The Russians are coming to Mallorca

RUSSIA could become the second market for tourists visiting Magaluf and Palmanova. Hoteliers in the area expect to see a rise in the number of Russian and Eastern European tourists this summer.

In the past five years, Russian tourism has gone from 2.5 per cent to 8 per cent of the total number of foreign tourists visiting the area. There were almost 302,300 Russian and Eastern European tourists in Palmanova and Magaluf alone last year, making it the fourth most important market, behind the British, Spanish and Scandinavians.

However, the Spanish market has fallen 5 per cent since 2008 due to the financial crisis, which could mean that the Russians could overtake them to become the second market. 

However, hoteliers intend to wait and see what the effects of political turmoil in Ukraine will be before they get their hopes too high.