Perelli at the presentation.
‘Others were slower to react but are now starting to reverse the trend, like Madrid or Santander. And then there are places where numbers are still rising, such as Málaga or Almeria.’
Between July and November 2025, 17 of the 25 most touristic cities recorded year-on-year declines in advertised holiday rental capacity.
The sharpest falls were seen in Ibiza (-48.6%), A Coruña (-30.5%) and Murcia (-20.9%). Large urban markets such as Madrid, Valencia and Alicante also posted notable reductions.
By contrast, cities including Malaga, Sevilla, Granada and Barcelona saw more modest increases of between 0.9% and 4.8%. However, Exceltur stresses that longer-term trends tell a different story. Barcelona, for example, has reduced its tourist apartment supply by 36.6% since 2018, despite a slight uptick last year.
In Andalucia, the picture is more concerning. Malaga and Almería ended 2025 at record levels of tourist accommodation, while Sevilla, Cordoba and Granada have seen only marginal declines from their historic peaks. Exceltur points to more permissive regional regulation as a key factor.
While welcoming the early signs of correction, Exceltur insists that much more needs to be done. Among its top priorities for 2026 is an intensified crackdown on illegal tourist rentals, calling for stronger coordination between administrations and greater responsibility from online platforms.
