Formentera's long-running dispute over beach hammocks and umbrellas has ended with a substantially lower number of installations than the figure authorised on paper in August.

Following a joint technical inspection of the island's beaches, the number of hammocks that can actually be installed has been established at 1,491, together with 745 umbrellas, according to the Conselleria del Mar i del Cicle de l'Aigua.

The figure is significantly below the 1,900 hammocks and 950 umbrellas authorised in the August 17 resolution, and almost identical to the level that was already in place before the current licensing process began.

From 1,960 requested to 1,491 installable

The Consell de Formentera originally requested 1,960 hammocks and 980 umbrellas for the island's beaches for the 2026-2029 period.

The August 17 resolution appeared to bring the dispute close to an end by authorising 1,900 hammocks and 950 umbrellas.

However, that figure represented the maximum reflected in the authorised plans.

A subsequent physical inspection of the beaches produced a different practical result.

The August 24 site inspection changed the final figure

On August 24, technicians from the Consell de Formentera and the Directorate General for Coasts and Litoral carried out a joint replanteo across the affected beaches.

The inspection examined the real conditions on the ground, including distances from the shoreline, the space available for installations, dune systems and the area that must remain available for public use.

Following that exercise, the number that can actually be installed was reduced to 1,491 hammocks and 745 umbrellas.

The Conselleria has confirmed that this is the figure that will govern the physical exploitation of the beaches.

It was not another administrative resolution

The distinction between the August resolution and the August 24 inspection is important.

The 1,491 figure did not come from a new formal administrative resolution replacing the August 17 decision.

Instead, the lower number emerged from the physical verification of the authorised plans against the actual conditions of each beach.

The result is that the paper authorisation and the number of installations that can practically be placed on the sand are not the same.

A reduction of almost 24%

Compared with the original request, the final installable figure represents a reduction of 469 hammocks and 235 umbrellas.

That is approximately 24% fewer hammocks and 24% fewer umbrellas than the 1,960 and 980 originally requested.

In practical terms, almost one in every four hammocks and umbrellas originally sought by the Consell will not be installed.

The final capacity is close to the previous system

The new figure is also significant because of how closely it compares with the system that existed before the latest tender and authorisation process.

According to the Conselleria, the 1,491 hammocks and 745 umbrellas resulting from the August 24 inspection are only 63 hammocks and 31 umbrellas above the numbers authorised for the island during the 2022-2025 period.

That means the outcome of the latest process produces a beach-installation capacity only modestly higher than the one that existed before the dispute began.

The original project covered 11 beaches

The Consell's original proposal covered 11 beaches across Formentera.

They included Cala Saona, Cavall d'en Borràs, Ses Illetes, Llevant, Ses Canyes, Es Pujols, Es Caló, Es Copinyar, Arenals, Migjorn and Ca Marí.

The project also included other seasonal installations and beach-service infrastructure, including water-sports facilities and elements linked to safety and visitor services.

The first decision in May triggered the dispute

The current controversy began with the first resolution issued in May.

That decision rejected approximately one third of the hammocks and umbrellas requested by the Consell after applying criteria concerning minimum distances from the shoreline and dune systems.

A number of other beach installations related to safety and services were also left unresolved at that stage.

The decision prompted the Consell to lodge a partial appeal.

The process was then reopened

In July, the Consell's appeal was accepted and the procedure was sent back to an earlier stage.

The Consell was given a further period in which to submit arguments and, where necessary, revised plans.

It subsequently adjusted the location of several proposed installations, in some cases reducing the occupied surface while attempting to preserve the number of hammocks and umbrellas requested.

That process led to the August 17 resolution authorising 1,900 hammocks and 950 umbrellas on paper.

Why the physical inspection was necessary

The August site inspection was designed to establish what could actually fit on the beaches while respecting the relevant restrictions.

Beach conditions are not determined solely by a plan.

The exact position of the shoreline, the available sand, protected dune areas and the space that must remain open to the public all affect where seasonal installations can physically be placed.

The joint technical inspection therefore provided a more detailed picture than the administrative plan alone.

Illetes and Migjorn had already been reduced

The August resolution had already made reductions in specific areas.

