In Mallorca, one of the great allies of the boom of tourism were the so-called tourist songs. The lyrics praised the island's scenic wonders. The seed was already sown in the 40s of the 20th century by the Majorcan musician Pere Bonet Mir (1917-2002), better known as Bonet de Sant Pere and professionally Bonet de San Pedro. In the midst of the post-war period, in the song Bajo el cielo de Palma, he proclaimed to the four winds “paisajes lindos tiene Mallorca”. He would deal with the same theme in Un viejo hogar en la isla, Juntito al mar, Cala d’Or, and Canto a Mallorca. These utterly naive compositions contrasted with the famous song Raska-yú, which in 1943 the island artist wrote as a parody of death in times of great misery (Franco's regime even censored it, suspecting it contained an implicit criticism of the dictatorship).

For years, Cuba was one of the star destinations in the Caribbean for residents of the Balearic Islands. Its beaches, colonial heritage, culture, and close ties with Mallorcan tourism companies made it a regular choice for travel agencies. Today, however, the situation is very different. Vacation bookings to the island have plummeted, and the sector openly admits it no longer recommends it with the same confidence as before.

The Balearic Islands welcomed 8,990,482 tourists between January and July, a 3.2% increase. During their stay on the island, they spent €11.525 billion, representing a 4.8% increase compared to the first seven months of last year, according to data published this Monday by the National Statistics Institute (INE).