All A Bit Academic: Tourist satisfaction in Mallorca

Mallorca claims second spot in tourist satisfaction with sun and beach destinations. Only the Caribbean beats it. This is one of the findings from research by Jaume Garau at the University of the Balearic Islands in Palma. “The Diario” has gone quite big on reporting this research – both the things that satisfy tourists and those which dissatisfy.

On the face of it, coming second to the Caribbean and ahead of places like Turkey, Greece, France, the Canaries sounds like good news – and it probably is. But having come up with this finding, what will anyone do with the results?

The research itself is published in the “Annals of Tourism Research”, though the comparative findings (between different destinations) are not included in the paper to be found there. They must be published separately. The comparison seems to have been made by asking interviewees at Palma airport to rate destinations they had been to in recent years (including Mallorca).

There are conclusions which might be thought to have practical consequences. While the island’s sun and beach tourism gets approval from a German-British-Spanish research population, there is less satisfaction with other things, such as local cuisine, culture and historical places and nightlife. But a question that follows is to what extent does satisfaction imply interest. One could say that what Garau has revealed is precisely what many, including myself, have long argued, and that is that it is the core brand of the Balearics and Mallorca – sun and beach – which is of greater importance to the tourist than other aspects, like gastronomy or culture.

While the main findings have been reported in one article, another looks at what dissatisfies tourists. And this is potentially quite revealing, and especially for the distinction it draws between Mallorca tourism “veterans” and those new to the island or islands. Among the old-hands, it is the apparent deterioration in the physical landscape – too much construction, too much noise, too much traffic etc. – that is the cause of dissatisfaction. For the newbies, it is prices. The veterans, however, seem to have little problem with these. Significantly perhaps, the research was actually conducted in 2006, i.e. B.C. – before crisis. It would, in a hypothetical world, be interesting were the same population of tourism veterans to be asked their views now as to prices. But even without this, the research has at least applied some academic rigour to the contentious issue of prices, one that is normally only dealt with via anecdote.

What the researchers are at pains to point out is that unlike surveys which seek measures of satisfaction alone, theirs has included measures of dissatisfaction as well. It is these, they argue, that need to be taken into account in determining a tourist’s intention to return. They also argue that dissatisfaction is not the opposite of satisfaction (bet you didn’t know this) in referring to the fact that interviewees who express satisfaction can also express dissatisfaction about the same thing.

The problem with this research, as is typically the case with academia, is that its purpose is not necessarily meant to be practical. The overriding objective is to establish the excellence of the research, the methodology and the need to do more research. Extracting the practical is possible, but it isn’t easy, and for this reason, though the research is probably quite important, one wonders if anyone much, outside of academia, will really take much notice.

* Joaquín Alegre and Jaume Garau, “Tourist Satisfaction and Dissatisfaction”, Annals of Tourism Research, Vol. 37 No. 1 2010, Elsevier.

Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.

All Being Well: Bienestar Activo on the bay of Alcúdia

The central and regional governments and the three combined municipalities of Alcúdia, Muro and Santa Margalida are due to chip in a third each of a 4.5 million euro budget over four years that will go towards making the northern tourism zone of Mallorca one of “bienestar activo” (active well-being). It is an “ambitious plan”, says Alcúdia’s mayor Llompart. Ambitious possibly, but what on earth is it?

This is a strategic plan conjured up by the three town halls and the local hotel associations to add some dynamism to tourism, especially that in the off-season. The budget is to be spent on planning, organisation and management; on resources and tourist services; on improving competitiveness and on marketing. Good. Still not clear what it is though.

The answer lies with trekking, Nordic walking and cycling. Stifle a yawn in the back row there. Not exactly anything new. Cycling we know all about; Alcúdia and Can Picafort have had their own Nordic walking “routes” for some while; trekking is an old past-time. To these can be added canoeing, which is meant to be taking place on the Lago Esperanza.

The hotel associations on the bay of Alcúdia have been keen to promote the sporting nature of the area and did so recently when the tourism minister was in town. But one had the impression that they were implying something rather more dynamic. Do existing tourist “attractions” fall into this category? It’s hard to get excited.

