Author: somethingforyourmallorcaweekend

I've lived and worked in Mallorca since 1990. I've worked at Pirates Adventure & Radio One Mallorca. I now work at Wave Mallorca Radio and have my own Concierge service called Prioritymallorca.com. This blog will give you my news, views and my life on our island in the sun.

Ryanair Holidays

My life in Tourism began in the mid-eighties when I worked for Butlins holiday hotels as a Redcoat. My experience there led me to start work overseas here in Mallorca in 1990. I was a Holiday Rep for Intasun Holidays, working at the Guadalupe Hotel for my first season. At that time, there were loads of UK Tour Operators. Intasun were under the ILG banner which also included Global, Lancaster, Club 1830, Sol Holidays and the airline Air Europe. Their main rival was Thomson, who had Skytours, Horizon and their own airline called Brittania. There are lots of others too including, Cosmos, Owners Abroad (First Choice), Airtours and Thomas Cook. 

Remember, all this was before the internet was invented, so people booked their holidays with a travel agent or on teletext (remember that!) Low-cost airlines weren’t around at that time, although interestingly a company called Skytrain took to the air for the first time on 26 September 1977 when their inaugural flight departed London Gatwick for New York JFK. This flight carried 272 passengers on one of the airline’s 345-seat McDonnell Douglas DC-10 wide bodied aircraft. The fares charged at the time were £59 (equivalent to £463 in 2024) one-way from London and $135 (equivalent to £1,059 in 2024) one-way from New York. It makes we wonder why the owner Sir Freddie Laker decided to take on British Airways and the large American carriers at that time to fly long haul. When surely it would have been cheaper and more economical to fly short haul? He went bust five years later. 

Ryanair had been in existence since 1984 but by the mid 1990s it had become a big player in the European low-cost market, they were followed In 1996 by EasyJet with their first European flights. Both of these airlines began to totally change the way we travel and giving people the opportunity to arrange their own holidays. Interestingly starting in 1996 in Amsterdam, was Booking.com who have grown from a small Dutch start-up to one of the world’s leading digital travel companies. On the back of both Ryanair and Easyjet. 

This then led to there being fewer Tour Operators, and they started to buy each other up. The biggest mergers were in 2007 when Thomas Cook partnered with My Travel and Tui partnered with First Choice. 

2007 also saw the emergence of Jet2 Holidays who had mainly been a flight only and freight company before that. 

Fast-forward to today, and the travel landscape is very different. 

The Leading ATOL-licensed tour operators in the United Kingdom as of February 2024, ranked by number of passengers licensed, with figures from Statista are;

  1. Jet2 Holidays 
  2. TUI UK
  3. Love Holidays 
  4. Booking.com
  5. EasyJet Holidays

With all the consolidation in the holiday market there is one name that’s missing in that Tour Operating top five. Ryanair have so far resisted the temptation to delve into the package holiday market. Interestingly, though, in January this year they agreed a new partnership with Love Holidays for its customers who wish to book low-cost package holidays. This deal allows Love Holidays customers to buy Ryanair flights, seats, and bags as part of their love holidays package at Ryanair’s low prices.

Don’t be surprised to see Ryanair take that partnership further by buying Love Holidays or another online travel agent and launching Ryanair Holidays. It seems the natural way forward and having seen what EasyJet have done, I’m sure they won’t be far behind. 

December 1st!

December 1st has been named as the best date to put your Christmas tree up. According to the experts at Christmas Tree World, December 1 is the perfect date for other reasons too. By embracing the Christmas spirit early, families are left with enough time to establish their own traditions. Having the tree up can also encourage you to get ahead of the rush when it comes to buying presents for loved ones. Interestingly, minimalist Christmas trees have surged in popularity this year, devoid of tinsel, sparkling fairy lights and homemade decorations. Designs now proving popular with shoppers include trees with metal branches, or skeletal-like wooden frames. It comes after research suggested that traditional Christmas decorations are on the decline, with over a third (34%) of Brits saying they’re boring and half (50%) saying they want their Christmas tree to reflect their passions. Instead, people are opting for more meaningful decor, with more than three-quarters of Brits owning personal baubles that have a special meaning to them. 

