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Mallorca GM’s short season, higher hopes for ’21

GOSTELOW REPORT—“Last year we had just under 300 room nights booked from South Korean honeymooners,” says Ulisses Marreiros, general manager of the 72-room Belmond La Residencia, on Spain’s Mediterranean island of Mallorca.

La Residencia is the icon on the 1,405-square-mile island, one of the Balearics. A one-time Cistercian monastery with extensive olive groves had already been turned into a 12-room hotel before Richard Branson’s family entered the picture in 1987. What is today a hotel-cum-art-center has been owned by Belmond since 2002: Occupancy is entirely leisure, with average length of stay in normal years of four nights.

Traveling just as couples rather than as a group, such as Korean honeymooners, however, typically only stay one night and then move on to other one-night stands around the island, but during a stay they take at least a thousand photos and post many of them, thus perpetuating the tradition of this being a honeymoon destination.

Ulisses Marreiros on a terrace at Belmond La Residencia
Ulisses Marreiros on a terrace at Belmond La Residencia

This year, however, has been the proverbial wash-out for much of the island, which is typically seasonal. Marreiros is now having to look forward to 2021.

“We were all set to open on 19th March for our usual run through to early November. We were all so happy, on line for a record year out of the USA, which, by working Virtuoso and other channels, we had built up, over seven years, from 3% to 35% (part of that success, I believe, was a result of promoting the destination rather than showing what our bedrooms look like),” Marreiros explained.

Recalling 2020’s chain of events, he continued: “On 14th March a state of emergency was declared, and we did not open until 24th July. On 25th July we first heard that Spain was being considered a non-essential travel destination for the U.K. market and the following day a news alert said the Balearics were included.

“We actually had long-stay guests inhouse, some up to five weeks, and many said they did not mind having to quarantine afterwards at home. Then Germany repatriated the 40,000 of its nationals on the island and by early September, in discussion with Belmond head office and my own teams, we realized we were reliant on mainland Spain – usually under 2% but we took it up to 25% this August – and a scattering of French. We decided, however, to close completely on 20th September.” 

Marreiros also has had to cut off what was a growing short-stay market for Europeans who have residences on the island. “They like coming across to spend three or four nights here, because of the hotel’s reputation and its service, and the beauty of the adjacent village, Deia, a renowned center for art.”

Eighty percent of the team, which ramps up to 195 in high summer, are immediately local (there is some staff accommodation for others). During the winter closure, 19 stay on, to maintain the building and its extensive grounds and hillside.

This winter, too, Marreiros has extra sales people and they will be working harder than ever on future bookings and events, which include an exhibition of recycled art led by the grandson of Catalan artist Joan Miró, Joan Punyet Miró. Also on the books are a rock concert with Punyet’s Med Recyclers band — he is lead singer. And staff members are rostering to clean the Cala, a famous bay 10 minutes from the hotel.

As a youngster, back in southern Portugal, Marreiros dreamed of becoming a sports teacher, which could have been good practice for anticipating moves in an ever-evolving field.

“The challenge is that regulations are changing day to day. But we are planning to re-open for the 2021 season on 18th March 2021, I anticipate the U.K. returning to 100% by the end of April 2021. For the American market, I may be conservative but I am looking to quarter three.”

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