There is, unfortunately, something rather lame about the spin behind this, for instance that devoted to the benefits to businesses other than hotels. Cyclists will go to bars or restaurants or have a massage, it is said. Well, yes, some will go to bars and restaurants;  as they already do. Not that everyone locally would say that cyclists bring in much by way of income to bars (a sometimes false impression, it should be said). As for the odd massage, well that should really get the local economy buzzing.

The “bienestar activo” initiative may well be worthy, even if it is a repackaging of what already exists. But we have been here before with initiatives. Muro town hall made much of a revamping of its “promotion”. Has it had much of an impact? Then there was that “estación naútica” concept that was meant to brand Alcúdia as a quality watersports centre. Never heard anything more about that.

Diversifying the tourism offer is laudable, but this is not new diversification. Relying on the natural environment or current infrastructure, which trekking, cycling, Nordic walking and canoeing all do, means that it is possible to try and make more out of very little investment. Seems fair enough. But maybe this is the problem. It is cheap to promote what is already there, even at 4.5 million, and is therefore easy to avoid attempting something rather more dramatic. What seems to be missing, in the reports at any rate, is any indication as to how many more tourists this will all bring in; how many more hotels might actually be open in the off-season.

And there is something else that seems to be missing. Among all this sporting “diversification” there is no mention of one particular sport. Golf. Why not? Maybe it’s not considered to be part of well-being.

Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.

A Case Of The Jitters

Sunwing, the all-Scandinavian hotel and apartment complex, is not far off being full. So I was told yesterday. With its location, right on the beach and an easy walk to both the port of Alcúdia and The Mile, you would hope that it – of all places – would be doing well. But the all-Scandinavian element probably tells more of a story.

Despite those comments a while ago about the Swedish finding the price of a beer in beach bars somewhat excessive and also about them defecting to other destinations, such as Thailand, the reality seems rather different, as it has been for perhaps three or four years. It has been the Scandinavians that have been keeping Alcúdia going. Hug a blond or a blonde. Even non-euro nations, like Norway and Sweden, and unlike the UK, don’t seem to have turned their backs on Mallorca and Alcúdia. The less good news might be if Sunwing goes down the all-inclusive track.

Contrast the apparent tranquility by the beach with events elsewhere – in more Brit-market land. There was a bit of an incident yesterday, one involving a leaflet, and one I’m not about to go into. Suffice it to say, it also involved a hotel with a British market. The hotel didn’t like a leaflet for a British bar. Its prerogative. But there are ways of doing things, other than getting in a bit of a tiz.

It was only when one heard of other apparent developments that one could possibly put this into a wider context of anxiety. Another hotel is, so it is being said, to not be graced by a leading UK tour operator next year; this may be destined to be another part of Alcúdia that is forever Scandinavian. And then there is Bellevue. The word is that it will close early and undergo some redevelopment for next year. As ever, I would like to see some hard evidence, but that is the word.

On top of this, there was confirmation of something that has been doing the rounds on PuertoPollensa.com’s forum (and Trip Advisor) regarding a website known as puertopollensa4all.com. The confirmation came not from a holidaymaker but an operator locally. People are being royally scammed.

This was of a totally different order to the jitters that seemed to be around, but it just added to a sense of anxiety. Yesterday was not a great day, because there was a strain, a feeling of all not being right with the world. But there was always meeting up with Sheila and Alan again, who were partaking of some liberal measures at Gavins. Which was far more like it. Perhaps we should all just relax a bit more.

Cheers, meanwhile, seem to have found some proper flags – fat lot of good it has done though. Oh woe is England. Told you it was not a great day.

Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.

Ten Per Cent: The role of discounts

Money off, money off!

The question is, is price the most important thing? To read all the gripes and anecdotes, you would think that it is. There is no doubting the fact that the holidaymaker is a whole load more price-sensitive than may have once been the case, but is price the most important thing?

There are certain alleged truisms from the management/business world that not everyone is inclined to believe. One is that workers are not motivated by money; another is that businesses should never “sell” on price. Depending on your point of view, you will think these to indeed be true or bollocks. The real answers are, as always, far from black and white.

Which leads us to money off. To discounts.

