I see a lot of comments on social media about how expensive Mallorca has become. Being an island that has to import most of its produce, unfortunately means we are hit harder than most. But most of the complaints seem to be about the cost of holidays, flights and hotels. Once again, being an island doesn’t help, as it limits the ways people can get to us.
Possibly we have become victims of our own success and popularity means more, and more people are choosing to come here. If Tour Operators, hoteliers and airlines see that demand and load factors are high, then why would they drop their prices? I’m not saying it’s right, but it makes business sense and let’s face it, they are not in it to lose money. A change I have seen is that the Brits do not seem to dominate the market as much as they used to. In the resort of Magalluf which has been a predominantly British resort for years, we are now seeing Germans, French, Italians, Spanish, Scandinavians and Americans. At Pirates, particularly in our family Adventure show, we have seen a huge shift. Years ago, our market would have been 90% British, but that has now slipped to just over 50% with all the other markets filling the space.
Mallorca hoteliers who own Iberostar and Melia hotels International hit the headlines when they were announced on Forbes billionaire list. Then came the usual pile on from the keyboard warriors about reducing their hotel prices in Mallorca. Let’s remember that although these businesses are based here, they have hotels and other businesses all over the World. So their fortune is not just built here.
When I was in Seville in February, I booked a room for one night at the Eurostars Torre Sevilla for 3 of us, and it cost me €150. The weekend that Real Mallorca played there in the Copa del Rey final, the same hotel was €599 for one night! It’s a trend copied by tour operators, hoteliers and airlines worldwide and if you want to go somewhere that’s popular, I’m afraid you’re going to have to pay for it.