Spain: the city of Toledo worries about the fall of tourism

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By: Véronique Gaymard Follow

In Spain, a gradual deconfinement is taking place. For the cities which live largely on tourism, weighing 12% of the Spanish gross domestic product, the blow is hard. In Toledo, the old town, which is usually teeming with tourists, is empty.

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It is 11 am in Toledo, the capital of Castilla la Mancha, a city with 1,000 years of history, a world heritage site, usually visited by 3 million tourists from around the world each year. But this time, the silence is disturbing. The countless souvenir and sword shops have the metal curtain closed.

Not far from the Gothic cathedral, the few passers-by are not tourists, but locals who do their shopping. "  It has nothing to do with the usual bustle of tourists, the streets are silent, there are fewer people, it's nice too, but yes, the city is a little sad ...  ", says Nuria. She is the ex-president of Distrito 1, the association of small traders in Toledo. Here everyone knows each other, solidarity plays between customers and traders, we promise to make purchases as soon as it reopens.

► Read also : Coronavirus, Spain adopts a cautious deconfinement plan, spread over four " phases "

At the central market, the Raquel fishmonger wears a mask like everyone here, his sales have dropped considerably. “  Bars and restaurants attract tourists, and we sell to restaurants. But right now, we're not selling anything! And then there are many apartments for seasonal rental, tourists bought to cook at home. And that has gone down a lot  , ”laments Raquel.

"We are more and more worried"

Restaurants may reopen terraces, but hotels will remain closed. Some are preparing to reopen, but not before early July. "  We have a lot of French tourists, they appreciate this place where guitarist Paco de Lucía lived and where he recorded a disc ...  ", says Rafael Carmena. He manages a five-bedroom boutique hotel, with its patio decorated with mudejar-style mosaics and plants.

He reorganizes his hotel, by deleting a room, he installs bottles of disinfectant gel. “  We are more and more worried. We have had cancellations, not all, but I think that international tourism will depend a lot on the airlines. But if there is a second wave of the virus, we are lost,  ”he fears.

► Read also: In Spain, decontamination at no load

Reassuring tourists

Tour guides are already feeling the effects of the crisis. Manuel Palencia is a passionate historian, he knows every corner of the city. With his agency Cuentame Toledo, he tries to develop individual tourism with tailor-made offers. "We offer games, routes in the city, which the traveler can do alone, so as not to be in a group, we will see how it develops,  " says Manuel Palencia.

The municipality of Toledo begins to put in place aid for traders, the mayor Milagros Tolon tries to reassure so that tourists return safely, it also announced the pedestrianization of certain parts of the city.

The decision pleased the hotelier Rafael Carmena. "  We couldn't take any more of this mass tourism which left us no more space, neither for the tourists nor for the inhabitants, we have to do something  ", he says.

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• Spain
• Tourism
• Confinement