Marta González-Hontoria
Updated Tuesday, April 2, 2024-00:58
Interview Confessions of the manager of the Ritz hotel in Madrid: "This is the art of seeing, hearing and remaining silent"
Wine tourism The towns and wineries near Madrid that you have to visit if you like wine
Rosa Melchor is a very busy woman. The mayor of Alcázar de San Juan (Ciudad Real) is the current president of the European Network of Wine Cities, a position she holds because she is in charge of Acevin, the Spanish version of the previous one, and of the Spanish Wine Routes , one of the great tourist successes in our country and its deep-rooted wine culture. Currently there are 37. "One of the next to enter will be the León Wine Route," Melchor anticipates. "The routes have enriched the discourse of the towns, of the tourist guides, and have brought travelers closer to the essence of each place," she says.
Ask. Traveling through Spain with wine as a common thread. When was this brilliant idea born?
Answer.
Now it seems normal to us but when we at Acevin (Spanish Association of Wine Cities) created the Spanish Wine Routes product club with that idea, traveling around our country through the wine-growing territories to learn about its history, was something that no one was proposed. In fact, the word wine tourism was not used much either. The club was born in 2001 after a pilot experience of five destinations. Now it groups 37 routes.
Q.- What ingredients should a Wine Route have?
A.-
Our way of understanding wine tourism is not just about visiting a winery. A Wine Route is made up of all those establishments and tourist agents necessary when traveling and sightseeing: from accommodation and restaurants to tourist offices, shops, wine bars, wineries... In our case, all of them have a high degree of of knowledge of the world of wine in each territory, that is, the Spanish Wine Routes are a way to travel through our country in an immersive way to get to know the territories of winemaking tradition, in addition to being a certified quality product that differentiates us from other offers.
Q.- How has the world of wine changed in recent years?
A.-
There are always ways to offer news to an audience that has more and more travel experience. As happens in other tourism sectors, in recent years this innovation has involved the creation of experiences, offering experiences. It is surprising how well the world of wine combines with aspects such as hiking, astrotourism, bird watching... Today wineries not only focus on what happens inside them, on the production process, but also on what What happens in the vineyard and that is something that very few people know. And as for the hotels, the same: specializing, theming, in many cases being spokespersons for the territory.
Q.-What impact has wine tourism had on our geography?
A.-
Each Route is an example of dynamization of the territory because with each one a tourist offer is born. As an example, we can talk about the winery neighborhoods on the Moradillo de Roa hill (on the Ribera del Duero Wine Route) and Baltanás (on the Arlanza Wine Route), which were awarded in our Wine Tourism Awards for the recovery of heritage and for the tourism initiative that they have created around this heritage.
Q.- How many wine tourists are we?
A.-
The Tourist Observatory of the Wine Routes of Spain, the only organization that currently carries out systematic, extensive measurements and studies with a sufficiently representative population of wine tourism in our country, shows that in 2022 we were about to reach the three million visitors that were the ones we had registered before the pandemic. We are sure that the 2023 report, which will be published soon, will confirm reaching this margin and even surpass it. But it's not just about numbers: the recovery of wine tourism is seen in the way people want to discover new territories and in the momentum and strength with which our establishments have taken over. They tell us that there are more and more clients, more travelers, more wine tourists.
Q.- What is the profile of that wine tourist in Spain?
A.-
It is very heterogeneous, but according to the latest Report from the Spanish Wine Routes Observatory, the
female audience
is almost four percentage points ahead of the male audience; The most common age group is between 46 and 65 years old (36.46%), followed by those between 36 and 45 and 26 and 35 years old (although it is true that the younger audience is increasing) ; Couple trips predominate, but group trips with friends have also increased. There are more and more overnight stays at the destination, meaning that it is no longer considered excursion tourism; There is also more and more gastro in the destination.
Q.- Do Spain's routes have their mirror in other places in Europe and beyond?
A.-
Our model is unique. It is true that in Portugal or Italy they also have their wine routes, and in other countries wine tourism is also practiced, of course, but they are organized differently. The public-private union and collaboration, the quality system and other aspects do not occur elsewhere. Furthermore, in many cases, these wine routes focus only on the wineries.
Q.- This public-private collaboration is not so common...
A.-
In our model it is fundamental. We are proud to have known how to transmit what is common to all those who are in the same territory or region, which is that world of wine that has determined the economy of the area, the physiognomy of its towns and cities, its heritage, its culture, its festivals and much of its gastronomy and its landscape.
Q.- Do you recommend a route now that spring begins?
A.-
If on all the Wine Routes you are going to feel wonderful, now with spring even more so. It is impossible to choose one among all because another of the interesting aspects of our brand is that each territory is different. There is something for everyone: inland, next to the coast, near mountains, in smaller, larger territories... It doesn't matter which one you start with because I'm sure that others will come later, because the interest aroused by the territories of the Wine Routes of Spain is tremendously attractive.
37 Wine Routes in Spain
Currently the Spanish Wine Routes brand is made up of
37 Wine Routes
. There are 37 destinations that cover practically the entirety of our country, so all the richness and uniqueness of the wine-growing territories is more than represented. The oldest are Utiel-Requena, Rioja Alavesa, Somontano, Montilla-Moriles, Penedès and Jumilla, which were certified in 2006. Behind them would be Jerez, Bullas and Navarra. One of the next to enter will be the León Wine Route. To be a member of a route you must obtain a certification. "That is the strength of our brand, since it is based on excellence and quality," Melchor emphasizes.
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