The highest number of cruise ships in transit was also reached in history, with 190 vessels, according to data analyzed by the IbizaPreservation Sustainability Observatory
Ibiza, August 12, 2025 – Ibiza once again broke a record for cruise passengers in 2024 , with a total of 579,485 people disembarking on the island, 5.2% more than the previous year. These data, extracted through official statistics prepared by IBESTAT, with information provided by the Port Authority of the Balearic Islands (Ports de les Illes Balears) , are part of the Ibiza 2024 Sustainability Report, currently being prepared by the IbizaPreservation Sustainability Observatory and fully funded by the Consell Insular d’Eivissa.
According to this analysis, the number of cruise passengers exceeded the island’s resident population by 3.59 times , estimated at 161,485 inhabitants, a ratio (359 cruise passengers per 100 inhabitants) that demonstrates “the gradual growth of this type of tourism with the resulting effects it has on the territory,” according to IbizaPreservation.
The number of cruise ships in 2024 broke its all-time high since records began (2006) for the second consecutive year, reaching 190 vessels , compared to the 188 recorded in 2023 . Although the difference in the number of cruise ships is not too significant compared to 2017 (183 vessels), the number of passengers has grown notably with almost 580,000 in 2024 compared to the 339,000 who arrived on the island by cruise ship in 2017. This difference is mainly attributed to the larger size and capacity of the vessels currently operating on the western Mediterranean routes, the environmental foundation explains.
Furthermore, the proportion of cruise ships docking in Ibiza compared to the total number in the Balearic Islands continued to rise. In 2024, the port of Ibiza received 30.8% of the 617 cruise ships that arrived in the archipelago, compared to 22.3% a decade earlier. This trend consolidates Ibiza’s growing role in cruise tourism in the Mediterranean. The IbizaPreservation Sustainability Observatory warns of the environmental impact of this model of tourist transport. “Cruise ships and cruise passengers represent a type of tourism that generates significant impacts on our coast and the Mediterranean Sea ,” says Elisa Langley , coordinator of the Observatory. “Studies like those published by ‘Transport & Environment’ in 2019 show that, in 2017, the cruise ships of just one of the major cruise lines emitted ten times more sulfur oxides (SOₓ) than all the cars in Europe combined; and that all European cruise ships produced 15% of the nitrogen oxides (NOₓ) from passenger vehicles on the continent, in addition to large amounts of CO₂, soot, and heavy metals.” Furthermore, “cruise ships are putting further pressure on the already delicate situation we are experiencing in Ibiza regarding waste management,” Langley adds.
Another aspect highlighted by the Observatory is the low economic return these visitors leave behind. The average daily expenditure of a cruise passenger in Ibiza in 2024 was €39 per person , a third of the average expenditure of an overnight tourist on the island , estimated at €164 per day. “The environmental cost of this tourism for the island is high, while, on an economic level, it also doesn’t contribute significantly to the local economy ,” Langley emphasizes.
Given this data, the Observatory proposes limiting the number of cruise ships that can operate on the island, establishing daily and monthly maximums , and strictly regulating or prohibiting the unloading of solid waste in Ibizan ports if necessary.
