The tourism development owed a great deal to town hall planning of the 1950s that extended basic resorts - Palmanova, Santa Ponsa - that had been created before the Civil War and that gave the go-ahead for completely new resorts. Approval for the development of Magalluf was given in 1959.
The hotel stock was overwhelmingly that of the initial wave of mass tourism in the sixties. Necessary modernisation of a one to three-star offer has been ongoing over the years, but especially so for the past twelve to thirteen years.
There are 148 hotels in Calvia with 51,330 beds, 80% of which are now four-star. But aspirations for Calvia go beyond four-star and to the luxury of five-star accommodation. Three new five-star hotels are planned for next year.
One of these is the foray into the Mallorcan market by the Blasson Property Investments Group. The conversion of the Hotel Punta Negra will be to the Mandarin Oriental Punta Negra. It is scheduled to open in the second quarter of 2025.
There is the conversion of the Santa Ponsa Park into the Purobeach Resort Santa Ponsa and the acquisition of the old Mar i Pins in Paguera by German group Aethos, which specialises in luxury hotels.
Tourism delegate Elisa Monserrat says that these conversions are representative of a commitment being made to Calvia by large international hotel groups. In the case of the Mandarin Oriental, there is to be a focus on the American market. "American tourists typically go on tours, and stay on the island for a few days and then move on to another destination. But they usually spend a lot of money, which is a benefit to the municipality," says Monserrat.
She and the mayor, Juan Antonio Amengual, have pointed to the arrival of more tourists from the US and Australia in areas such as Illetes, Bendinat and Portals. The two main markets, as is the case across the Balearics, continue to be British and German.
The three new five-star establishments will mean there are 17 five-star hotels in Calvia. As a percentage, these 17 are not huge, but they are indicative of a process of further modernisation and with an emphasis on the very best in quality.
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