IBIZA might have a reputation for being a party island but it seems the locals have a no-nonsense attitude to noise.
The island’s council is said to have been inundated with noise complaints about a disco cruise that featured 12-hours of non-stop music and a DJ set from space.
The record-breaking event on board Norwegian Pearl was attended by 3,000 clubbers while it was docked in Ibiza on Wednesday.
But now the cruise company and the organisers of the event is said to be facing a fine after residents living near the island’s luxury quayside complained that the noise was too loud and caused a massive nuisance.
Ibiza council was so inundated with protests during the party that they lodged an official complaint with the Port Authority.
It’s being claimed that Norwegian Pearl failed to abide by the strict rules that govern cruise liners when they dock at ports – noise being one of the main factors.
One fed-up resident said: “The noise – because what was reaching us was not music – ended at midnight, at which time we could finally sleep at home.”
And another complained: “Between the party of this ship and the noise of some leisure establishments in the area, it was impossible to fall asleep until after one in the morning.”
The protesters say they cannot understand how the rights of local people could be ignored in favour of giving permission for such an event for visitors.
Wednesday’s big event celebrated a milestone when European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano broadcast an 11-minute set while in orbit as part of the Big City Beats World Club Dome Cruise Edition.
The results of his work were beamed to the main stage on board the cruise ship.
The event’s publicity site said: “The completion of the swimming Club Hotel and the “baptism” will be celebrated with a magnificent fest in the Spanish metropole Barcelona on August 12 2019 – before 94.000 PS set sail for the maiden voyage with the aim to reach Ibiza.
“With waving flags on the top deck, the BigCityBeats Club Hotel will sail into Ibiza’s port, where the Norwegian Pearl will be the biggest hotel in the Balearic Islands for two days. The only Club on Ibiza, that will be open around the clock.”
The phrase “around the clock” is what local residents complained about, saying the music started at noon and continued until midnight.
Following a barrage of complaints to Ibiza council, the authority contacted the Port Authority about the high volume of the music.
Fed-up residents said they could hear the “din” all over the quayside and in residential blocks of apartments.
According to Diario de Ibiza, the complaint was made early in the day but seemed to be ignored as “the music just kept on getting louder and more of a nuisance.”
The Port Authority does have the power to impose a fine, as happened under similar circumstances in 2017 when the Brilliance of the Seas cruise liner was sanctioned for holding a noisy fiesta when in port. The level of the fine wasn’t disclosed.
Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano, 42, apparently worked with German DJ Le Shuuk to learn how to mix tracks.
He also prepared a personal playlist for him to take to the Station and provided specialist DJ software uploaded to the astronaut’s tablets in space.
Mr Parmitano said he saw the collision of two very different worlds as an opportunity for “more people to learn about the International Space Station”.
The Port Authority in the Balearics has yet to comment about the Ibiza complaints.
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Sun Online Travel has contacted Norwegian Cruises for comment.