There is plenty of doom and gloom around at the moment especially within the tourist industry. The fact that tourism to the island fell by almost 90 percent in August rather says it all. Hotels have been forced to turn to the domestic market, in otherwords trying to selling holidays on Majorca to Majorcans.
In some cases, some hotels have been successful with resident´s discounts proving popular. Others have just put up the white flag and closed. But, there are some success stories. There is a newly opened hotel near our offices in the Paseo Mallorca which has found a new market which is proving exceptionally popular. Everyday (Monday to Friday) they offer a three course lunch with a drink for 15 euros. This is great value indeed for this part of Palma where a gin and tonic can cost you the same price as this menu of the day. Over the last three months they have built up a good trade as word spread. These days it is almost packed at lunch-time. The food is of good quality and the menu varied, I would call it Mediterranean style.
But it just shows you what can be done if you keep prices low and quality high. If the hotel remains open for the winter it will have been helped in no small part by the restaurant and its menu of the day. Obviously, there are tales of doom and gloom, (like the cafe infront which has gone from serving 500 coffees every morning to just 50), but there is some good news. It is all a question of being flexible.