German and British tour operators and airlines have launched the recovery of international tourism coming from European markets to Mallorca. German giant TUI started last week its schedule of flights to Mallorca from Germany, the Association of Airlines (ALA) said that Mallorca would reach 2019 levels this summer.
Ian Livesey, director of TUI in the peninsula and Balearic Islands, says: "The first months of the low season are always difficult, especially in the middle of the pandemic, but we advance the flight schedule from Germany because of the positive travel forecasts of Mallorca. This month, we will have eight weekly flights, which will reach 15 flights per week in March".
TUI Fly, Eurowings, Ryanair, Lufthansa and Condor, thanks to the active, gastronomic, cultural and beach tourism, according to the tour operators, have scheduled 57 daily flights from German airports to Son Sant Joan. These numbers have not been reached since the beginning of the pandemic in winter. This explains why 26% of the hotel offer is operational this month and is expected to reach 42% in March.
"Reservations are increasing daily, which shows the Europeans’ desire for visiting the island. This encourages companies to reopen their establishments and hire as many workers as possible," stated UGT and CCOO hotel chains and the trade unions.
Platja de Palma, Cala Millor, Alcúdia-Can Picafort, Platja de Muro, Capdepera, Palma, Palmanova-Magaluf, Peguera, Santa Ponça, Pollença, will be the locations most favored by international tourism reactivation in the middle of February.
The number of open hotels will reach 26% (201 establishments). The occupancy levels in urban hotels in Palma will reach one hundred percent, although the average occupancy rate is 60%. Here, active tourism (cycling and hiking) explains the high occupancy in open hotels in Platja de Muro and Platja de Palma.
The Association of Airlines (ALA in Spanish), which includes the main European international airlines, points out that Mallorca "will reach 2019 activity levels this year based on the evolution of traffic since last August". TUI, FTI, Alltours, DER Touristik, Schauinsland Reisen, Jet2 Group and EasyJet Holidays tour operators agree that Mallorca will have a summer season very similar to the historical one of 2019, but also point out that the Balearic Islands' competitors in the Mediterranean, such as Turkey, Egypt, Croatia and Greece, "are already acting with aggressive marketing campaigns to capture the largest number of tourist possible".
The UK just lifted all restrictions, and this will lead to an increase in travel to the Islands. Ian Livesey points out: "TUI will start flying to Mallorca from British airports on March 1, with six weekly flights, with plans to increase to ten flights in March. But I insist, this is just the beginning".
During the next four years, no additional overnight places are to be allowed on the islands, neither in hotels nor in private accommodation. And: If hotels want to renovate from now on, they have to give up five percent of their previous guest beds. Eventually, the environmental demands on hotel operators will increase. The new law is called the "Circular and Sustainability Act".