Hotel occupancy during the first 15 days of August reached 95 per cent, the highest figure registered since 2001. According to a press release by the President of the Hoteliers’ Association, Juanjo Riera, the figure is expected to be over 90 per cent during the whole month, equalling the figure for 2007, which was a memorable year for most. The area which experienced the highest increase over the last twelve months was Santa Eulalia, which had an occupancy figure of more than 93 per cent, compared with the 77 per cent recorded last year; mainly due to the confidence placed in the area by the British market. The exact figure for the tourist establishments in Ibiza was 95.45 per cent, 10.4 per cent higher than last year, and in Formentera, 96.59 per cent, an increase of 7.34 per cent on 2009.
According to Riera “the crisis has caused a slump in long-distance holiday destinations as far as the National and European tourists are concerned, leaving the way clear for destinations closer to home”. On the other hand, media interest has majored on the islands, especially in the aftermath of the World Cup, when so many squad members holidayed here, and were in the focus of the world’s press core. Tourism Councillor Pepa Marí, added that “the trademark “Ibiza” is an established name, and this makes a difference in times of difficulties in comparison to other less well-known destinations”. She also commented that the increase of frequencies by the “low-cost” airlines had moved the emphasis away from tour-operator booked holidays, as more and more holidaymakers arrived privately.
On a downside, the high occupancy figures have lead to a significant number of “over-bookings”, the like of which has not been seen for more than a decade. However, advanced bookings for the rest of the month and the first two weeks of September are very healthy, although the decline will be noted after that, and the “season” is not expected to extend much into October.