Via Facebook, one of the local tourist office people asked me if I had thought about discount coupons in HOT!, and then went on to mention the bag of popcorn that’s doing the rounds, together with some cards for discounts at some restaurants. The answer to the question was, well, no. If a business wants to offer a discount, it’s up to them. The wider question is how effective is the discount approach?

On the face of it, you would think it was a no-brainer. 10% off, in flood the tourists. But it’s not as simple as that. If, for example, you get a whole load of places in an area making the same or similar offers, then where’s the difference? A business feels almost compelled to match the offer, even reluctantly. If the result is a load of repeat business, then ok, but that’s really the issue. It may be attractive to the holidaymaker, but how good is it for the business?

The argument against discounting is that it elevates price to the top of the marketing mix tree. Price becomes the selling point, and this runs counter to pretty much all marketing theory. But what you are unlikely to find in all that theory is any study of discounts in a temporary market – which is what a tourism market is. Unless you take into account those visitors who return year on year. You don’t build a business, long term, on discounts. You may do so through price, as part of the overall package, but this assumes that the prices are right in the first place. A customer doesn’t become loyal on the basis of a discount; he is loyal only to the discount, not to the bar or restaurant.

A Mallorcan restaurant owner was umming and ahh-ing about a discount. In the end, he decided against because he was worried that other Mallorcans would come in and take advantage – never underestimate the Mallorcan desire to pay as little as possible. Even without some local free-ish-loading, the point is that he would stand to lose 10% that he might have got anyway. Which does also assume his package is right – in terms of the food, service and the price.

I’m not convinced about the discount as an incentive, partly because the tourism market is too diverse to be sure. At the low end, a restaurant with relatively high prices is unlikely to attract business even with a discount. At the high end, why would you offer a discount? At the low end, a place with lowish prices might get additional trade and experience an erosion in margin, with no guarantee that the customer would spend more than they might otherwise have done, or will come back, especially if the place next door is doing likewise.

It’s an interesting subject though, and one – where the temporary market is concerned – that is deserving of investigation. Sounds like something else I’m going have to do. But if anyone has any thoughts on the effectiveness, or otherwise, of discounting in tourist resorts, it would be good to hear from you.

Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.

Kicking Off (Or Not): Why World Cups are dull

Oh dear. How the mighty fall. There will doubtless be some (expats) who have delighted in Spain’s defeat. I have never felt badly towards the Spanish team, though even I found myself willing the clock down against the Alpine dullards. Why is that, do you suppose? During the Euros, in the absence of England, it was easy to get behind the Spanish team, but then they went and blew it – blew the fact that they have been as useless, more useless, than England over the years. Winning something changed everything. But Spain will progress, despite a thought that has been nagging me that, like France in 2002, the team will just blow up. It might be remembered, though, that El Diego and Argentina lost their opening game in 1990, but still made the final.

Ah yes, 1990. In the days when World Cups still meant something. In that game, against Cameroon, you still had all what used to make World Cups great. Genuine, on-field violence. Why is this World Cup dull? Why have all World Cups since 1990 been dull? Because in 1994, FIFA decreed that the Americans had to have a tournament without physical contact, save for Leonardo’s elbow. What you got was Bebeto’s infuriating baby-rocking. Cutesy celebrations for an Americanised and sanitised era of football. Oh for the days of Argentina in 1978 and a Peruvian goalkeeper who just so happened to be Argentinian and who just so happened to let in six goals – against Argentina. Oh for the days of 1986 and a Uruguayan kicking my some time döppelganger Gordon Strachan up in the air after two minutes – and getting sent off.  Oh for the days of 1962 and David Coleman’s self-righteous indignation at the “disgrace” of Italy and Chile. The days of 1966 and Nobby Stiles attempting to put an end to detente by mugging France’s midfield, and the Argentinians – always the Argentinians – provoking Alf to his “animals”. One looked down the list of the first-round matches in the hope of some which years ago would have sparked a world war, but which have passed with nary an ankle tap. “After you, Luigi. No, after you, Roque.” Italy versus Paraguay. Thirty years ago or so, and it would have been mayhem. Not now. More’s the pity. That’s why World Cups are dull.

