Sharp drop in the number of British visitors to Majorca this year

It appears that many of the flights coming in to Palma this year are flying half empty, as figures released by the airport authority yesterday indicate, that while the number of aircraft flying in and out of Son San Joan airport has increased this year, passenger numbers have fallen. One of the biggest drops has been in the British market. Last month, 64'405 British passengers flew in and out of Palma airport, 11.18 per cent less than February 1999. The German market is also slightly down, by nearly 2.5 per cent, 13'378 fewer German tourists visited the island last month, and the number of Scandinavians visiting Majorca in February fell sharply by just under 70 per cent. While a total of 731'464 passengers flew in to the island, the figure represents an overall drop of 16'055 people - with the only market showing an increase being the domestic Spanish market. Combined figures for January and February show a shortfall of nearly 26'000 passengers when compared to last year. The figures will not make good reading for the tourist authorities, as the Balearics is trying to get winter tourism off the ground.