To test the survival of Spanish resorts, the first charter flights with Germans were sent there
The pioneers were German tourists: Mallorca is not without reason unofficially considered the 17th federal state of Germany. As "Russkaya Germaniya" notes, a vacation on the favorite Mediterranean island of German residents was never anything special before, but now that the coronavirus has closed all distant destinations, even a flight to Palma and subsequent stay in a hotel turns into an unforgettable experience, and for many, it will likely be almost the only opportunity this year to spend time by the warm sea.
The Spanish authorities chose Germany as the country that would first send vacationers to the Balearic Islands, not only because of Germany's extreme importance for local tourism (in 2019, only Mallorca, not counting other islands of the archipelago, hosted 4.6 million Germans, while all of Spain received 11 million). But also because Germany handled anti-virus measures exemplarily.
In Madrid and Palma, the controlled visit of 6,000 guests from Germany is considered the safest from an epidemiological point of view, given the current German data on the spread of the coronavirus and the number of recovered patients. The 14-day quarantine requirement, which all arrivals from Europe to Spain must currently undergo, does not apply to the pioneering German tourists.
The pilot project "vacation on Mallorca after the pandemic" is also intended to test how the island copes with the influx of a larger number of guests expected after July 1. For now, the Balearics, like all of Spain, are closed to travelers planning individual vacations, and the issue of returning property owners, among whom there are many German citizens, to Mallorca has not been resolved. On the first "test" tourists, local authorities are testing their own anti-virus policy – whether the only international airport of the largest island, as well as the second, smaller one on Menorca, can withstand the influx of guests, and whether the precautionary measures are sufficient.
Four chains are participating in the trial reception of tourists, with German tour operators Tui, DER Touristik, and Schauinsland Reisen. The first to have the opportunity to go to the islands were clients of these travel companies who lost vouchers booked for the three spring months of the pandemic and the first half of June. Tourists are accommodated in two opposite parts of the island – in the south, at the multi-kilometer Playa de Palma beach, and in the Alcudia bay in the northwest. Four thousand guests from Germany arrive here, and another thousand each to Menorca and the Pityusic Islands (Ibiza and Formentera).
In hotels, tourists face all sorts of restrictions: the need to wear masks in public places and maintain social distance, a ban on access to spas and fitness centers, no buffet in the restaurant, no animation and many entertainment events. The beach, sun, and sea are meant to soften the impression of a reduced vacation.
Balearic Prime Minister Francina Armengol claims that the archipelago is fully ready to welcome the first tourists. At the same time, some local residents met the pilot project with hostility: fears for their own health in the eyes of many islanders outweigh economic considerations. Especially since the Balearics were not as seriously affected by the spread of the coronavirus as mainland Spain, and a new outbreak, if it occurs, will most likely be "on the conscience" of visitors.
Mallorca opened to the first German tourists in full compliance with the requirements of the European Union: the European Commission recommended establishing so-called "vacation corridors" between countries and regions where a comparable epidemiological situation persists, to support the economy – from the aviation industry to local gastronomy – and not to deprive Europeans of summer vacations. This year it will be quiet, including on Mallorca – the birthplace of wild beach madness: anti-virus requirements do not imply noisy crowds, dancing, or revelry and permissiveness.
In previous years, local authorities fought as best they could against drunkenness and indecency, sought to educate tourists and limit their influx, increasing the "quality" of guests in favor of those who behave more decently and spend more. The slogan "The island is full" was rapidly gaining popularity. The forecast for 2020 assumed that the Balearic Islands would be visited by 16 million tourists over the entire season. Due to the pandemic, their number will be reduced to 6 million – provided that from July the reception of vacationers gradually begins to gain momentum and there is no second wave of infection. The expected annual hotel occupancy rate is 25%.
Resort business owners now miss any visitors – including the least solvent ones: without them, many beach bars and restaurants, shops and mini-hotels will not survive the coming summer. Small and medium-sized businesses in other resort destinations will face the same problem.
The authorities of the Canary Islands are negotiating with the government in Madrid about a similar project for receiving the first tourists, but a final decision has not yet been made – including due to stricter precautions. Currently, every arrival to the Canaries needs a current negative coronavirus test. On Mallorca itself, the opened hotels advertise themselves as COVID-frei – "free from coronavirus".