Mallorca flights: Christmas flight prices shoot up

For residents of Mallorca who plan to travel to the mainland for Christmas, the price of some flights has already gone up by as much as 50%.

The president of the Aviba travel agencies association, Pedro Fiol, says that prices have on average increased by 30%. They are up by 50% for the least well-served routes.

He accepts, however, that this happens every year - as demand increases, so do prices. And in many cases, flights are almost full.

As an example, he points to the fact that a one-way flight to Seville on December 22 would have cost 28 euros in April (this price would have been with the 75% residents discount). Right now it is 120 euros, and it could yet go up to 200 euros.

In the case of flights to Galicia on December 22, the price was 37 euros in April. It is now 90 euros and is expected to go up to 125-130 euros.

The best prices are for the best-connected routes, e.g. Madrid and Barcelona. In April, the price would have been 18 euros, while now it is up to 45-50 euros. Leaving bookings until much nearer to Christmas and prices will be around 100 euros.

Fiol advises buying tickets seven to eight months in advance, although he acknowledges that most people do not.

As to demand for flights from Mallorca over the Christmas season, he says that this is higher for mainland destinations than for foreign. Among the most popular are Salamanca, Madrid, Vigo, Cádiz and the Basque Country.