Ibiza's top politician Pere Palau, in Madrid for the big Fitur tourism fair, has predicted another increase in tourist numbers for this year. Last year saw a spectacular rise of over 5% in visitors to the island but Palau played down a duplication of that increase this year.
The politicians recognise the importance of the Spanish national market to the island – Ibiza is so different to the rest of Spain, that for many Spanish it's like being abroad but not – and bigged up the importance of new direct flights to regional airports in the country. At the same time the national rail company RENFE has announced that it will improve its links and timetables to the big ferry ports which connect with Ibiza to make non-flying visits easier.
On the international scene Ibiza will have a big presence in the upcoming Milan and Berlin trade fairs to ensure that the giant sunglasses and towels at dawn market continues to grow. Further afield the national tourist body Turespaña is pushing the island in the untapped and growing markets of the Far East, China, Japan, and India which have rapidly increasing new middle classes eager to spend their nouveau riches.