Bulletin readers do not want shorter school holidays

“In English state schools, there are 195 days that schools have to be open. Five of those are for teacher development and 190 days actually educating children - child facing...190 days of children going in out of 365. I think the question should be is that long enough?” he said. Over the past few years, many of the main resorts in the Balearics, especially the likes of Magalluf and Calvia as a whole, have been making a big push to cater for and attract more families, a reduction of the amount of days parents have to take their children away, especially during the peak summer months, could have a negative impact on that section of the market.

The Balearic tourist industry would be faced with a new challenge if the length of school holidays in the UK is reduced. A record 443,322 school holiday fines were issued in England last year, according to new figures from the Department for Education (DfE). The figures from the 2023-24 school year show a 24% rise on the year before, and are three times higher than in 2016-17, when government records began.

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Any such move would not only hit hotels but also attractions aimed at families and children. Last year, as an example of how important the summer school holiday period is to the industry overall, Jet2holidays incorporated an extensive number of complimentary child places, significantly expanding its offerings during school holidays.

Any such move would also lead to hotels, airlines and tour operators restructuring their pricing because peak seasons such as Easter and Summer would become shorter and would not help the drive for hotels in Mallorca, for example, to open for a longer season. For example this year Easter falls later and the majority of hotels are not opening until early or mid April.

In Spain, there are usually two weeks of holiday at Christmas, one week over Easter and around 11–12 weeks over the summer, which many parents feel are far too many weeks and that the long summer break end up being very expensive.