As was reported last week, July hotel occupancy in the Balearics fell by 2.4% to 87.1%, an average figure which disguised higher occupancy levels such as 92.4% in Can Picafort.
The Majorca Hoteliers Federation had, by the middle of August, given an estimate of 84% occupancy for August, six points down but quite likely to end up much the same as 2018 because of late bookings.
There has been concern about September, but the president of the Association of Hotel Chains, Gabriel Llobera, suggests that discounting of up to 20% will help to produce average occupancy above 80%; in recent years the September occupancy has been around 85 and 86%.
The typical tourist profile in September differs to that in July and August in that there tend to be older tourists who are likely to spend more than the family tourists of high summer. In general terms, therefore, September is a more profitable month for many businesses.
At present, it would seem that September occupancy is running highest in Cala Millor, Paguera, Palmanova-Magalluf and Playa de Palma. Llobera believes that last minute bookings will bump up the occupancy levels across the island.
The number of passengers scheduled to arrive at the airport next month is roughly similar to last September. For the first day of the month, Saturday, some 1,000 flights are programmed for 172,000 passengers (in and out).