Among the locals of course, there is World Cup “fever”, as the press like to refer to it. This mainly manifests itself in terms of noise pollution via car horns, and then the sound of whole cars being written off as Switzerland spoil the party. But there are not so many Spanish flags attached to a Seat aerial or trailing behind a moto, spluttering and farting along the main roads. There are more German flags to be seen. And of course English. St George’s cross and Union flags. Then there are some strange flags. Like the ones that Cheers have put on the Cheers buggy and outside the bar. It’s red with a white cross. Not white with a red cross, but red with a white cross. The vertical line is straight down the middle. Where does this flag come from? The closest, with any World Cup connotation, seems to be the Danish flag, but its vertical line is offset to the left. Danes there are, but they are not around in the same numbers as the English. And Cheers is, after all, meant to be a British (English) bar. I reckon that someone ordered some St George’s flags and got the colours round the wrong way.

Unlike the local Spanish I can’t really get worked up about it all. World Cups are no longer what they were and what they should be – utterly unjust and a thigh-high tackle away from actual bodily harm. Mind you, this one might be like others – England will prove to be rubbish, and Germany will win it.

David Coleman. Fabulous. The Battle of Santiago, 1962:

Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.

Accentuating The Positive: Friendly Alcúdia

Once more “The Diario” has gone out talking to tourists where other papers sit in the air-conditioning and pen pieces about the cost of a coffee. Tourists the paper spoke to were in Alcúdia. The impetus for doing this was the visit of the representatives of 25 tour operators who came to Alcúdia (and Can Picafort) on Friday and an observation that was being made during that visit that greater friendliness needs to be shown to tourists.

A lot is said about friendliness (or lack of it). But it is not a factor that has ever struck me as being much of an issue; only if someone wants to make it so. As always one can pull out an example of poor service or surliness, but generally speaking … ? I’m not convinced. Nor are the holidaymakers to whom “The Diario” spoke. Friendliness, helpfulness were the positive aspects of the paper’s investigation. Less positive were prices (more expensive than Malaga or the USA, according to a family that was spoken to) and the absence of good transport, i.e. the absence of a train to Palma. Some American visitors had expected that there would be one. Many people in Alcúdia had expected that there would be one – before the politicians proved themselves incapable of arriving at a compromise. Another visitor said that she thought that taxis were expensive and not always easy to find. The paper does point out something which most visitors would be unaware of, and that is that taxis in the different municipalities along the bay of Alcúdia – Alcúdia itself, Muro and Santa Margalida – cannot pick up outside of their municipalities. One can understand that this might cause some frustration. An empty cab goes past and keeps going past. Maybe the issue needs to be addressed, and not set aside only when Muro taxi drivers are called in as reinforcements by an Alcúdia taxi brigade which gets overwhelmed by demand on market days.

But overall the paper was pretty positive, albeit that it spoke to less than a handful of visitors. So, proves little, but at least it was trying.

Also positive is the word that business appears to be on the increase in bar world. The past week seems to have witnessed a significantly higher level of trade, and not just because of the football, although this has had an impact, an impact that does make one wonder. One bar, Mile-based, reports that Saturday last week was the second best day in ten years. Ok, England were playing (after a fashion), but so they have also played over the past ten years (when not failing to qualify). So, what of those fears that the hotels would gobble up the Sky footy trade? And moreover, what of all-inclusives and their effects down The Mile? The protests against all-inclusives seem to have been forgotten amidst a burst of recent good business.

* The Diario article is here: http://www.diariodemallorca.es/part-forana/2010/06/15/amabilidad-problema/578954.html

Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.

Dead Again: The Marquet case

Following on from yesterday and a reference to deaths in Alcúdia last year, the result of street violence, the accused in the case of Gabriel Marquet, who died after eighteen days in a coma, are to finally come to trial. The prosecution is seeking a sentence of twelve years for the main accused said to have delivered the blow that proved to be fatal; the charge is one of murder and not manslaughter.

The Marquet case aroused considerable passion. There were two demonstrations against violence that resulted from the attack on him in April last year. Whether much has really changed is questionable. As evidenced by the mass botellón at the weekend, the town hall’s attempt to outlaw street drinking has not worked. One reason is probably a lack of police.

