Balearics woo tourists in Eastern Europe

Joan Collins THE Spanish Ambassador to the Czech Republic, Antonio Pedauye, yesterday highlighted the “high potential” of the Balearics to become a big market for tourists from the East. He emphasised that the “warm” climate which the islands enjoy all year round is a big tourist attraction for the population of this country. He was speaking during a meeting in Prague yesterday with the director of the Balearic Institute to Tourism (Ibatur), Raimundo Alabern, as part of the tourist promotion campaign which started yesterday in the Czech Republic. This campaign will continue into Hungary and Bulgaria, aiming to attract visitors to the islands, especially in the low season, according to Balearic Government sources. To reinforce the Balearics' position in the emergent markets, a Balearic delegation headed by Alabern and formed by around 20 companies in the tourism sector of the islands, among which are the Tourist Promotion Offices of Majorca and Ibiza and the Tourism Foundation of Minorca, began a series of promotional days yesterday in Prague to attract visitors from Eastern European countries. Yesterday afternoon the first of three workshops planned by the Balearic Ministry of Tourism took place in Prague, at which Joan Flaquer, the Balearic Minister for Tourism, was present. These will also be run in Budapest and Bratislavia. The number of tourists from the Czech Republic grew by 6.8 percent in 2005 in comparison with 2004, with 31'995 people visiting the islands. In addition to this the islands are the third most popular destination for Czech tourists and rises of between five and ten percent are predicted for the coming season.