The territorial delegate of Tourism of the Junta de Andalucía in Almería, Vicente García Egea, has highlighted “the importance of digitisation” to deepen the tourist attractions and relaunch the destination, “reaching new market shares” through new technologies and their application to tourism. “They are a fundamental means to continue growing in this path of recovery of the sector that began this summer and has been confirmed in these first weeks of autumn. The digitisation and modernisation of tourism is an opportunity that must be seized to give a new impetus and make the province of Almeria even more competitive.
García Egea made these statements during a visit to Arboleas, where he held a meeting with the mayor, Cristóbal García, in a first approach to the resources and projects that are being worked on both institutionally, in collaboration with the administrations, and privately.
“Arboleas is a municipality in the Almanzora Valley that has grown a lot in recent years, and has also been able to see and take advantage of the tourism industry as an economic activity and to recover and fix the population. For some time now it has been working to convert its natural, archaeological, artistic, architectural and ethnological heritage into a differentiating and unique resource within the tourist offer of the province of Almeria”.
In this sense, the delegate was able to learn from the mayor himself about the digitalisation projects that are being worked on to complete this path of gradual and constant increase in visits, also helping to break the seasonality in the sector and encouraging the arrival of travellers at different times of the year. “Arboleas is an example of a booming destination with a future projection through its heritage, natural, cultural and historical excellence. It should be remembered that it has four routes – urban, countryside, historical and active tourism – that make up an attractive menu when planning a weekend getaway or a longer trip”.
The head of Tourism in the province has also taken advantage of the visit to listen to the proposals of Arboleas for the joint plan for sustainable tourism in the region of Valle del Almanzora and Los Vélez. “From this Ministry, we are committed to maintaining the level of quality, but also for the safety and sustainability of the destination, taking care of the growth of this activity with the utmost respect for the environment and the natural environment”.
In this regard, García Egea has detailed to the councillor some of the measures adopted by the Ministry led by Juan Marín to contribute to the revival of the sector, such as the ‘Andalucía Segura’ label on tourist businesses, as well as the new lines of aid that are planned for this year and that the municipalities have been able to apply for. “We are determined to support the municipalities to develop new tourism initiatives and to promote a tourism of excellence and highly competitive, which makes us the preferred choice of travellers”.
Finally, he recalled the commitment that the Regional Ministry of Tourism is making to technology and modernisation of the entire sector, with initiatives such as the General Plan for Sustainable Tourism 2027 (META Plan), which has been presented at Andalusian level and also to the tourism sector in Almeria. “It is a basic instrument in the management of Andalusia’s tourism resources, which lays the foundations for what tourism in Andalusia will be in the coming years, and has digitalisation as one of its main keys”, concluded the delegate.
