High demand from and last-minute reservations by all the main holiday markets are causing some cases of overbooking in Mallorca's hotels.
Hoteliers acknowledge that the situation this summer is complex as they don't know until the last minute if bookings will be fulfilled. This is especially so where terms and conditions introduced because of the pandemic continue to apply - no penalty to customers if in the end they choose not to take up reservations.
It can be that hotels find they have a number of rooms that haven't been booked and so make these available via different sales channels. Hoteliers say that it is difficult to operate in an environment with the uncertainties that continue to exist and that this is not how things were before the pandemic. Last minute sales have become a general trend and they are having to adapt to this.
In the event that holidaymakers cannot be accommodated in hotels that they have booked, there is an obligation to offer alternatives of the same standard. Where hotels have exclusive contracts with tour operators, the issue tends not to arise.
Average occupancy levels are at present said to be around 95%. Even in a situation where overbooking may be occurring, an average of 100% does not happen. There has never been average 100% occupancy of hotels in high summer. Statistics over many years show that 95% across the board for July and August is very high.
The forecast for August is for a similar level of hotel occupancy. For holiday rentals, the Habtur association says that these are booked out. At present, though, Habtur adds that it is "unknown what will happen in September".