Balearic hotel prices rocket since new year

Hotel prices in the Balearics are the highest in Spain, along with Cataluña and Galicia. According to figures released by the National Statistics Office yesterday, while on national average hotel prices have risen 8.3 per cent since the start of the year, in the Balearics the hike has been as high as 12.3 per cent, 0.1 per cent less than in Galicia and one per cent less than in Cataluña. According to market analysts, the price increases, in comparison to the first four months of last year, mirror an increase in demand. However, unlike over Christmas and the New Year, when hoteliers, especially in destination resorts such as the Balearics, pushed prices up hoping to cash in on millennium fever, the increase in hotel prices is not deterring clients. In March, for example, hotel takings in the Balearics rose by 17.6 per cent in comparison to March in 1999. In fact, Balearic hotels were the most profitable in Spain. But it was during the month of April that hotel rates in the Balearics rose the sharpest by 12.3 per cent. This latest survey does not take into account special weekend offers, prices quoted by tour operators and business rates. Weekend offers in areas such as the Balearics are few and far between for the most part of the year because demand is so high.