In 2019, 2.43 million Britons came to Mallorca on holiday and 3.75 million to the whole of the Balearics. The second largest tourism market behind Germany (4.17 million and 4.53 million respectively), it was affected more than most by the pandemic, while there was also the Brexit factor.
Up to July this year, the British market showed the highest growth by comparison with 2021 - 1.5 million more tourists than for the first seven months of last year. A total of just under two million was only slightly below the 2019 number.
Outstripping other markets in terms of percentage growth in 2022 was only to have been expected, given the extent to which British tourism slumped in 2020 and 2021. The recovery has highlighted the loyalty not just to Mallorca but also to Minorca and Ibiza/Formentera. In 2019, Minorca attracted 480,000 British holidaymakers and Ibiza/Formentera 835,000, way ahead of other foreign markets, although the Spanish market (540,000) was the largest in Minorca.
However, spending has fallen. This is attributed to the exchange rate and to inflation. Whatever the reason, average spending per person over the course of a stay has fallen by 5.6% this year, while the average for all other markets is up four per cent. Average spending per person per day has dropped by 0.3%, whereas the average for other markets has risen by 14.5%.