Government report on tourism during the first six months of 2006

Balearic Islands regaining their popularity with tourists

Cycling. Tracks will cover most of the island

In Menorca the number of tourists from Germany and the U.K. has increased by 8.8% and 4.4%; higher than the average Balearic rise of 5.4% and 2.6%

C.M.W..Maó

Between January and June this year a total of 4.9 million tourists holidayed in the Balearic Islands, an increase of 10.9% on the same period last year; the average hotel occupancy rate was 68.3%, 4% more than in 2005; and the income from the tourist sector was up by 8.8% to 3,904 million euros. According to the Balearic Government these statistics, contained in its report on the first half of the year, show that the islands are regaining their popularity with tourists.

The Councillor for Tourism, Joan Flaquer, stated that the islands are once again a fashionable choice for holiday-makers and added that the figures for the second half of the year could be even better.

The report shows that the number of tourists arriving by air in Menorca during the first six months of 2006 increased by 3.2%, the lowest increase in the islands; Ibiza benefiting from an extra 9.2% arrivals and Mallorca 11.9%. The number of overnight stays in the archipelago rose by 20% to 48.5 million.

This Œboom´ in the tourist industry has led to more people being employed in the sector (including accommodation and catering establishments) with an average of 68,068 employed over the six-month period to date, 3.4% more than last year; figures which, according to Flaquer, reflect a major upturn in tourism.

271 kms. of cycle tracks planned

In an effort to attract more out-of-season tourists, the Balearic Government and the Island Council have revealed plans to create 271 kms. of cycle track on the island. The project, which is estimated to cost 2 million euros, will be carried out in phases, the first of which will be started next year..

More than 40 stretches of track, of varying surfaces, will be constructed across the island, with two extra routes totalling 6 kms. linking Es Migjorn and Sant Tomàs and Sant Lluís and Punta Prima.