Jason Moore12/02/2017 00:00
TW
2

Local hoteliers have been accused of getting greedy. They have increased their prices and many tour firms are concerned. Now, the hoteliers can afford to be upbeat. Half the world appears to want to come to Majorca on holiday during the peak summer months and basically their attitude appears to be - if you can't afford the prices go elsewhere.

This is a dangerous game to play because it could backfire. Competing resorts in the eastern Mediterranean such as Greece have already enjoyed a surge in bookings. Turkey is popular again. Even some of the resorts in north Africa are slowly attracting tourists again. But of course Spain and the Balearics have a trump card: they boast tried and tested resorts which are safe and well equipped. And of course the hoteliers have done their homework.

The British market will be particularly exposed to this increase in prices because of the fall in value of sterling against the euro. The British will be looking for the cheap deals which at one time were available in the Balearics. But not this year. Success has meant that hotels can easily afford to raise their prices and local hoteliers know that if there is a drop in the British market it will be easily compensated by a growth in German and Scandanavian tourism. And then of course there are the mainland Spaniards who can't get to the Balearics at the moment because they find that most hotel beds have already been bought up by the British and Germans.

So really it could be said that the local hoteliers are sitting pretty. Well, for now. Majorca is probably one of the most sought-after places in the world for a holiday and the local tourist industry is not too bothered which nationality fills the hotels. The local hoteliers look invincible. They can be greedy because they know that tourists do not have many alternatives. Well, at least for now. But a day is a long time in tourism!