The 12th Holiday Rental Congress has focused on family tourism and changing travel habits. While 58% of families visiting Ibiza return to the island, industry representatives say shorter stays and rising costs are making it harder to attract this market.
Family tourism in Ibiza has changed significantly in recent years. Holidays are shorter, spending habits have shifted and price has become one of the main factors influencing travellers’ decisions about whether to visit the island.
These issues were discussed on Tuesday during a panel titled Family Tourism: A Strategic Opportunity for Ibiza, held as part of the 12th Holiday Rental Congress.
“Families used to come together and stay for longer. They would visit shops and markets, spending money across all kinds of local businesses,” said moderator Montse Monsalve as she opened the discussion on how Ibiza could attract and retain more family visitors.
Juan Miguel Costa, the Ibiza Island Council’s director of Tourism Promotion, said one in four tourists visiting Ibiza belongs to the family travel segment. Their average stay is close to a week, and their satisfaction score stands at 87 out of 100. In addition, 58% of families return to the island.
However, during the question-and-answer session, Costa acknowledged that visitor behaviour has changed considerably.
“Spending habits have changed completely,” he said, explaining that holidays that once lasted as long as ten days have increasingly been replaced by stays of around three to three and a half days. This higher turnover also creates additional challenges for hotels and holiday rental properties.
Rising prices are putting some families off Ibiza
The cost of a holiday came up repeatedly during the discussion.
One holiday rental owner in Santa Eulària described how she had equipped an eight-person property specifically for families with children, including providing toys, yet found that relatively few family groups were booking it.
“Families aren’t coming because of the price, and I’m aware of that,” she told the audience.
The owner, who chose not to disclose her name, said that despite designing the property with families in mind, many of her guests end up being groups of young people instead. She also pointed to the growing burden of fees, taxes and running costs facing property owners, making it increasingly difficult to keep prices down.
Another attendee questioned why Ibiza continues to promote luxury and five-star hotels if the aim is to bring back family holidaymakers.
Luis Falcón, managing director of inAtlas, argued that Ibiza can sustain a high-end tourism offering. In his view, the more important question is how the wealth generated by tourism is distributed across the island.
Falcón also highlighted the relatively high spending associated with holidays in Ibiza. According to figures presented during the panel, the average spend per person per trip is around €2,000 in Ibiza, compared with approximately €1,250 in other Spanish destinations.
One advantage of family tourism, he argued, is that this spending can be spread across different areas and businesses rather than concentrated in a single part of the tourism sector.
More activities and experiences to attract family visitors
Carmen Sarah Einsle, a professor at the University of Alicante, warned that the definition of a family has broadened and can no longer be limited to the traditional family model.
A trip organised around a sporting event, for example, may involve an entire family, making it difficult to classify the visit exclusively as sports tourism or family tourism.
To attract these visitors, Einsle said, Ibiza needs a wider range of activities and services that appeal to every member of the family, including restaurants, sports, entertainment and dedicated spaces for children.
She also stressed the growing importance of digital platforms and online research, as teenagers and young adults increasingly influence decisions about holiday destinations and accommodation.
Costa defended the role of Ibiza Family Moments, a product club and quality label promoted by the Island Council to bring together family-friendly accommodation, restaurants, leisure activities and other tourism services across the island.
The initiative allows the council to run targeted promotional campaigns aimed at specific visitor profiles, based on factors such as age and nationality, while strengthening Ibiza’s appeal to the family market.
Holiday rentals play a key role in family tourism
José Antonio Llano, president of AVAT, added that families account for close to half of the customers staying in holiday rental properties.
He highlighted the wider economic contribution of these visitors, who use complementary services, shop locally, rent vehicles and eat in restaurants.
The discussion underlined the challenge facing Ibiza: maintaining its appeal as a family holiday destination while addressing affordability, changing travel patterns and the need for a broader range of experiences beyond accommodation alone.