British holidaymakers heading to Spain this summer risk fines of up to €250 (£210) under strict new rules aimed at preventing sunbed reserving and overcrowding. The so-called 'sunbed tax' is being enforced in popular hotspots including Costa Blanca and Barcelona, where tourists can be penalised for placing towels on loungers before designated times or leaving them unattended for prolonged periods.
The crackdown follows escalating 'sunbed wars' at European resorts, with guests arriving hours before pool opening to claim loungers, leading to stampedes, arguments and physical fights. Hotels have introduced measures such as time limits and parking ticket-style systems, while some guests have taken legal action over unenforced policies.
In Calpe, Costa Blanca, local police have been authorised to remove unattended sunbeds or towels left on beaches before 9.30am. Offenders must retrieve their belongings from a municipal depot and pay a €210 fine. Holidaymakers who fail to return to a sunbed for over three hours face the same penalty.
Travel insurance comparison site Tiger urged Brits to think twice before reserving sunbeds, warning that the rule was introduced after numerous complaints about beds being reserved for hours with no one in sight. The advice comes after a British couple in Salou, near Barcelona, received a warning card after leaving their sunbeds for 30 minutes, despite others leaving theirs unattended for hours.
