A Strategic Tourism Plan to transform the model and break seasonality

The regional government once again took advantage of the Fitur framework to talk about the new Strategic Tourism Plan 2022-2032, which aims to mobilize 210 million euros in the next ten years “to transform the tourism model, help companies that are having the worst time and consolidate ourselves in international markets”, as indicated by the president of the Community, Fernando López Miras, as well as to attract visitors “all year round and throughout the Region”.

López Miras once again recalled at Fitur that said budget will include 150 million from the successive regional budgets, and another 60 million euros estimated in ‘Next Generation’ funds from the EU for the next three years. In addition, the Plan foresees the creation of 24,000 new jobs, from premises such as the revitalization of destinations to make them safer and more modern; sustainable development with less and less environmental impact; improving the training of professionals to gain competitiveness; the loyalty of a tourist with greater spending capacity; and the increasing digitization.

This roadmap is open to the incorporation of new measures in its period of validity, “and is born from consensus and from the contribution of ideas by the sector, because we have carried out this plan together,” said López Miras. The head of the regional Executive stated that tourism “is a strategic activity for the Region that has suffered a lot” as a result of the pandemic, “but it is time to look forward, and move from the necessary reactivation in the shortest term to a structural and ambitious change, with the largest funding in history for regional tourism.

This structural change involves strengthening the seven main tourist strengths defined in the Strategy, with an action plan that includes specific measures for each of them: the offer of sun and sand; cultural, religious, cruise, and festival tourism; the interior and nature; the sport one; that of enogastronomy; health and wellness; and finally congress and business tourism.

With a view to the success of this Strategy, López Miras classified European funds as “essential”, “that is why it is so important that there are objective criteria so that all regions receive what is fair based on the data established by the European Commission, such as GDP, population and unemployment rate. In this sense, he reaffirmed that “we are not satisfied with the execution and distribution” of these funds, and pointed out that if the 60 million planned for this Strategy do not arrive, “we will sue them in those instances where it is necessary.”