04/11/2000 00:00
TW
0

The summer is over, thank you and good night. Almost 90 per cent of hotels are now closed and the unemployment figures have risen considerably as a direct result. But temperatures in Majorca are still much higher than in northern Europe and there still could be plenty of life in the tourist resorts, even in November and December, if the local authorities were a bit more imaginative and were willing to invest some money. Spend Christmas in Majorca is just one idea which comes to mind. It seems rather strange that on the last day of October everything stops. The Balearics could be promoted as a winter destination and indeed it is, but with little success. I am sure that many people living in flooded-out homes would give their left arm for a week in Majorca even at this time of the year.

If bar and restaurant owners could be persuaded to stay open and tour firms encouraged to extend their programmes, then the Balearic resorts could lose their image as winter ghost towns. But if the tour firms and local businesses are willing to go out on a limb then they must be supported by local government, who must organise a series of events, whether it be football matches or concerts, to keep holidaymakers entertained when the sun is not shining. If this could be achieved then the Balearics would really be able to shrug off the winter blues.

Jason Moore