Don’t forget, Mallorca Christmas trees are open for business in Son Oms industrial estate. For more information, please visit http://www.mallorcachristmastrees.com Mallorca Christmas Trees on Facebook and Instagram or call or what’s app (0034) 658 342 941.

Britain is a proud nation of fakers, with two-thirds believing we have perfected the art of receiving presents we do not like. As many as 69 per cent of Brits would not dream of telling someone they didn’t like a gift given to them – with a third (30 per cent) regularly pretending to like pressies they actually hate, according to a new survey. In fact, half (49 per cent) admit they often receive Christmas gifts they dislike – so much so that 60 per cent believe they have perfected the art of faking their joy. And, according to one in three (31 per cent) of the nation’s ‘faking experts’, exclaiming ‘thank you! It’s what I’ve always wanted’ in a big voice, is the best way to disguise your dislike, along with common phrases, ‘you really shouldn’t have’ (23 per cent) or ‘it’ll be souseful’ (22 per cent), according to the findings by online card marketplace thortful. Changing the topic quickly to focus on someone else (nine per cent) and hopefully quipping ‘it will look great when I put it on’ (nine per cent) are also among the top ways to hide dislike. In our family we do a secret Santa where we randomly pick a family name from an online app and each person can make up a wish list from Amazon, Etsy, JD Sports, Nike and Look Fantastic to the value of £50.00. Meaning everyone ends up with a present that they wanted and not having to come up with the excuses like above. 

Football league one side Stockport County has embraced the festive spirit with an innovative meal that’s sure to go down a treat at half-time, and it’s already gone viral. 

Food at football grounds can leave a lot to be desired, and you will normally pay through the nose for it. There’s a superb Instagram app called ‘footyscran’ which features good and bad food at football stadiums.

The ‘Christmas dinner in a cup’ has captured the imagination of fans nationwide, leaving them eager to sample it, and it’s already gone viral. The Hatters as they’re known have produced, a delicious offering of tender turkey, savoury stuffing, creamy mash, and rich gravy, and at £4.50 it is an absolute bargain. Complete with brussels sprouts, pigs in blankets, and roast potatoes, the cup prompted comments such as, 

“A lot of pubs would pour that on a plate and charge £18. Pick out the sprouts

and that’s a top half-time warmer!”

Another admirer remarked: “If clubs were judged on food, Stockport County would be in the Champions League. 

Last Friday, we started playing Christmas songs on the radio. Normally we will wait until December 1st but as that’s today, the listeners decided for us to start last Friday. Now just to make you feel old, this year marks the 40th anniversary of Band Aid song ‘Do they know it’s Christmas’ and the Wham! song ‘Last Christmas. Also, it’s the 30th anniversary of the East 17 song ‘Stay Another Day’. 

This week’s Official Singles Chart already has 10 Christmas songs in it, with Wham! The highest at number 8 and Mariah Carey at number 10.

I wonder what will be this year’s Christmas number one?

The Rafa Nadal International Airport


After all the rain in early November, the weather has settled down and is very pleasant for mid-November. I’ve said it a thousand times, why is Benidorm, which is literally across the water, so busy and Magaluf is a complete ghost town? One day we will get a winter season, but someone has got to take the risk and give it a go. 

I’ve done a little travelling lately, and Palma airport is going through what looks like quite a few changes. I was in departures and every single escalator was closed, and it was only when I reached the last one I noticed everybody disappearing past the check-in desks and into what I discovered was the new security area. In fact a very modern security area that is state of the art and whilst now it’s not too busy, let’s hope that in the summer it will cope with the huge volumes of people going through it. Right now you don’t go through any duty free, but I’m assured that is coming and will be as big as most major airports. 

I was interested to see what effect the budget will have on people and their plans for their 2025 holidays. Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary was moaning about the average £2.00 increase in air passenger duty and said ‘This short-sighted tax grab will make air travel much more expensive for ordinary UK families going on holidays abroad and will make the UK a less competitive destination compared to Ireland, Sweden, Hungary and Italy where these Govt’s are abolishing travel taxes to stimulate traffic, tourism, and jobs growth in their economies’. He’s got a cheek, as I found out last week. I was looking to change one of my flights and fully expected to pay the flight difference costs if there were any. But they also add a £45.00 fee for you to change your own flight! Yes, that’s right, you do all the work, and they charge you £45.00 for the privilege. 

