British tourists start to return to the Balearics

The Balearic delegation, led by Tourism Minister Celesti Alomar, visited the World Travel Market in London yesterday boosted by the fact that last month British holiday bookings to the Balearics started to pick up after September's drop. Yesterday Alomar met leading members of the British tourist industry and the Minister for Tourism, Kim Howells, to discuss the current situation and the outlook. Although, even at this early stage, Ibatur, the Balearic Tourism Institute, is confident that the number of British tourists coming to the Balearics next year will either match or improve on this year's figure. But this week's World Travel Market, the first of the major international trade fairs since September 11, is focusing on the future of tourism. Last night leading travel bosses and industry chiefs outlined their vision for the future of the industry beyond the current crisis. Tour operators will outline their companies' responses in the wake of September 11 and expand on long-term plans and expectations for the travel and tourism industry. Sir Ian Prosser, chairman of the World Travel and Tourism Council, said yesterday “our first challenge is to restore consumer confidence and get people travelling again - and governments can help assist in this process by communicating new security measures to the public.”