© Hotel Santa Clara
New classification system for Mallorca's holiday accommodation
All hotels and holiday apartments in Majorca will soon be classified by a new ratings system, developed by the Balearic Ministry of Tourism. The new system will operate on a points structure, with weight given to the condition of the bedrooms (32%), the entertainments & facilities on offer (27%), the general condition of the building (24%), restaurant quality (10%), conference facilities (5%) and eco-friendliness & quality control procedures (3%).
The number of points accumulated will be translated into the number of stars awarded to each establishment. The points system is based on the European Criteria model, but has been adapted for the Balearics because of the high number of leisure hotels on the islands, as opposed to urban hotels. Some 350 standards will be measured which will allow the accommodation providers to focus on improvements in areas that they can control. The old system focused mainly on the architecture of the buildings themselves which in many cases could not be changed or improved.
The Ministry of Tourism hope that this transparent system will provide an incentive for the establishments to upgrade their facilities and improve their services to gain a higher star ranking. It is thought that the current three-star category accommodation will face the most difficult task to keep their rating. The new classification system will come into force by the end of this year, and the hotels & holiday apartments will have six years in which to adapt to the new standards.
