Strict new rules apply to tourist accommodation in the Valencia region, including a ban on installing automatic lockers on external walls and public areas where people can collect apartment keys.

Visitors now enter a code, after which the safe opens and provides access to a key.

Valencia’s Minister of Commerce and Tourism, Nuria Montes, said on Wednesday that the boxes create an “image of insecurity” and serve as a signal to potential thieves to warn them that “tourists are staying there.”

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The Valencian government is expected to approve a package of measures next week to tackle tourist overload and the rental of apartments without a permit.

Montes said it will be mandatory for tourist establishments to register with the Guardia Civil and the Policia Nacional, so that the identity of all guests aged 16 and over must be recorded.

All tourist houses must also offer a ‘reception service’. That is, there is not someone physically standing behind a desk, but someone who is always available to speak to guests and check, based on their documents, that they are who they say they are.

The Ministry of Tourism wants to ensure that accommodations meet the right standards. New measures have been taken, including a ban on the use of butane gas for heating or cooking.

Only electrical or gas powered equipment is allowed.

Landlords who refuse to comply with the stricter legislation will be prosecuted. Montes is convinced that the measures will “eradicate” illegal rentals.

“We will not show mercy to illegal tenants, which will calm residents who feel they are being evicted from their neighborhood,” she added.

As previously announced, each municipality in the Valencian Community may set its own limits for tourist accommodation permits, depending on the situation in their area.

Tourist permits also expire automatically once an accommodation is sold.

Nuria Montes also criticised those who blamed tourist apartments for ‘all the ills’. According to her, in the province of Alicante they only account for 2.8% of all properties, while 14% of all vacant properties are empty.

“There are other types of measures that need to be taken to solve the problem of access to housing,” she concluded.