At Ses Illetes, the authorised number was lower than the original request.

At Migjorn, another reduction reflected the withdrawal of one lot by its adjudicatario rather than a fresh rejection by the administration.

Across the other beaches, the August resolution largely preserved the requested number of hammocks and umbrellas while changing their location and the surface occupied.

The later 1,491 figure, however, reflects the island-wide result of the subsequent physical inspection.

The dispute has lasted for almost a year

The process began with the Consell's original application in September 2025.

Since then, it has involved different administrative decisions, an appeal, revised plans, disagreements over technical criteria and a change at the top of the Directorate General for Coasts and Litoral.

The controversy also reached the Balearic Parliament, where lawmakers questioned the criteria used to make the decisions affecting Formentera.

A change of administration and criteria

The dispute intensified after the departure of former director general María Joaquina Ferrer Matas.

Her replacement, Joan Jaume Mulet, subsequently approved a revised approach that allowed substantially more of the installations requested by the Consell to proceed.

The August decision was therefore a major reversal from the first May outcome.

But the subsequent physical replanteo has now reduced the practical capacity again.

The season was affected by the delays

The lengthy administrative process created delays at the start of the 2026 beach season.

By mid-May, even some lots that had already obtained authorisation still lacked a confirmed timetable for installing their structures.

The delays affected not only concessionaires but also the availability of some beach services during part of the summer.

The dispute therefore had practical consequences for businesses and beach users as well as administrative consequences for the authorities.

The figure now applies through 2029

The authorisation process concerns the 2026-2029 period.

That means the capacity resulting from the final technical arrangement is relevant not only to the remainder of this summer but also to the following beach seasons covered by the current authorisation.

The physical layout may of course be subject to future administrative changes, but the current figure reported by the Conselleria is 1,491 hammocks and 745 umbrellas.

The result is close to where Formentera started

Perhaps the most striking aspect of the final outcome is the comparison with the previous authorisation period.

The Conselleria says the 1,491 hammocks and 745 umbrellas now practically match the numbers that had been authorised between 2022 and 2025.

The difference is only 63 hammocks and 31 umbrellas.

After almost a year of conflict, the island has therefore ended up with a beach-installation capacity only slightly above the previous system.

What happened to the original request?

The evolution can be summarised in three figures.

Original Consell request: 1,960 hammocks and 980 umbrellas.

August 17 administrative authorisation: 1,900 hammocks and 950 umbrellas.

August 24 physical replanteo: 1,491 hammocks and 745 umbrellas.

The last figure is the important one for what can actually be installed on the beaches.

Why the distinction matters

The difference between an authorised plan and a physical layout may sound technical, but it has direct consequences for beach users and operators.

Concessionaires cannot simply place every installation shown in the maximum authorised plan if the physical conditions of a particular beach do not allow them to do so while respecting shoreline, dune and public-use requirements.

The August 24 inspection therefore translated the administrative authorisation into a practical installation limit.

A dispute that has reshaped the beach season

The controversy has involved more than the number of hammocks.

It has also raised questions about how coastal rules should be interpreted, how seasonal services are planned and how responsibilities are divided between Formentera's island government and the Balearic administration.

The dispute has become one of the most closely watched administrative issues on the island during the 2026 season.

Formentera's beaches enter the next phase

The immediate uncertainty over the number of hammocks is now considerably clearer.

The physical inspection carried out in August established the number that can actually be deployed, while the wider administrative process has already produced its formal authorisation for 2026-2029.

For visitors, that means fewer installations than the 1,900 figure announced after the August resolution might have suggested.

For operators, it means adjusting their activity to a physical capacity of 1,491 hammocks and 745 umbrellas.

The final outcome

The latest figures leave Formentera with approximately 24% fewer hammocks and umbrellas than the Consell originally requested.

They are also only modestly above the numbers authorised before the latest renewal process began.

The distinction between the August 17 resolution and the August 24 physical inspection is central to understanding the final result.

After months of competing decisions and revised plans, the beach-service system for Formentera has effectively returned close to its previous scale, with 1,491 hammocks and 745 umbrellas now reported as the practical installation capacity for the current 2026-2029 period.