The impact of the pandemic on the tourism sector has put on the table the debate about the model that Spain has, that of sun and sand, and whether it should be reinvented.

The weight of these destinations is enormous: the six Mediterranean sun and beach communities, plus the Balearic and Canary Islands,

account for 108,000 million euros in turnover

, which is 70.5% of all tourism GDP, and 1.6 million euros. jobs, 62% of the 2.5 million that the sector has.

Spanish tourism breathes thanks to this model, according to data from the latest Exceltur report on sun and beach destinations, Solytur.

The study collects data from 2019, before the pandemic broke out,

and gives an idea of ​​the losses caused by the health crisis in these places and in the economy.

The weight of tourism in GDP has fallen from 12% to 4%.

The sector gives up Easter, after noting "a chilling first quarter", and consider that

the important thing now "above all is not to lose the summer,"

as José Luis Zoreda, vice president of the tourist lobby, has pointed out in the days organized this Thursday.

In his opinion, in order to reach the summer with certain guarantees

, the vaccination rate would have to be multiplied by four

.

"Many will not pass this summer, I have no doubt," said Gabriel Escarrer, president of Exceltur and also of Meliá.

Escarrer believes that the sector will come out of this crisis, but whether it is done "in more or less time depends on how active the government is in helping the sector," and if it manages to obtain part of the Next Generation European funds.

The sector also insists that a rescue plan with direct aid is needed, and believes that the two tourism support plans presented by the Government (one last June, and the second in December) have not been enough to cushion the impact of this crisis.

Activity on the coast

The sector came from its heyday.

The "sun and beach" in our country was almost unmatched.

The 733 municipalities on the coast and islands (except for large cities) have 1.4 million hotel beds, which is 63% of all capacity and 65% of the demand for all of Spain.

These destinations represent 75% of the total foreign demand

that visits Spain.

They are data from 2019.

The accommodation capacity of Marbella exceeds the population of Coruña, only the tourist activity of the Balearic Islands exceeds that of Croatia, and that of Andalusia is greater than Puerto Rico, Cuba and Costa Rica combined.

The tourist activity of Catalonia is higher than that of Egypt and Cyprus,

while that of the Canary Islands exceeds that of Brazil and the Dominican Republic.

Exceltur has developed

a ranking of the most competitive destinations.

The municipalities of Adeje (Tenerife), Calviá (Mallorca) and Benidorm (Alicante) are the ones that top the ranking.

To prepare it, 58 indicators have been evaluated, such as the state of the beaches, the diversification of the offer, the accommodation capacity, the connectivity, the level of public and health safety, among other aspects.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

Know more

  • Spain

  • Balearics

  • Canary Islands

  • Cuba

  • Costa Rica Soccer Team

  • Catalonia

  • Egypt

  • Cyprus

  • Brazil

  • Croatia

  • Majorca

  • Alicante

  • Puerto Rico

  • Andalusia

  • Croatia National Soccer Team

  • GDP

  • ERTE

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