Cruising nowhere!

You can safely say that about 50 percent of all cruise line passengers who visit the port of Palma, actually never leave the boat. An all-inclusive-lunch and a good place by the swimming pool is probably a greater draw for some than Palma Cathedral. Also, as I have said many times before in this space, Sunday is a key day for cruise ships and unfortunately the majority of museums, shops, the tourist information offices and restaurants are closed. What Palma must attempt to do is try and bring more cruise passengers ashore. Free courtesy buses to the shopping heartland of Palma, free buses to some of the scenic spots. Why not, this would certainly be an added incentive for cruise ship passengers. How many signs have you seen in Palma businesses offering cruise ship passengers discounts. None. Why? I have seen these same signs in other ports, so why not Palma? Plans were unveiled in Palma this week to give the port of Palma a major renovation which included a new cruise ship terminal and even a luxury hotel and spa. It involved many millions of euros of investment and would really put Palma in the premier league as a cruise ship destination. It's a nice plan and it could change the face of the port of Palma, but there are some important points which need to be resolved first such as those I mentioned above. Palma is a great and beautiful city. Unfortunately its business community must concentrate on tourism rather than the resident population.