Lessons From Mallorca’s Rushed Reopening
Photo Credit: Mallorca's tourism industry continues to suffer as stakeholders campaign for government action. Getty Images / ellobo1
Skift Take
Mallorca's slammed tourism industry could see recovery begin this summer, but there are huge "ifs" — vaccine rollouts, source markets reopening, and the ability to move away from mass tourism. Did moving too quickly add to these uncertainties?
It seemed like it would be an early tourism recovery success story for Mallorca when a pilot scheme rolled out for German tourists in June 2020, ahead of Spain’s wider reopening.
In partnership with tour operator TUI, the local hotel association and the Balearics government, the first batch of German tourists spread out across the popular beach-blessed Balearic islands. Protocols were limited to temperature checks and health screenings on arrival, plus the promise of "bubble tour groups" to keep the virus from spreading.
But the unorthodox safety marketing campaign failed. Case numbers rose on Mallorca as well as in source markets, including the UK and Germany which were quick to list Spain as a risk zone. Germany also began requiring quarantine upon return from Mallorca, effectively freezing travel despite the Balearics’ reopening efforts.
Nearly a year since Covid hit, tourism is anything but back on its feet. The Balearics’ tourism industry stakeholders are now fighti
