All-inclusive hotels are on the decrease

THE number of hotels in the Balearics offering all-inclusive holiday packages fell last summer, from 181 in 2004 to a more modest 168 hotels in 2005, Balearic Minister for Tourism, Joan Flaquer, claimed during a Parliamentary session yesterday. Furthermore, the number of hotels offering all-inclusive package holidays will continue to fall in the Balearic Islands, according to some of the tour operators, the Balearic minister said. Joan Flaquer made these comments at a debate presented by the Socialist Party on all-inclusive holidays. The sudden increase in this type of holiday occured in 2003, when the Balearic market was in “an extremely weak” position, he added, which led to tour operators “enforcing” their conditions. The Socialist party opposition, led by former tourism minister, Celesti Alomar says the government has not taken any political decisions over all-inclusive holidays, because they believe that the future of the islands lie in residential rather than package tourism,. Furthermore, the socialist delegate said that in 2003 there were only 70 all-inclusive hotels, and not 129 as stated Joan Flaquer.
The Minister denied that the government “is turning the other cheek” over all-inclusive packages, stating that during the past summer his department carried out all the necessary checks at all these type of hotels. With regards to the increase in holiday homes, the Minister denied that this is a premeditated move by the government.
In other foreign tourist resorts, there is a wealth of all-inclusive offerings, for example in Turkey 80 percent of the total holiday offer is all-inclusive packages, and in Morroco this reaches 60 percent of the industry, said Antoni Mari, delegate of the Partido Popular in the parliament.