Our powers that we have returned from the World Travel Market in London with positive news for 2025 and there seems to be some dialogue regarding the sustainability problem, which is good news. However, I also think our authorities have missed a trick when it comes to Palma airport. When Palma Airport began operating in the early 20th century, it was given the name Son Sant Juan, after the area 8 kilometres east of Palma, where the airfield was built.  But having now announced his retirement, the time has come to rename Mallorca’s Son San Juan airport, The Rafa Nadal International Airport. I wrote about this in 2017 when Rafa won his 10th French Open, and he went on to win 14! I picked this up again in 2022, but now for me the time is right. Of course, airports around the World have been renamed after their famous sons. Liverpool John Lennon, Paris Charles de Gaulle and New York JFK to name a few. Rafa is instantly recognizable around the World, and I’d have him welcoming people on the big screens in arrivals and talking about the tourist tax and how it is being used for sustainability across the island. It’s a no brainer, surely? 

Dare I Mention The “C” Word?

Dare I mention the “C” word? Well, my friends, there are now 39 days until Christmas!

The grand switch on of the Christmas lights in our capital city of Palma will be on Saturday, November 23rd in the evening. Palma at Christmas is definitely worth a visit, whether you live here or you’re coming over for a short break. I’m not sure if we’re on top of many peoples lists to visit for a pre-Christmas visit, but we should be. Firstly of course we’re within 2 hours of most Uk airports and in fact most European ones too. It’s a 15-minute taxi ride into the centre of town from the airport, and there are loads of beautiful boutique hotels. Palma City centre is great for shopping and don’t forget we have three superb shopping malls on the outskirts. They are Porto Pi, Fan and Mallorca Shopping Outlets, all are worth a visit, have a good variety of shops and all three are different in their own way. What you will find in Palma now is a wide range of cafés, markets, bars and restaurants with cuisine from all over the world. There are also some amazing sights to be seen. Palma Cathedral, Bellver Castle and the marina are a few of the must-sees. You could also take in a La Liga game if you wish. Barcelona are in town in early December! 

There are also some beautiful Christmas markets in Plaza Espanya and Pueblo Espanyol. All in all, Palma at Christmas, I would thoroughly recommend you visit.

Previous Christmas Number 1s have been claimed by music icons, cartoon characters, punk-rock disruptors, TV talent show winners, and all-star charity records. Last year, WHAM! Finally secured the Official Christmas Number 1 with “Last Christmas”, 39 years after its release.

Without doubt, if you can write a good Christmas song or in some cases a not very good Christmas song, then it could well give you a good income for the rest of your life. The Performing Rights Society or PRS as it’s known don’t tend to divulge this information easily to protect their artists’ privacy. But it’s a well known fact that the following artists make substantial amounts per year from just one song. The top ten are listed below. 

  1. “Merry Xmas Everybody” by Slade, £1m 
  2. “Fairytale of New York” by The Pogues and Kirsty MacColl £400,000
  3. “All I Want for Christmas is You” by Mariah Carey £400,000 
  4. “White Christmas” by Bing Crosby £328,000
  5. “Last Christmas” by Wham! £300,000
  6. “Wonderful Christmastime” by Paul McCartney £260,000
  7.  “Stop the Cavalry” by Jona Lewie £120,000
  8. “2000 Miles” by The Pretenders £102,000
  9. “Mistletoe and Wine” by Cliff Richard £100,000
  10. “Stay Another Day” by East 17 £97,000

In my opinion, no Christmas is complete until you get yourself a tree. Not a fake one for me, it has to be real. A few years ago, I met a guy called Quentin who was bringing Christmas trees over to Mallorca from a farm in Denmark. 

Their arborists (aka tree surgeons to you and I) have been growing and selling the highest quality, most sustainable and durable Nordmann fir Christmas Trees since the industry commenced in Denmark in the early 70s. Their philosophy has always been to produce quality over quantity, whereby the ethical treatment of the workers, the earth and the clients is always respected and maintained, these are the values which are essential to their organisation. For every 10 trees they cut, they replant 14. 

Delivery, stands and branches for decorations are available for an extra cost. 

