Cruising ahead

WHY has it taken the local authorities so long to develop Puerto Alcudia into a cruise liner port? Finally an international terminal has been opened and the first cruise ship will visit later this year. Better late than never, I hear you say. But now the Alcudia Port Authorities have the difficult task to persuade the cruise line companies of the merits of Alcudia. Luckily it has plenty, from first rate beaches to breath-taking views. Hopefully, Alcudia will learn from Palma´s mistakes and urge shopkeepers and tourists attractions to open at the weekend. But this is where Alcudia could cash in. During the summer months everything is open and therefore there is plenty to do for the visiting cruise ship passenger. I think that Alcudia could become an important rival for Palma or perhaps you could combine them both because both places are pretty different. Finally Majorca is moving in the right direction and the Palma city council do seem to have a plan to cash-in on this lucrative market by getting shops to open on a Sunday. Some people say that the future of tourism passes through the cruise ship industry. Majorca is well placed to cash-in on this industry. Already the Port of Palma is being extended so that it can handle some of the bigger cruise ships and Alcudia is open for business. Perhaps in years to come cruise ship passengers will rival their counterparts on package holidays. Majorca needs to cater for both, and do it well.