Manuel Butler, UK director of the Spanish Tourist Office, said that post-Covid, the authority’s focus had been to reposition Spain as a sustainable, inclusive and high-end destination by placing a spotlight on its culture, history and gastronomy rather than all-inclusive beach holidays and breaks to its already heavily touristed cities.
Spain has for several years communicated this message to the travel trade – agents and operators – but Butler on Tuesday (19 March) said this messaging would be extended to consumers, with a view to targeting wealthier, general older holidaymakers.
“In the past years, we have worked with the trade especially and now we’re focusing on the main media in order to reach consumers,” said Butler.
It follows a faster-than-expected post-Covid recovery of tourism to Spain with 85 million people visiting the country in 2023, up 2% on 2019 levels.
The number of UK tourists, though, fell by 16% year-on-year last year and by 3.8% compared with 2019, while average stays have shrunk from 7.29 days in 2019 to 6.91 days in 2023.
However, despite their shorter stays, Brits have been spending more, contributing just shy of €20 billion (£17 billion) to the €108.7 billion spent by tourists in Spain in 2023, up by 12% compared with 2019.
The Spanish Tourist Office now plans to start promoting some of the country’s lesser-known destinations and higher added-value cultural, luxury and enogastronomic (food and wine) experiences.
These, said Butler, would include championing Oviedo – Spain’s gastronomy capital for 2024 – and the Jubilee year celebrations in Murcia’s holy city of Caravaca de la Cruz.
The authority is also working on several efforts to publicise Spain as a sustainable and inclusive destination, including a second sustainability day and sustainable media awards on 17 April.
Back for a second year, the Spanish Tourist Office has said the event will bring together travel trade professionals from the UK and Spain, with this year’s topics including circular economy, biodiversity, accessibility and inclusivity.
“It’s an opportunity for both countries to meet, share experiences and share knowledge on how to manage tourism in a sustainable way,” explained deputy director Pedro Medina.
The conference will be followed by the sustainable media awards, which Molina said would serve as a chance to celebrate “efforts to promote important travel themes” in the UK travel media.
Earlier this month, Spain recruited British Paralympic wheelchair basketball champion Ade Adepitan as ambassador for its #SpainForAll accessibility campaign.