For more information, please visit http://www.mallorcachristmastrees.com 

Mallorca Christmas Trees on Facebook and Instagram or call or what’s app 

658 342 941.

Quentin has also agreed to donate a tree to a local charity home, and I’m talking to Nick at Yachting Gives Back, who will decide where to donate it. 

I know it’s a little early, but let me be the first to wish you a very Merry Christmas!

Valencia – A Follow Up

The awful scenes of flooding in Valencia took me back to what we saw at San Llorenc here in Mallorca back in 2018. A similar wall of water struck the village in devastatingly quick time and 13 people sadly lost their lives. I remember the cleaning up operation, where 100’s of people from all over the island including Rafa Nadal descended on the area and a huge amount of charity donations were made by people at the time. I was part of the team at Radio One Mallorca who along with local business, Bosuns Locker took a van load of donations to a church in Manacor as the whole of San Llorenc was completely shut off. 

Believe it or not since those dreadful floods nothing has been done to avert future problems. After researching this further I saw a report in March this year by IB3 our island television station that the Government will invest 40 million euros in the improvement of the Ses Planes and Sa Blanquera torrents in Sant Llorenç des Cardassar. The first steps were to commission the drafting of the project and the works are expected to begin in 2027, that’s nine years after the fateful flooding.

There have also been calls for an emergency alert system to be activated, which sends out an SMS message in the event of a catastrophe or emergency such as a fire, an explosion or a flood. Apparently this has been around for years but has not been activated by successive Balearic Governments who have failed to put it into place. Friends of ours in Porto Cristo sent us pictures and videos of similar floods there on Sunday night into Monday morning. Whilst not as devastating still not good and could have been a whole lot worse. 

This rain I imagine then made its way across the water to Valencia to cause the destruction there. This time though on a far greater scale and with many more people sadly losing their lives. Both tragedies have similar stories, copious amounts of rain causing tsunami like conditions and creating flooding in such a way that it’s impossible to avoid. It’s caused by a weather phenomenon called DANA – ‘depresion aislada en niveles altos’ in Spanish – which translates as ‘isolated low-pressure system at high levels’. This is explained in these four steps. 

  1. Cold air from the north moves south.
  2. Warm air then blows over the Mediterranean, rising quickly and forming heavy clouds.
  3. The low pressure from the north gets blocked by the high pressure above the water, causing it to slow down or stop completely.
  4. This creates storm-like conditions that cannot move anywhere else, so the rain falls over the same area for a sustained period of time.

Heavy rainfall was forecast in the most affected region, Valencia, from Friday the 25th, with warnings scaled-up to “significant danger” by the Spanish meteorological service AEMET on the 28th, followed by another warning of “extreme danger” the next morning. Despite the forecasts, many people in the Valencia region only received warnings when the rain had already begun and evacuation was not possible for many. I am also led to believe that an SMS a was sent out for people to remain in their homes but many were still out in their cars and were caught out when a major road flooded. If Florida in the USA can issue evacuation notices on its people when hurricanes or tornadoes are forecast then surely authorities across Spain will have to look at something similar. It’s a known fact that the Mediterranean coastline of Spain, particularly the Valencia and Catalonia regions, is highly vulnerable to these floods.

Near where I live there is a place called El Toro that has a heavy Valencian population. They have been collecting non perishable foodstuffs, hygiene products & pet food, at their HQ Casa de Valencia, on the Main Street. 

Also Port Adriano organised 2 containers to collect food and clothes to send to those affected. Well done to Highland Gold in Son Bugadellas who sent 15 tonnes of food via two of their own lorries given by themselves and other businesses. I’ve seen collections at Real Mallorca, supermarkets and at other aid charities and agencies. I am sure there will be more collections across the island so please help in any way you can. 

It’s a travesty that disasters like this make the authorities take more notice of the problems in hand. 

Devastation across Spain

The awful scenes of flooding in Valencia took me back to what we saw at San Llorenç here in Mallorca back in 2018. A similar wall of water struck the village in devastatingly quick time, and 13 people sadly lost their lives. I remember the cleaning up operation and the huge amount of charity donations made by people at the time. I was part of the team at Radio One Mallorca who along with Bosuns locker took a van load of donations to a church in Manacor as the whole of San Llorenç was completely shut off. 

