“Many hotels are planning to open later because of the transport strike...”

“Many hotels are planning to open later because of the transport strike...” | P. PELLICER

Jason MoorePalma23/03/2022 10:13
TW
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Summer 2022 was being heralded as the year of recovery. It was when the island was expected to recover from the pandemic. Hoteliers were confident. Tour firms were upbeat, and then sadly everything went wrong. The strike by some Spanish lorry drivers has hit the hotel industry hard. Vital equipment has not arrived from the mainland which has meant that some hotels will not be able to open on time. There is also concern that higher fuel costs will mean that the price of a package holiday will be far more.

The tourist industry, which was so upbeat, has all of sudden lost all its optimism. If the Spanish government gets its act together it could be just a short-term problem. Truckers should be given aid to help affront rising fuel costs. As has been seen his month they play a vital part in the economy. In the Balearics without them everything comes to a standstill. The impact of the strike by truckers and inflation is already starting to cause economic problems for the islands. It is clearly visible if you walk around Palma at the moment that things are not good.

There are plenty of empty shop fronts in the city centre. If tourists do have to face higher holiday costs then the Balearic government should actively consider scrapping the tourist tax. The last thing the island needs at the more is yet more costs. One thing for sure the island´s big a good holiday season this year....if this doesn’t happen then we are in big trouble.