Domestic tourists tighten their belts and change their spending habits: Menorca’s restaurants are also feeling the effects

Bep Al·lès/Ciutadella - Families continue to prioritise holidays, but they are cutting back on restaurant spending, choosing apartments, shopping in supermarkets and returning to the traditional packed sandwich on the beach.

This summer’s tourist season is revealing a reality increasingly shared by Menorca’s restaurant owners: there are tourists, but many of them are spending less. This is especially true of domestic visitors, who continue to choose Menorca as a holiday destination but are adapting their budgets to tighter household finances after several years of inflation and declining purchasing power.

The phenomenon is not exclusive to the island. Several studies on consumer behaviour suggest that Spaniards continue to regard holidays as a priority, but cut back on areas of spending they consider more flexible. Eating out is one of the first. Portable coolers, sandwiches prepared in holiday apartments, supermarket shopping and picnics on the beach are therefore becoming increasingly common again, an image that seemed to have disappeared during the years of strongest tourism recovery.

In Menorca, this trend is particularly noticeable in holiday resorts and coastal areas. Supermarkets are recording a significant rise in purchases of ready-made food, drinks and products intended for consumption outside the home, while many families prefer to limit restaurant visits to one or two occasions during their holiday week instead of eating lunch and dinner out every day.

Restaurant owners agree that customer numbers are not always reflected in turnover. Many tables are spending less: diners share starters, skip wine, order fewer desserts or none at all, and choose the most affordable dishes on the menu. A decline in average spending per customer is also being observed, especially among families and visitors aged between 30 and 40 from mainland Spain.

This shift in habits comes at a time when establishments continue to face very high operating costs. Rising food, energy, wage and service costs are leaving restaurants with increasingly narrow margins. This limits their ability to compete solely on price and forces them to strengthen other aspects, such as product quality, service, the overall dining experience and their connection with the local area.

At the same time, the accommodation market also reflects this more restrained spending. Many families are choosing apartments or holiday homes with kitchens so that they can prepare a substantial proportion of their meals. This option allows them to reduce the total cost of the trip considerably without giving up a few days in Menorca.

International visitors, by contrast, show a different pattern. Foreign tourists, particularly those from France, generally maintain more stable spending on restaurants and complementary activities. This helps partially offset the restraint shown by the Spanish market and also by British visitors, who mainly stay in holiday villas or in all-inclusive and half-board hotels.

This contrast explains why some establishments specialising in international customers, especially French visitors, continue to enjoy high occupancy levels, while businesses more focused on domestic and British customers are experiencing the reduction in spending more intensely.

The length of stays is another influencing factor. Four- or five-day breaks are, in many cases, replacing the one- or two-week holidays that were common only a few years ago. Fewer days on the island mean fewer meals eaten out and stricter budget planning.

For Menorca’s hospitality sector, this scenario requires adaptation to a more rational consumer who still values quality but is far more selective about where to spend money. Set menus, sharing dishes, occasional promotions and distinctive gastronomic experiences are gaining importance among customers seeking to maximise the value of every euro spent.

The season, therefore, is defined less by a lack of visitors than by a profound change in their spending habits. The traditional sandwich on the beach, supermarket shopping and cooking in holiday apartments are once again part of Menorca’s summer landscape. It is an image that confirms that tourists are still coming to the island, but also that economic caution has become part of the holidays of many Spanish families, with a direct impact on the local restaurant sector.