Believe it or not since those dreadful floods nothing has been done to avert future problems. After researching this further I saw a report in March this year by IB3, our island television station, that the Government will invest 40 million euros in the improvement of the Ses Planes and Sa Blanquera torrents in Sant Llorenç des Cardassar. The first steps were to commission the drafting of the project and the works are expected to begin in 2027, that’s nine years after the fateful flooding.

There have also been calls for an emergency alert system to be activated, which sends out an SMS message in the event of a catastrophe or emergency such as a fire, an explosion or a flood. Apparently this has been around for years but has not been activated by successive Governments who have failed to put it into place. Friends of ours in Porto Cristo sent us pictures and videos of similar floods there on Sunday night into Monday morning. Whilst not as devastating, still not good. 

This rain I imagine then made its way across the water to Valencia to cause the destruction there. This time though on a far greater scale and with many more people sadly losing their lives. Both tragedies have similar stories, copious amounts of rain causing tsunami like conditions and creating flooding in such a way that it’s impossible to avoid. It’s caused by a weather phenomenon called DANA – ‘depresion aislada en niveles altos’ in Spanish – which translates as ‘isolated low-pressure system at high levels’. I am led to believe that an SMS was sent out for people to remain in their homes, but many were still out in their cars and were caught out when a major road flooded. Authorities across Spain will have to look at this more seriously now, as this is not a problem that is going to go away and will only get worse. 

It’s a travesty that disasters like this make the people in power take more notice of the problems in hand. 

Near where I live, there is a place called El Toro that has a heavy Valencian population. They are collecting non-perishable foodstuffs, hygiene products & pet food, at their HQ Casa de Valencia, on the Main Street. Gran Via 1.

Collection times are, 

Saturday 2nd of November 10.00h until 13.00h & 16.30h – 18.30h 

Monday 4th of November 09.30h until 13.00h.

Also in Port Adriano on Monday 4th and Tuesday 5th of November from 09.00h to 20.00h, they will set up a container to collect food and clothes to send to those affected by the DANA in Valencia. You can bring non-perishable food, clothes, towels, blankets, nappies and animal feed

I am sure there will be other collections across the island, so please help in any way you can. 

The Soller Solution?

My nickname of Dad Taxi becomes even more prevalent once the new football season starts. It’s slightly easier this year as my eldest Jacob has taken some time away from playing football to concentrate on his studies.  My youngest Jude, however, is still full on because he is a goalkeeper and has specialist training twice a week as well as training with his team. Although that has also changed a little as he is training with two teams within the same club because of an injury to one of the goalkeepers. 

Last weekend I was certainly earning my money as he was playing in Soller, which is a good 45 minutes from home. Apart from the football, I love travelling around the island, visiting places I wouldn’t normally go to and discovering the best cafés or bars in those towns or villages. There are not many places I haven’t been to, and If you’re interested, I normally know the best establishments for a Mallorca breakfast or lunch. Sometimes it’s the football club’s bar, but there’s not too many of those, so you then need to go and explore. Now, you couldn’t ask for a more picturesque stadium than the one in Soller, which is surrounded by mountains. The bar there isn’t too great to be honest, but there’s a café just past the stadium that does great Pa Amb Oli. Which is basically brown and olive oil which can be topped with virtually anything. Perhaps I could sell this idea to the Editor? Discovering Mallorca’s best football club eating establishments, I’m more than happy to take one for the team, if you get my drift.

Once in Soller you can’t help but wonder in the beauty of it, both the town and the port. With that in mind, if you’re looking for a place that suffers from “Over Tourism” then this is it. It was a Saturday afternoon in October, but it was still very busy and parking was at a premium. It got me thinking about how places like this can be helped. Before the Soller tunnel was built in 1997, people used to arrive via the tricky mountain road or by train from Palma. Both of those options still exist, but the advent of the tunnel has made access so much easier. Which is where the problem lies. On the one hand, it’s great for residents to get out to work or school, but on the other hand, it makes it a lot easier for coaches and hire cars to get in. So my question is, why did they take the toll charge away in 2017? Surely it’s time to bring it back? Make it free to the residents of Soller, charge a discounted fee to island residents, and charge a fee to those who are just visiting for a day. Then use that money to protect the area. I touched on this last week with the Tourist Tax, as long as you are transparent as to where the money goes, then people won’t mind paying it. Place huge billboards at the entrance to the tunnel and in the town and port showing where the money has been spent. Another idea is a park and ride scheme, with car parks before you reach the tunnel and coaches to bring you in. One coach would be the equivalent of between 15 and 20 cars less. Or you could do park and train. The current Palma to Soller train stops at Bunyola so you could build a car park there, or look to build another stop with a car park. This would significantly reduce the number of cars, but you would have to increase the frequency of the trains, as there are currently only 6 running into Soller on a daily basis. What about park and boat? Not sure if that is done already? Possibly by an organised excursion, but this would be parking somewhere on the coast and being ferried in. Now these are just ideas, and they may have been talked about already, but something needs to be done. We all want the best places in Mallorca to be preserved for now and for future generations. 

