Balearic tourism fell 20% last month

Last month, the number of tourists visiting the Balearics plummeted by 20 per cent, compared to just a slight fall of 1.2 per cent in the rest of Spain. What is continuing to cripple the holiday market is the collapse of the German market and a general decline in all other markets, apart from the British sector. British tourism to Spain last month rose by 10 per cent. Figures for the Canaries, Spain's top winter resort which accounts for 40 per cent of the national winter market, show a drop of 7.5 per cent in German tourists, 70'000 less, compared to January 2000. The number of British going to the Canaries rose by 3.2 per cent and British tourism to Andalucia, Spain's number two winter destination, shot up by eight per cent last month. Cataluña also reported an overall ten per cent increase in tourism. The worst performer has been the Balearics, down 20 per cent on last January. The number of Germans visiting the Balearics last month was 11 per cent less than in January 2000 and, with regards to the Spanish market, 13 per cent fewer Germans visited the country last month. The British market has however grown slightly, the number of tourists coming to Spain rose by ten per cent last month. The 42 per cent decline in the US market has not helped the Spanish market, although the Balearics account for a minimal percentage of the number of US tourists who visit Spain. But, experts are confident that apart from the German market, which was on the down turn before September 11, the number of tourists coming to Spain will match last year, while some regions will fare better than others.