Isha Sesay
HOTELIERS from Playa de Palma in Mallorca have asked the government to make the area a pilot destination for tourism until a vaccine for COVID-19 is found.
Represented by the Association of Hoteliers, hotel-owners believe Playa de Palma has the ideal conditions to protect visitors from coronavirus.
They claim that it is not only the closest tourist area on the island to Son Sant Joan airport, but that it also boasts five kilometres of beach, meaning that tourists would be able to adhere to social distancing rules.
Moreover, they say the popular holiday spot has an extensive promenade and several spacious parks nearby to practice the safety measures recommended by health authorities to limit contagion between people.
“We are committed to trialling what it would be like to start travelling to Mallorca until a vaccine is found,” said President Jose Antonio Fernandez de Alarcon.
Alarcon also revealed that the Association is currently coordinating with a host of tourism companies, airlines and tour operators in Germany to stimulate activity in the area.
The discussions were sparked by the bleak prediction made by officials that Germans would likely not holiday in Spain this year.
Germans represent a significant monetary injection for the country and particularly the Balearic Islands, welcoming 4.5 million nationals to the region last year.
They are also especially drawn to Playa de Palma, making up 60% of the international market for tourism.
Meanwhile, an agreement has been made between TUI and the autonomous government that the Balearic Islands will be the first destination in Spain that the tour operator travels to.
The Minister of Tourism, Iago Negueruela, held a virtual meeting with senior executives from the TUI Group in which both parties agreed to work together to ensure there is a flow of tourists to the region once the health crisis is overcome.
Negueruela stressed that resuming activity will ‘always be done with the highest level of safety’, and at all times following guidelines laid down by the central government in order to protect citizens.
He said: “We want the Balearic Islands to become a reference point for safety in Spain as well as in Europe.”
