Before our islands push heavily forward with fancy projects of little authenticity and demand in the tourism sector, they ought to analyse the reality a bit more closely to see if what they are investing in will be worth the cost to inhabitants of Malta and Gozo and other sectors and will bring a profit which may benefit more than just land developers.
Whatever hotels are on the drawing board these days, either they are just the king-pin to the development, stupid enough tocreate mega-accommodation properties around them or else there is a great mis-match between what modern tourists seek and the product available.
Mega construction intended for the super- rich is a contradiction in itself. Super rich people do not travel in the normal sense of tourism. They visit somewhere when they have a purpose to do so or cannot avoid it. Other than that, with such a type of hotel, it would matter little to them if they are in Dubai or in Malta. They would find the same fake hotels, detached from the reality of life as it is normally lived by the local people and will not have access to any other experience than simply being slightly amused that there exists a country to pamper to them by giving up their own shore and their own identity. It may attract the cons and the crooks, many of whom have already smelt the opportunity offered them and sensed the hunger around for a good deal. But other than that, the mechanism fails to impress.
Whilst attracting the shady opportunists, such a direction in our tourism product will certainly leave our industry without anything to offer to a market of middle-class tourists. The destruction of our identity, the crowding of our sky-lines and the complete take-over of a relation between the historical and the contemporary life and attitude of the Maltese and Gozitan people, will drive anyone who enjoys such experiences well away.
If a higher-spending tourist is what our islands are after, then they will not find it in the super-rich or the clubbers.
Firstly, a look at the new routes that have opened up for Malta will immediately show the incompatibility of improving the spend of the tourist and the destinations from which they are coming. No matter what requests are received, they simply end up going elsewhere due to current rates and limited availability, unless they come on the cheap and that would be hard to achieve given the kind of prices on the market today. Alternatively, there is the AirBNB arrangement. So, we are simply forsaking our residential areas and peace in order to satisfy the cheap tourism. If it still qualifies as tourism.
Middle-class tourists are now trending to become travelers, rather than tourists. That means that they are rejecting the touristy sight-seeing and over-commercialised areas full of restaurants and bland cafes. Valletta, for example, is nothing but a big food court nowadays. It is impossible to walk without smelling food and dodging tables. The beauty of the architecture and sense of history is spoilt by the many government parked cars, the uninteresting market and the unbroken line of tables and chairs going where the pigeons had been before.
Nowadays, people are more likely to visit the mandragg (slum) and off-beat localities, than they are to visit a tourist zone.
People were led to believe that they needed a new power station. We all know now what the real purpose behind that was. Could the same be happening with the new land grabs, intended for hotels?
People have also become very health conscious. A nice-looking spa is not going to satisfy those who seek fresh air, nature and spaces to unwind. A view of a land-refill and dead sea-bed crowded with jet-skies and cruisers, is not going to compete with an exotic bay. Besides, a recent check of spa facilities in hotels (not the treatments, the facilities), leaves one scratching their head as each venue is either out of order or has noisy children using the indoor pool or keeps the water and air temperature at a very cold, uncomfortable level. It would be better to start by ensuring the quality of what is on offer.
Many will have seen the joke on facebook, of a lady in a restaurant asking what the restaurant can get her that is dairy free, vegan or non-carb and so on and the waitress replies - "a taxi". Is what we are selling now a thing of the past? Even Dubai is suffering a recession these days, so it would be quite foolish to continue copying that model and we do not have miles and miles of sand to build on, where converting sand dunes to habitation is an abnormal achievement.
The quality of life in Malta and Gozo will deteriorate at the expense of speculation and deals that serve no-one. A monument to greed and idols. Those tourists who have not already noticed this, soon will. And when the tourism industry in Malta begins to suffer, so will the government in power.
It is not that alternatives should not be explored and the product improved where it can be improved. However, sustainability and quality go across the whole of the industry. Protecting the environment, both urban and natural, is the top priority. The next important thing is to keep our identity and historic sights intact. Getting back to a smaller and friendlier place would suit most tourists, whether wealthy or economy, better than a mega tower building and plenty of burgers in the fake piazza below. Anyone can tell the difference between a man-made "piazza" and a tree-shaded space with a church in the back and some taverna to serve limoncello. Where would you rather be?