Into this equation comes the whole issue of local financing. The town halls pay for the local police forces; the Guardia (and national police) is a separate, state-funded organisation. Right now though, there is the drive to cut costs in public administration. The central government has decreed that town halls cannot get themselves into further debt. The regional government of President Antich is challenging this, and he has support on the left of Mallorcan politics. The Mallorcan Socialists (PSM) held a conference at the weekend at which they called for increased financing of all levels of island government – the regional government itself, the Mallorca Council and of course the town halls.

The problem is that there isn’t any money sloshing around. The left’s calls are unrealistic, but they are not wrong when one considers the responsibilities of the town halls, such as police. In some municipalities and their more peripheral “villages”, e.g. Santa Margalida, even before cash got strapped the level of policing was a serious bone of contention among the residents of Son Serra de Marina.

Shifting demographics, the summer influx (for which there are normally additional police), recession and its societal impact, and a cultural change in terms of attitudes towards drink. These all place a strain on the local police. Now is probably not the time to be cutting their resources.

On a brighter note, it has been extremely heartening to get the feedback for HOT! It is having the impact I had hoped for. There are of course questions as to when the next one is coming out. This was never intended. Not this year anyway. But it is inevitable that a “newspaper” gives rise to an anticipation of something to follow. Oh that it could be done, but I don’t want to go there again – the issues of cost of printing, levels of advertising, free versus paid etc. etc. Just to say, thanks to those who have been complimentary, and to remind you that there is a specific Facebook page which will have regular updates throughout the summer.

Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.

Eyesight To The Blind: Youth drinking culture

On the same night as Alcúdia was celebrating the harmless Miss Drag parade, something else was being celebrated – something rather less harmless.

For some years, Puerto Alcúdia has been the location for a vast gathering of island youth, coming together at the end of the school year. In itself this may seem harmless enough, but the event has got completely out of control. It has become a massive botellón (street drinking party), accompanied by fights, vandalism, robberies; one played out on the beach and around what is the main “local” night area, that of the Magic Centre.

Organised with the aid of Facebook and other social networking sites, the “party” is not all bad news. It does, after all, bring to Alcúdia a fair amount of business. But it degenerates as the night goes on. Arrests and injuries follow.

With ages ranging from 14 to 18, the Alcúdia school-end bash gives lie, once more, to the absurd argument that Mallorcan and Spanish youth have a respect for alcohol and do not engage in the level of anti-social behaviour that their British counterparts do. This is a view perpetrated by some visitors but also by some Brits who live locally and who either haven’t a clue what life is really like outside their make-believe, expattery “paradise” worlds or who would rather not know, preferring to justify their existences in the “paradise” worlds by ignoring what goes on or by pulling the ah, but it’s all so much better here, it’s just a small minority and the UK is so much worse line. Sorry, but it’s only partially true. One reason why things seem much worse in the UK is that there are an awful lot more people to make them worse.

Perhaps the main difference, though, is that – for the holidaymaker or resident -trouble from events like the botellón is easily enough avoided. They tend to be confined to certain areas, while rarely do they give rise to the more British desire to have a go at anyone who might be in the vicinity. Random attacks on people in the streets are not unknown (a gay couple were attacked in Alcúdia recently, for example), but to over-emphasise them would be quite wrong; the streets are generally safe, so long as certain places are avoided at certain times.

Violence there is, and there were of course two deaths early in the season last year, but it isn’t extreme and is just as likely, more likely perhaps, to occur within the confines of certain hotels and to be solely the action of holidaymakers (and not just the British). However, the drink (and drugs) element, among local youth, cannot be brushed aside as though it were not an issue, as it most certainly is. One wishes, once and for all, that some would remove their tinted-the-turquoise-of-sea Raybans and see local society for what it really is. But they won’t, because they need justification and also a need to lambast a home country for societal ills that they pretend do not exist in Mallorca. They are blind. Deliberately and delusionally.

Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.

Camping It Up: Alcúdia’s Mile

The Mile has always been camp. Camp in the widest sense of the word. It has an an addictive aura of the naff; Eurovision with karaoke, giggles, lager and shots. Appropriate, therefore, that drag queens came to “Bells Street” on Friday night, and were introduced by a couple who could have passed for Eurovision presenters. Ángel in black suit and Emma in full-length, body-hugging glittery white. She looked a million dollars; Ángel more than just a few bob, too. Ángel did the Spanish intro, Emma the English; also in good Eurovision style, even if Emma’s attempts at whipping up some whooping, everyone-alright reaction did rather fall on not deaf but typically restrained British ears.