Is This Just a Way To Get More Money Out Of Us?

I read with interest the comments made by Easyjet Holidays Chief Executive Garry Wilson and reported in the Majorca Daily Bulletin newspaper this week. He was talking at the ABTA convention in Greece the previous week. He commented that some destinations were introducing what he called “environmental fees.”

“While I understand the ethos, we need to understand what you’re doing with that money.” Wilson said it would be “understandable” if taxes were introduced with a ‘direct link’ to initiatives such as installing systems that automatically switch off air-conditioning and electric sockets when hotel rooms are empty. But he said if the revenue simply “goes into a big pot”, holidaymakers will think “this is just a way to get more money out of me”. Wilson said taxes were “going up and up and up when it comes to travel”.

Now on the one hand I totally agree with him on being as transparent as you can on where all the money is going. I wrote this in 2018, “Just a thought, why isn’t the Government promoting what they are spending the Tourist Tax money on? A video on that massive screen as you come through arrivals at the airport or pictures on the walls saying “last year we raised….and this is what we have spent the money on. Keeping Mallorca the way we all love it for now and for future generations.” Get Rafa Nadal to narrate the video, as he’s a Worldwide name that everybody knows and loves.”

It’s not rocket science, be upfront and proud of what you are doing. Which is basically what Mr Wilson is saying. Where I find his comments slightly disingenuous is when he says  “holidaymakers will think “this is just a way to get more money out of me”. Wilson said taxes were “going up and up and up when it comes to travel”.

Now I have to admit that EasyJet are my no-frills airline of choice but, this is a bit of the pot calling the kettle black, surely? All low-cost airlines and tour operators are always looking at ways to get more money from holidaymakers. It sometimes costs you more for a suitcase than it does a person these days! Not forgetting to add those other optional taxes such as choose my seat, car hire, insurance and a hotel room. They’ll be asking us to pay to enter the loo soon! 

A Mallorca Solution For The Winter Fuel Allowance

I have never voted in the UK elections as I’ve been away for so long. Whilst here in Mallorca, we can vote in the local elections, but not in the national elections. Which to me doesn’t make sense, as I’m a resident and taxpayer. Now I’m not one to talk politics but this week I’m going to attempt, well in a roundabout way. I know I need to have a good long word with myself, and believe me I will after this.

The good thing about a democracy is that everyone can have an opinion, you will either agree with it or disagree with it, but at least it leads to a healthy debate.

Every now and again, Governments will release a policy or a decision that really riles up the electorate. Remember the poll tax, the Iraqi war or here in Mallorca the Tourist Tax? The current Labour government has come up with a policy that has caused a lot of controversy. I am of course talking about the winter fuel allowance. Introduced in 1997 by the then-chancellor, Gordon Brown, the winter fuel payment was intended to help older people with their heating costs during the colder months. Paid annually in autumn, it is £200 or £300, depending on age, and had always been universal, paid to everyone, irrespective of income or wealth.

But in a speech in the House of Commons in July, Rachel Reeves, the chancellor, announced that from now on the payment would be given only to older people who received pension credit, meaning only the very poorest pensioners. This is expected to reduce the number who get the money from more than 11 million to about 1.5 million.

I remember my Mum used to receive it and was grateful for the extra money during the winter and enabled her to heat her property for longer than she would normally do. 

