PRESIDENT of the Spanish Federation of Hotels and Restaurants José Luis Guerra, has given his backing to the proposal of the the Balearic leader, Jaume Matas, for setting standards for the all-inclusive tourist package.
Speaking yesterday in Palma, Guerra said that he believed it necessary to adopt such measures to avoid a falling of standards of the tourist product in the Balearics.
Guerra emphasised the advantages of selling holidays in the Balearics at an all-inclusive price. The Islands are a tourist destination where hotels are fundamental, he signalled but the tourist product in its entirety is much more.
Within the framework of a Professional Tourism forum being held as part of the Tecnoturistica trade fair at Palma airport, Guerra maintained that the all-inclusive package (where the customer pays for his accommodation, and food and drink at the hotel prior to arrival) should give fair trading consideration to the complementary offer provided in tourist areas by other bars, cafés and restaurants. The president said that a good understanding needed to be established which would allow the all-inclusive alternative to function in combination with other businesses in the tourist sector. If the new tourist package is going to consist of hoteliers striving solely to keep their guests within the four walls of the hotel, it would become an all-exclusive package, Guerra warned.