Dénia: New rules for holiday lettings adopted

Dénia has finally adopted its new regulations on holiday homes. There are significant changes compared with the initial draft: even in specially protected residential areas, a limited number of new holiday homes will be permitted in future. The rules have also been amended for parts of Les Roques, Calle Loreto, Baix la Mar and the area leading towards the beach.

For property owners in Dénia, the exact location of a property will play an even greater role in determining whether it can be used as a holiday let. On Monday 17 August, the town council finally adopted the new local by-law on Viviendas de Uso Turístico (VUT). Following the public consultation period, the town hall amended several provisions of the original draft.

Dénia is therefore, in principle, sticking to its policy of limiting the number of flats used for tourist accommodation, particularly in residential areas. However, the final regulations are less stringent than the version presented in June on several key points.

Up to one per cent of VUTs, even in specially protected residential areas

The most significant change concerns those areas of the town that the council wishes to protect specifically as residential neighbourhoods.

In the original draft, no new VUTs were to be permitted in that area at all. This area included, amongst other places, parts of the historic centre, Les Roques, residential areas around Avenida de València and Avenida de Alicante, Patricio Ferrándiz, París-Pedrera, parts of Baix la Mar and the centre of Jesús Pobre.

This complete ban has been relaxed in the final version. According to the city, limited tourist use is to be permitted even in this specially protected area – up to a maximum of one per cent.

This means that, in principle, new tourist-related uses may once again be permitted there. Whether a specific flat is eligible for this, however, depends on the final zoning classification, the proportion achieved in each case, and compliance with local town planning regulations.

Loreto, Les Roques and Sant Pere are being given more leeway

Dénia has also carried out improvements within the historic centre.

According to the Town Hall, the final regulation extends the areas in which tourist accommodation is to be permitted alongside standard residential use. Calle Loreto and Les Roques are explicitly mentioned, as is Calle Sant Pere in Baix la Mar.

This represents a significant change from the proposal presented in June. At that time, Loreto and Les Roques had specifically been cited as examples of areas subject to special protection, where new holiday let properties were no longer to be permitted.

For property owners on these streets, it is therefore not the old map in the draft that is decisive, but the final zoning set out in the by-law that has now been adopted.

Between Camí del Llavador and the beach: 25 per cent instead of 15 per cent

The change is even more noticeable in the area between the Camí del Llavador and the sea, which also includes the section near the beach around Avenida Miguel Hernández.

There are already a relatively large number of holiday lettings in that area, and fewer properties occupied on a permanent basis. In June, the town hall had planned to allow the number of holiday lettings in this area to increase by no more than 15 per cent. The draft proposal at the time set an upper limit of 217 holiday lettings.

The final version allows for greater flexibility: the permitted increase rises from 15 to 25 per cent.

For property owners wishing to apply for a new tourist use in this area, this is one of the most significant practical changes in the entire regulation.

What will happen to the current three-zone system?

The original draft divided the Dénias core area into three categories.

In neighbourhoods predominantly inhabited by permanent residents, new holiday let properties should, as a matter of principle, be phased out or not be allowed to continue once existing licences have expired. A second zone should largely freeze the existing stock: In June, there was talk of 127 short-let properties in this area, with new licences only to be granted if an existing tourist use ceased. This included, for example, parts of Baix la Mar, Colón, Marqués de Campo, the Paseo del Raset and the Eixample.

The third category comprised the area between Camí del Llavador and the beach, which is more heavily frequented by tourists.

This basic logic remains clearly evident. However, the introduction of the one-per-cent rule, the expansion of the compatibility ranges and the increase to 25 per cent will alter the actual number of VUTs that will be possible in future.

For this reason, the forecast published in June cannot simply be carried forward. At the time, the city had expected that the number of VUTs in the affected city centre area could fall from 639 to 344 in the long term.

Following the easing of restrictions that has now been agreed, the town hall has not yet published an updated total figure.

Important for property owners: a resolution does not automatically mean that applications can be submitted

Dénia had already temporarily suspended the issue of new town planning compliance certificates for VUTs in the city centre as early as 2024. Les Marines, Les Rotes and Montgó were exempt from this measure. In 2025, the town council decided to extend the suspension for a further year; this came into force on 12 September 2025.

The new regulation is now intended to replace this provisional system with permanent local rules.

However, even in future, the mere fact that a property is situated in a zone where tourism is generally permitted will not, on its own, be sufficient for a new VUT. For entry into the Valencian Community’s tourism register, one of the requirements is the municipal ‘compatibilidad urbanística’ – that is, confirmation that the property’s use for tourism is compatible with local town planning regulations. The relevant procedure is handled by the Ayuntamiento de Dénia.

The city currently charges a fee of 60 euros for this certificate and states that the standard processing time is up to three months. Among other things, details of the property, the land registry documents and a site plan are required.

In addition, regardless of the new Dénia by-law, the regulations of the Generalitat Valenciana governing holiday lettings apply. These include, amongst other things, the time-limited nature of holiday letting registration; under the Valencian regulations, which were reformed in 2024, it must generally be renewed every five years. A change of ownership may also necessitate re-registration.

The final text of the regulation is now the decisive factor

Property owners should therefore exercise caution when it comes to simplistic statements such as „holiday lettings are permitted again in Les Roques“ or „a one per cent limit now applies in the centre“.

The City Council did, in fact, give final approval to the by-law on 17 August, after seven objections – five from private individuals and two from organisations – had been received during the public consultation period.

However, when we checked on 19 August 2026, the full text of the new VUT had not yet been published on the official website containing the current local regulations.

Only from this final document can the exact boundaries of the individual zones, any transitional arrangements, the calculation of the maximum quotas and the specific date of entry into force be determined with legal certainty.

Anyone wishing to buy a property in Dénia now, register it as a holiday home or take over an existing holiday home should therefore not rely solely on the figures published to date. The exact address, the local planning zone and the current status of the tourist registration are the decisive factors.