Palma is attempting to retain a proportion of business for the Majorcan capital’s hotels over the winter by introducing long-stay ‘workation’ packages.
Around 35% of properties have committed to staying open to support Palma Tourist Board ambitions to become a go-to ‘work hub’ destination.
The move comes at a time of a steady uplift in flights from UK cities such as London and Bristol despite the Balearic islands remaining off the government’s travel corridors list.
New protocols are in place in the Balearics that require a negative diagnostic test for any arrivals from source markets with an accumulated infection rate of more than 50 per 100,000 inhabitants.
Many hoteliers are responding to a demand for longer stays. For example, Can Bordoy Grand House & Garden, located in Palma’s Old Quarter, is offering six month stays with prices starting at £3,200 a month – a significant saving on the typical per-night rate.
The initiative came after the Spanish Tourist Office issued details of Covid-testing protocols it hopes will allow UK holidaymakers to return to the Balearic and Canary islands.
Spain’s government announced agreement on protocols for ‘travel corridors’ with officials of the Canary and Balearic Islands last week.
Palma Tourist Board manager Pedro Homar said: “Our hotel sector continues to respond to the ever-changing environment and come up with initiatives that respond to the new way of living and working.
“Despite losing out on the bulk of summer tourism, Palma has increasingly become a year-round destination for those seeking a more relaxed pace of life, the fresh sea air and some of the joys of the Balearic Islands.
“We hope the new protocols ensure the destination can continue to accommodate tourists in a safe way and we are pleased to see some uplift in flight capacity for November from the UK.
“We continue to work closely with our sector to put in place new measures and infrastructure to cope with the evolving scenario.”