YOUR VIEWS

LIKE another of your correspondents I am a long time visitor to the island. I am staggered at the escalating cost of car hire in recent years. When I asked 2 years ago why costs had risen so dramatically I was told that the cars were not available to replace older ones so there was a shortage. It seems that now there is a surplus of cars worldwide costs could easily be brought back to pre-2007 levels.

Do the operators not understand that the cumulative affect of all these increases drives people to look for more economical holiday destinations?
Yours,

Alan Carleton.
Granborough, England.

DEAR SIR

I agree with Stephen Falk (Sat) I would say the goose is dead and the golden egg will be a thing of the past. Sadly Majorca is the engineer of its own demise. Complacency is the major factor in the ever dwindling tourist numbers. False hope and false expectation generated by a tourism council not fit for purpose.

The package holiday has been a faithful friend to the island for many years, sadly its demise has caught the island unawares and unable to cope with the change. Majorca will suffer the consequences. I do think that some bars and restaurants in the resorts are making a supreme effort, and generally making tourists feel wanted. Sadly supermarket staff still treat foreigners with contempt and are generally rude and dismissive of their true value. We do not expect servitude but civility should be the norm, sadly this is not the case. Holiday home owners have been persecuted thus reducing availability for a growing demand. It is now standard practise to book cheap flights and rent out a holiday home, a fact that has escaped a tourism minister who is in thrall to the hoteliers Standards have decreased in some areas regarding local ground works. Weeds flourish and shrubs are not tended.

This leads to an impression of general decay. The expensive areas like Bendinat and Portals seem to remain manicured, but to impress our tourists we need to make all areas look well cared for, and dare I say, welcoming.

I am not sure of the agenda of the tourism minister, it may be that upmarket tourism is the way to go. One thing you can be sure of, without the masses the island will have to rethink its entire economic future.

Name provided but withheld