Steve Heapy, CEO of Jet2 and Jet2holidays, is a business leader who reassures hoteliers and worries politicians. To those in his country and in the Balearic Islands. He ran an ad in Palma this Wednesday during the presentation of his growth plans for the season in front of an auditorium filled with Mallorcan businessmen. It asks managers to be “careful” in its anti-tourism messages and plans to limit the number of visitors to Spain and the Balearic Islands. “Tourists leave if they appear to dislike each other”; Be careful what you wish for.”
CEO of the first tour operator in the UK market invites the winners of the upcoming elections to agree on where they want to take the tourism industry with reduction plans and visitor limitation or “quality tourism or whatever that means.”
Heapy revealed his company’s “ambitious” plans to Majorcan hoteliers at an event at the Palma Aquarium where he met another partner on the island. Gabriel Subías, CEO of World2Meet, the travel division of Grupo Iberostar. Subías highlights this to Heapy He likes to visit hotels to “get to know the product and the teams” and shows himself “much more interested than he should be”.. The competition is announced.
Jet2 forecasts a 15% increase in turnover in Mallorca (after 16% growth last year compared to 2019), over 661,000 seats with a 9% growth in air seats compared to 2022.
The British airline has 149 weekly flights to Son Sant Joan from its ten bases in the UK, and the general manager of Recruitment in the Balearic Islands says there is no drop in activity after Easter: Sinead McKevitt.
flights for christmas
Seat growth for the archipelago this summer will be 7% compared to 2022, with more than 1.17 million seats and a total of 265 weekly flights and 30 routes. Heapy says that during this peak season, the British company predicts 14% growth in the Balearic Islands, increasing business volume by 21% compared to pre-pandemic.
Its CEO says Jet2’s plans are “ambitious for the future.” Third airline in the UK. Her the goal is to fly all year round, forecasts that by 2025 at the latest, TTOO will increase its operations by 29% for the winter of 2023-2024 for Mallorca, after growing 36% compared to the pre-pandemic low season.
That’s why the British wholesaler is committed to extending the season from February to November with additional flights over Christmas.
tour operator It works with 557 two-star to five-star hotels on the islands: 351 in Majorca, 130 in Eivissa and 76 in Menorca. And also with 337 villas: 185 in Mallorca, 23 in Eivissa and 76 in Menorca.
Against illegal tourist hire
The leader of the first British tour operator sent a final message to Mallorcan businessmen: “We need more hotels.” He also expressed his reaction to journalists’ questions. Concern about shortage of workers in some hotels and how it may affect service.
Likewise, it calls for greater enforcement by governments against illegal tourist rentals advertised through platforms like Airbnb to stop unfair competition.
Heapy doesn’t mention its main competitor TUI at any point, but let’s put that aside. While the company is making a profit, the German group continues on its way with negative figures. And it shows the figures of passengers mobilized based on data from the ATOL system (travel packages insurance) to show how it outperforms it in the British market: 5.33 million TUI compared to the UK 5.85 million Jet2 tourists and 1.86 million OTA Beach Travel.
Jet2 customers who have contracted tourist packages travel with them, 66% of the total number of passengers, compared to 53% in the 2021-2022 season.
As for its fleet of 119 aircraft and 98 signatures, Jet2 predicts it will double and reach zero emissions by 2050.
HOTEL OWNERS SEASON CONTINUES WITHOUT ACCELERATION IN MAY
It doesn’t matter if prices continue to rise and inflation rises. To escape the bad weather of the UK Brits “sacrifice Netflix subscriptions, play the lottery or go out to eat” to save money for the holidays. Jet2 CEO Steve Heapy is optimistic about this summer. If the situation persists “who knows in the future”, because “the consumer has a limit”warns the tour operator’s CEO of the general increase in prices and the island. “Türkiye and Greece are very strong,” he warns about rivals.
Majorca hoteliers only have words of gratitude For Jet2 and main wholesaler in UK export market to work well. They also state that the tourism activity continues after Easter and thanks to last-minute reservations, it continues with the most suitable occupancy for the month of May.
“They couldn’t get any better,” he says. Pep Canellas about VERY. chief executive Fergus also stands out the “quality” of the company, with growth “not just based on prices.” The hotel group is forecasting a 15% increase this year, and Cañellas says a decrease is not visible in May. What to manage lack of workers, “our horse”. At Fergus, hiring has been brought forward and housing rentals are streamlined for intermediate positions.
From Garden HotelsCEO, Jordi de las Moras He also praises Heapy’s leadership—the British said he remained in the chain-run Nivia Born—and his policy. dynamic pricing It offers to hoteliers in a way that can be diversified according to the occupancy status of the enterprises.
Jet2 launched city holidays (weekend getaways) They go to Mallorca and they work very well, De las Moras confirms. It is noticeable that the British tour operator “believes” in off-season and the two companies are already collaborating on sustainability projects. Occupancy has dropped from May, but prices are improving, he adds.
From Viva Hotels CEO, Xavier KatalaIt abounds in Jet2’s good relationship with the industry. Chain opens its only inactive hotel this week. Català also highlights the ongoing difficulty with templates, a protracted problem.