Mid September brings the crowds
Published in the Majorca Daily Bulletin
Tuesday 20th September 2016
Tuesday 20th September 2016
Photograph by Rachel Fox
The Soller Tram has finished its Nit Tram schedule and is back to the normal timetable. The people really enjoy the late night trams of the summer and this year there is a special poignancy. The rumbles in the Town Hall have got louder and more vociferous. The Soller Taxi service has been found wanting this summer and has not been able to keep up with demand. The closed shop rules mean that taxis can’t look for business in Deia or Fornalutx but can only operate from their own home base. This has caused huge problems for hoteliers who have been trying to move their guests to different parts of the valley. The weddings have also been an issue with guests complaining bitterly about the length of the wait to get anywhere by cab. The Town Hall are now looking into this in an effort to make a difference in time for next years’ busy season. The answer to an onlooker seems simple enough – create more taxi licenses and allow more people to operate. The word UBER has even been mentioned and that would be a radical solution except that currently the UBER system is banned in Spain. It is going to be very interesting to watch the debate over this one in the coming months. Everyone agrees that the current lack of cabs cannot continue.
The Soller Valley weddings of this past weekend broke all records. The Georgie Insull Singers were the wedding singers of choice in two venues on the same afternoon in Deia and beautiful wedding couples were celebrating in all our major hotels. The weddings range from beachside, toes in the sand promises to the high end, money no object celebrations. It is great to se that the full range of experiences is available here. No wonder Mallorca is being advertised as the Wedding capitol of Europe.
This week’s announcement regarding the development of the Marina end of the Port of Soller was greeted with more questions. We have a big area at the furthest end of the Marina where the yachts park up. The land there has been developed into a bar and a barbecue area for the yachties and is the venue for live music and great parties. The fishing fleet comes in here and this is the first stage of the announcement. It is proposed that three buildings are erected this winter to look after the interest of the fishermen. A refrigeration unit and proper storage facility will be amongst the improvements. There is universal agreement that these facilities are long overdue and will be welcomed here in the Port of Soller.
It is the Plan B that is causing concern and at present there is nothing written and declared but the chattering is non stop. It is said that Port Adriano is the model that the Port of Soller wants to base itself on and that this area has the capacity for shops, retail outlets and an auditorium of the sea. The idea of a concert bowl on the waterside has been talked off for years and now things are moving on. This area is not without its complications because of the number of authorities that have jurisdiction. It is not at all straight forward and will occupy our gossip and interest all winter long.
The local papers have been full of the walkers’ statistics this weekend. Apparently 300.000 of them are heading our way between October 2016 and April 2017. Walking is the new golf and cycling we are told as if legs had just been invented! The Soller Valley has looked after this crowd for years and this is a huge part of the normal cycle of tourist life. The difference this year is that it has suddenly gone commercial with companies organising guided trips and considering that they have just invented the next holy grail. This is so annoying for the the people that just come and walk. These people sometimes travel in groups, couples or just on their own and they just love all that our mountains have to offer. The word here this weekend is that the group mentality makes a mystery and danger where none exist. Of course if people want an organised holiday that is just fine but independent travellers should not be deterred from just coming here and having their own adventure. There is room for all in the Tramuntana and long may that be the case.
