I met Maria Frontera, the new president of the Majorca Hoteliers Federation, at the World Travel Market fair in London last November and I was impressed. She was president of the Soller association but at the time it was widely rumoured that she was in line for the top job. In London she warned that the islands were facing stiff competition from competing resorts in the eastern Mediterranean, and I remember being struck by her honesty which rather went against the government line which suggested that all was well and that the Balearics had nothing to fear. She also warned against the increase in the rate of the tourist tax, indicating that it would hit the pockets of families.
The federation is of course bitterly opposed to any increase in the rate of the tourist tax; in fact it wants the tax to be scrapped completely because it is felt that the tax gives competing resorts an added edge. And perhaps it has a point. I feel that Frontera is going to bring a new dimension to the federation; her family have been in the industry for many years and know all about the ups and downs of the Balearic tourism industry. The future for the industry is looking rather uncertain at the moment. The return of Turkey and resorts in north Africa will make life difficult for the Balearics, and many people agree that the record seasons seen of late will not be returning any time soon. Frontera will fight her corner against so-called illegal holiday accommodation and of course the tourist tax.