I propose a round of applause to Pollensafan! You've quadrupled the daily forum usage with one post. You've also stated an opinion which I share in relation to prices but was reluctant to post.
I took issue with the dual pricing operated in some bars this year also. If prices were deemed to be fair, then it shouldn't be necessary for some of the bars to charge lower prices to locals. It is also the case that the some of the restaurants are being charged monstrous rents by the PP property mafia which they have to pass on in the form of higher prices. A small number of people were raking in a huge amount of money...until it went too far this year.

Menu del dia price increases
 

Been out to PP at various times this year and I'm astonished that some places have dramatically increased the prices of the menu del dia as the season has progressed for exactly the same offerings.

We normally like to try new eating places on our visits but in the current economic climate we keep returning to the bars and restaurants that offer the best value for money ( quality/atmosphere versus price.)

If a restaurant or bar increases their prices by a very small amount to cover rising costs and still offers the same value we will still continue to return however out of principal we don't go near the ones that have dramatically increased prices.

One restaurant owner ( not in a prime location ) laughed at me earlier in the year when I said I wouldn't be returning as they charged €4 for a pint of the local draught lager.I was trying to do the guy a favour by telling him people had less money to spend this year.I Wonder why this restaurant is always empty whenever we pass ?

For so long we have all enjoyed such a good currency rate making the holiday so very reasonable. The actual prices haven't gone up THAT much, but it costs us so much more now. Also, think about it.. we were in the dark ages in the UK... it is only a relatively recent event where u could rent a room that had an en suite....and not too many holiday house rentals in the UK come with a pool.... so we felt we were getting so much more on holiday.
Porto, prices quoted for the sirlion are comparable with the UK now ( I should know, married to dedicated Steak Man:) ) But can I just add that last October, on holiday on the island of Arran, Scotland, a bar/restaurant we have used for years was wanting £25 for a ribeye steak ( we up sticks and left ! ) ....and have u priced a holiday in the UK recently? We have given up on hotels & B & B's.. we just get a group together and rent a house ! ( and a sunbed ! lol)
I spent June this year in PP, and when I got back to the UK and did my first weekly shop, couldnt beleive the price hike in just a month.
Yes, local PP businesses have to do a rethink over the wine, but then that is no different from the soft drinks ripoff, here in the UK, we are just noticing it more now, cos of the exchange rate.
We were in the fortunate position of being able to sell our family business 2 years ago and I so feel for the businesses struggling in PP now. This year we have seen a number of the old established family businesses close.

Scary bit is... do they just lie empty or what moves in to replace them ?

I for one am gonna be back out in Oct and supporting the local businesses and keeping my fingers crossed for them :)

Miriam

Don't entirely agree with the fact the prices have not gone up that much. I think the cost in the supermarkets have increased significantly and that is before you take into account the poor exchange rate.

As a resort geared very much towards the British it is nothing short of commercial suicide to ignore the value of your customers Euro. The reality is that a small increase (say 10%) added to the current rate (20% lower than 2008) equates to a serious hike in prices all round.

Someone made a great point regards loungers on the beach. 2 beds plus parasol in 2008 were 9 Euros (Approx £6.80 @ ex rate of 1.32). 2009 saw it rise to 10 Euros (Approx £9.50 @ ex rate 1.05) Net price rise just short of 40% based on a 1 euro increase in local prices.

A half empty restaraunt or pub charging fair prices will make far more money than an empty one charging silly prices. 2010 is going to be a very very big year for both the resort and it's business's. Lessons need to be learned and fast (ideally before the 1st weekend in October;))

Great thread.

I think eating out/drinking in PP can be like any other holiday resort. The difference between Pascalinos and stay in terms of quality and price is staggering but both seem to be doing a roaring trade anytime I go by.

The thing that amazes me and one that would also affect the locals is the price of everyday household items be that bread, milk, cheese, biscuits, sweets, crisps etc. and I always wonder how the locals manage to afford it. Is their standard of living so high that they can afford these prices regularly or is there some sort of "locals" secret supermarket where you can get a pint of milf for less than 1.56 euros and a loaf of bread for less than 2?

I think the prices in the supermarkets in the Port are higher. I was told that the locals tend to shop in Mercadona (not sure of spelling, sorry!) in Alcudia. A friend who has lived in the Port for many many years said that she wouldn't think of doing a weekly shop in the Port and would only go to Mercadona or Lidl in Inca where prices are very much lower.

You're right Eleanor - also locals don't eat in the touristy restaurants. Locals we know in PP will go for a MDD lunch at maybe 9 or 10 euros - such as that at El Posito - and in the evening tend to have a very simple meal at home. They buy fresh produce at local markets etc rather than in the PP supermarkets. Which is what we do now whenever we come to PP.