There is something gloriously tacky about drag acts. They are an expression of the absurd grotesque, rather like The Mile itself, off which the lights of Bells Street (the Calle Astoria) blazed out in the night-time blackness, and they looked magnificent, the lights, that is, if not necessarily the drags. But the whole event was magnificently silly; just as The Mile should be.

There is an appalling snobbery shown towards The Mile. In some quarters anyway. It is shown by those for whom “Alcúdia” is synonymous with holiday devil’s work and of course with the ridiculously simplistic and unthinking “Blackpool” metaphor. Shown by those who have forgotten that holiday is meant, above all else, to be fun.

There have been calls for years for Bells Street to be closed to traffic and to be pedestrianised. It was closed on Friday night, except for the stage where the entrants in Miss Drag Mallorca 2010 paraded, pouted and posed. They should repeat the exercise at least once a week. Put on an event. Music, laughter, drink, volume and fun.

Everything was there. Groups of Spaniards; legions of tourists, some looking baffled by the whole thing, others clicking away with their digitals and mobiles, having their own photos taken with a drag or several; footy on big screens; the smell of grilling meat and curry; music over a system; gangs of reps out on the lash.

Naff and utterly wonderful.

And after the parade of contestants, came the chance to club the rest of the night away. Club music. Amazing to think that it is twenty years since music was changed for ever. And this was one of the things that did it –
The Future Sound Of London, “Papua New Guinea” feat. Lisa Gerrard (and not the Cocteau Twins’ Elizabeth Fraser as is often mistaken; she appeared on other FSOL stuff):

Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.

Cutting Down To Size: The Council of Mallorca

A few days ago I mentioned the fact that the left-wing Bloc group had suggested that responsibilities for certain ministries at regional government level should be transferred to the island councils, such as the Mallorca Council. It didn’t seem much of an idea, and ran counter to my own view that it is the council which needs trimming. Well, what do you know?

The Bloc’s idea has not been taken up, but there is talk flying around as to the future of the council. Not before time. The Partido Popular has been making overtures to the president of the council, Francina Armengol (PSOE), in terms of creating a “pact” in seeking significant cost reductions at the council. It reckons that some 60 million euros could be saved annually by avoiding “duplications” within government – the whole of government. Note the word “duplications”. I have been saying this for ages. Even before the “crisis” brought on the demand for austerity measures and for rationalisation, the existence of the council seemed questionable. It is now being questioned. Seriously.

The PP may be talking about rationalisation, but other politicans are openly talking about doing away with the council. To this end, Armengol has offered her own “pact”, one that would cut costs and “defend” the council from “opinions that this administration (the council) should be scrapped”. Well, she would look to defend it; she is, after all, the president.

It is still most unlikely that something as radical as the elimination of the council would ever happen, but the fact that the notion is being given an airing is indicative of the urgency with which local politicians are having to confront cost-cutting measures and of a realisation that there is something wrong with the structure of government in Mallorca and the islands.

At regional government level, there has already been a rationalisation, one that has included the combining of tourism with employment under one minister, Joana Barceló, an ally in the PSOE of President Antich. This wasn’t the move I have argued for several times, that tourism should be part of the office of the presidency, but other responsibilities (notably agriculture) now are. The closeness of Antich and Barceló is the next best thing; the two were together in Moscow, attempting to charm Russian tour operators and their clients.

Some realism in the structure of the island’s government does seem to be emerging. It shouldn’t have taken the crisis to bring it about, but better late than never. The obstacle to real change is likely, though, to be political. Not that restructuring should necessarily be a party matter. But the calls for moves such as scrapping or slimming the council are coming from the right. As someone more inclined to the left, this may not sit easily with me, but a beef I have long had with the left, here and in the UK, is the tendency to over-government. It shouldn’t be a political issue; it should be common sense.

* Quotes above in translation from reports in “The Diario”.

Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.