I arrived in Mallorca in 1990 and back then the winters were just as busy as the summers. One of the main reasons for this was that pensioners would come away for months on end during the winter to get away from the cold weather in the UK. I worked winters here in Mallorca, The Algarve and Gran Canaria, and you’d get rooming lists of pensioner couples and singles, and it was very popular at the time. They had dedicated brochures in those days such as Golden Circle, Golden Days and Leisurely Days and whilst the tour operators still offer this, it doesn’t seem to be something that they push as much as they used to. 

Saga is the one of the main dedicated companies in this market and having done my research I’ve discovered I am actually eligible to go on one of their holidays! 

It got me thinking that why doesn’t the UK government approach the Tour Operators and ask if they would be willing to look at providing cheaper holidays for pensioners? Are you mad? I hear you ask. Well, maybe, but they do have a system like that here in Spain. 

The Imserso scheme is a social scheme that’s primary objective is to offer affordable holidays to the elderly residents of Spain. It is hoped that by subsidising trips for pensioners, their health and quality of life will improve whilst their dependence on others will decrease. As well as benefiting pensioners, the scheme will also benefit the wider community by incentivising economic activity and increasing employment within the tourism sector during the quieter winter months. Something Mallorca is crying out for. 

The Imserso scheme is only intended for Spanish residents, but here’s something I didn’t know. If you are an ex-pat who permanently resides in Spain, then you can take part in the programme provided you meet any of the following criteria:

  • A person who is retired and part of the Spanish public pension system.
  • A person who receives a widow’s or widower’s pension and is aged 55 or older.
  • A person who receives unemployment benefits or subsidies and is aged 60 or older.
  • A holder or beneficiary of Spain’s Social Security System, aged 65 or older 

Mallorca would in my opinion be a perfect destination as it’s only 2 hours from the UK and although the winter temperatures aren’t like the summer. They are certainly warmer than the UK. I’m sure it would be popular amongst pensioners and as I said above it would create employment here. Benidorm does it, so why can’t we? 

Maybe it’s something that could be discussed at the World Travel Market in London in November? Just a thought, now I’m off to have that word with myself and study that Saga brochure. 

Dare to Dream?

A few weeks ago, Real Mallorca started their season with a creditable 1-1 draw with Real Madrid. At the time, I wrote, “There’s always a sense of excitement and nervousness when a new football season starts. How will your team play, where will they finish the season, and will they win a trophy? These are three of the most important questions in most fans minds.” Now having been a Mallorca fan for many years, my expectations, to be honest, weren’t that high. Last season we finished 15th in the league, but we had made the Copa del Rey final, losing on penalties to Atlético Bilbao. More importantly, we had replaced our very cautious and defensive coach Javier Aguirre with a fairly unknown one in Jagoba Arrasate. He was in charge at Osasuna for six years, and they had become a solid mid-table team and two years ago finished in 7th place. What Arrasate was known for was encouraging youth team players to push for first team places, and he wasn’t afraid to throw them in. 

After the Madrid game, things got a little worse for Mallorca, an encouraging away win at Leganés was followed by two losses and a draw. So after 5 games they had 5 points. 

At that time of the Madrid game I had commented on how well the American owners had done in improving the stadium, its facilities and the atmosphere. I was hoping that all that hard work would also transfer onto the pitch. But it wasn’t happening. It looked like Arrasate was searching for his best 11 as he was constantly changing the team, even the goalkeepers. What he was doing though was giving the youngsters a chance. Marc Domenech who 2 years ago was playing with my son Jacob at San Francisco in Palma, was one of the first and encouragingly more are now coming through. Whilst this was all welcome, points on the board were what Mallorca was missing, and it was looking like it was going to be another relegation battle. However, in the space of three games, they have all of a sudden woken up. A battling 1-0 home win against Real Sociedad has been followed by what can only be described as two amazing 1-2 away wins against Real Betis and Valladolid. Bearing in mind that they only won two away games in the whole of last season, and already they have three this season. As they had played Valladolid on the Friday night it meant that for at least 24 hours they were lying in a Champions League place, with Atlético Madrid, Real Madrid and Barcelona above them. That did change over the weekend, and now they lie in sixth place. Today they play another away game at Espanyol, so let’s hope they can continue this run of good form. It’s a great start and has the fans dreaming of Europe next season but let’s not get too excited we are only 8 games into a 38 game season.