All For One, One For All

What will be the theme of the coming season? Let's hazard a guess, shall we? How about all-inclusives? No prizes for guessing this. They have formed the theme for the past several seasons and they will be again - more so. And then again next year, and the year after.

There are two main hotel federations in Mallorca, one that is simply the federation of hotels and the other which is for the hotel chains. Not that the distinction really matters, certainly not when they are saying the same things: that the percentage of hotels offering all-inclusive is at a particular level and that the future growth is "unstoppable". Whatever one thinks of all-inclusive hotels, it is hard to disagree with the head of one of the federations when he says that the sale of beds is what the hotels are in business for; it's all a question of market demand and competition. This same hotels' boss admits that is not an ideal system for any hotel, but ideal or not, all-inclusive is going to continue and to continue to grow.

There is always some question as to the exact amount of all-inclusive on offer. Partly this is because of the amount of upgrading that occurs once holidaymakers are in situ; it is partly also because of definitions. When the federations speak of 15% of hotels in Mallorca that are all-inclusive, do they really mean the percentage of hotels or the percentage of places? It would seem to be the former. On the face of it, this doesn't sound that high, but it is misleading as well as being debatable. To restate - my estimation as to the total number of all-inclusive places available in Alcúdia, out of some 25,000 or so, is around 50%. The number of hotels is largely irrelevant; it is the figure for the number of places that is. And even then, one cannot be entirely sure because of those upgrades.

The situation with all-inclusive differs from resort to resort. Alcúdia, Playa de Muro and Can Picafort all have high levels; Puerto Pollensa has virtually no all-inclusive, and where it does exist - Club Sol** (and I don't think it exists anywhere else in Puerto Pollensa, though I might be wrong) - it is an option as opposed to being the regular or only offer, and at these apartments one can also go for an all-inclusive drinks arrangement on top of, say, self-catering. It's that definition issue.

Meanwhile, the federations have been having their say about the proposal that has come from the tour operators that there should be some sort of "mixed-offer" all-inclusive that involves outside bars and restaurants. What do they think about it? Not a lot. Indeed they consider that the suggestion is not viable on account of the complexity of administering such a system. And it isn't just the hotels who think this. So also do the association of small- to medium-sized businesses and even the restaurants' association.

Where such a system is already operating - apparently - is in Playa de Palma, but in this instance the outside establishments and hotels have the same owners. This is not unusual. In the resorts in the north there are examples of hotel groups which own restaurants: the Giardino restaurants in Puerto Alcúdia and Playa de Muro, for instance, are part of Garden Hotels and are located next to, respectively, the Alcúdia Garden and the Playa Garden. There are also examples of restaurants owned by hotels groups that are physically separated. Attached or separated, it makes no difference; if the hotel wishes to make an all-inclusive arrangement with restaurants it owns, that's the hotel's business. The system in Playa de Palma is not what the tour operators seemed to be on about, but unless they have got something else in mind, the idea would seem to be a dead duck; it is difficult to see how - in practice - such a system could function where different owners are involved. And no-one, apart from the tour operators, seems to think that it could.

** Putting this together, I did a little internet-looking, which is often quite illuminating in unearthing some peculiarities. For Club Sol, more than one site, including Holiday Watchdog, says that the apartments are a "few minutes' walk from many bars and cafes". I suppose it depends what you mean by "many bars and cafes" and by a "few minutes". Twenty, thirty?


QUIZ:
Yesterday: "A Whiter Shade Of Pale", Procol Harum, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbWULu5_nXI.

Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.