I also agree with the poster who said that 25euros for a main course was becoming almost standard in the UK - can confirm that during our summer hols on the Suffolk coast we visited a couple of pubs (pubs, mind you, not restaurants) where virtually every main course was more than 20 euros. And frankly they were nothing special - nothing like as good as most places in PP - in fact in one of them the service was so atrocious that we walked out, which I have never had to do in PP... It's human instinct the world over to want to make as much money as possible out of tourists.

With many restaurants closing down it doesn't sound as though they are exploiting the situation. I suspect that their costs have also increased significantly. Don't forget that rates went up about 30% at the end of last year and different places will have different rateable values. Food in the supermarkets has increased and so has wine. It is a sign of the times I am afraid

I have been to Mercadona before and didnt notice a great deal in difference in prices. Certainly not for the holiday essentials such as bread, milk etc. How can Spaniards afford to pay so much for the basics?

I've only skimmed over some of the posts on here but they all seem to be similar. As Bonnyslad said you can still get by reasonably cheaply in PP if you do your homework. Lesson No1, the days of a bucket of wine and 200 fags for a fiver are long gone!

I spent a total of 5 weeks in PP over the summer, ate in what i reckon are the best restaurants in PP, ate out every night and never spent more than 5o/55 E for 2 including wine and all drinks. It can be done cheaper but i refuse to lower my standards on MY holiday just to save a few bob. Considering the quality i received that is not a lot of money. I dread to think what a similar standard of meal in the UK would cost:eek:

As i've stated previously i achieve this by shopping locally for breakfast items (no need to spend 3 e on a loaf, when superior local bread is .45E) and very little money during the day. As BL said the sunshines free!

Apologies, i have no wish to offend any families or people on a budget, i too am on a budget, but it's not all doom and gloom, a wee bit of homework and simply don't frequent those you feel are ripping-off!

Just to comment re prices in Mercadona. 1 litre of fresh milk is 83cents and it lasts until the sell by date. I suspect if you buy long life prices don't vary much. I live her and always shop her unless emergency. I agree that prices seem higher but we are all affected by the exchange rate and it pays to look around . I know of one restaurant on the front who is being charged €7000 per month all year round.

Rab - regarding the question of how do the locals afford the cost of living, I think the answer therre is their style of living. They will use the markets and of course buy products that are not familiar to us at much more resonable prices. They do also invariably travel out to Mercadona Inca and the likes of Al Campo, which many of the visitors to PP can not, or do not want to.

In general, every resort will have it's front line expensive restaurants many of which are not good, some are, then you have the second, third and fourth lines where prices generally tend to get lower.

I do not think that PP is any different in it's pricing to any other top Mediterreanean resort. Having been to Barcelona in February the prices were no different to PP, which is supposed to be the Jewel in the Med, and I am sure the situation is just the same in places like Nice and Rimini, etc.

PP has been getting expensive for years now (having been coming since the late 60's) and the exchange rate has just compounded the effect.

It will not stop me coming back but I will adjust my cloth accordingly.

GG

Smiddy, Your post makes one of my main points. It's all well and good for us veteran pper's to say you can get a better deal here and a cheaper meal there but your average family going to pp are not going to spend their holiday doing an impersonation of sherlock holmes. They are going to form an opinion on what they are confronted with in the main arena. Also i forgot to mention in my first post the comment made by Jason moore of the Majorca Bulletin. He say's it's the british peoples fault that majorca is suffering because and i quote, "If they had joined the euro along with the other countries then the prices in gb would have gone up and majorca would not seem so expensive" So there you have it, the ramblings of someone obviously destined for the "Home for the terminally stupid".

Mercadona is much cheaper than other supermarkets and even cheaper than Alcampo. We live here and compare prices regularly. Eroski is expensive by comparison, especially for wine. I know one well known PP restaurant owner who seems to buy his wine there.

The only issue with Mercadona in Alcudia is the very tight car underground park, but if you go during the siesta hours it is much better. However they are digging up the road from Port DÁlcudia and the road is closed coming from that direction which seems to have reduced the number shopping there.

Having just returned from a week in PP, my 2nd visit, I for one will definitely not be returning any time soon.

We found the cost of virtually everything from drinks to meals to lunches to cab fares absolutely extortionate. And not once we did we have a meal that we felt was value for money. One lunch time my husband ordered tuna salad and I ordered prawn and avocado salad. He had a table spoon of tuna on a plate full of lettuce and I had 5 small prawns and 3 thin slices of avocado on a pile of lettuce. With a beer and a coke and 2 x not nice cheesecake the bill came to €37-unbelievable. Toasted sandwiches were dry and unappetising to say the least, undercooked chips to go with them at ridiculous prices. Most places were charging 3.10€ for a cheap draught beer-not on!

A downpour of rain one night caught us out 2 streets away from our hotel-a cab charged us 7€ for the journey back-total rip off. Car from the airport was 73€ each way yet others in the hotel got a cab from airport and were charged 90€!!! In the Canaries where we usually go the same journey would be €35.

I do not wish to offend any PP lovers but from our point of view the place is not that special that tourists are going to suffer these sort of rip off prices-they will take their money elsewhere.