New Tourism Strategy Set for 2027
The government of Madeira has announced plans to revise its main tourism strategy, aiming to control the growing number of tourist accommodations. The updated plan, officially called the “Plano de ordenamento do turismo”, is scheduled to be drafted in 2026 and take effect in 2027. This comes ten years after the last update and follows major changes in how tourism operates across the region.
Rise of Holiday Rentals Brings New Challenges
Although the current plan allowed for up to 40,000 rooms in traditional tourism developments, Madeira has not yet reached that number. However, a new trend, short-term rentals, known as alojamento local, has grown rapidly in recent years. These rentals are not fully controlled by the regional government and are only managed by the respective municipality. As a result, the total number of available tourist beds is now much higher than originally planned.
Regional Government Calls for Limits and Updated Rules
Eduardo Jesus, Madeira’s Regional Secretary for Tourism, Environment, and Culture, who previously stated that 2024 was the best that Madeira could have hoped for in terms of tourism numbers, said in a recent interview that short-term rentals should be better controlled.
He called on local city governments to consider setting limits on how many of these units can operate in their areas. He stressed that tourism must continue to bring value to residents and not reduce their quality of life.
Eduardo Jesus, in an interview with journalist Marco AntĂłnio Sousa, acknowledged that the number of short-term rental rooms should be limited and that municipalities should be encouraged to address this issue.
Eduardo Jesus, RTP Madeira
All Short-Term Rentals Now Required to Hold Civil Liability Insurance
To help manage the growing number of rentals, the national government has introduced a new rule: all short-term rental units must now have valid civil liability insurance. This requirement will help identify which units are still in use and remove inactive ones from official records. Until now, the registry of these accommodations had never been fully reviewed.
Source: RTP Madeira
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