The World Tourism Organization and the Catalan Tourist Board of the Government of Catalonia launch the first World Sports Tourism Congress to discuss the future expectations of the sector

• All Regions, Europe
• 23 Sep 2021

• The Congress will take place in Lloret on 25 and 26 November
• The programme will feature renowned speakers such as Petra Stusek, Kattia Juarez Dubón, Edwin Moses and Marco Mazzi
• The event will be in a hybrid format and will use advanced technology to enhance the virtual presence of some speakers through holograms
• Registration for the event is now open at the World Sports Tourism Congress website

The Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), Zurab Pololikashvili, and the Minister of Business and Labour of the Government of Catalonia, Roger Torrent, presented the first World Sports Tourism Congress and its programme, within the framework of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, at a press conference held in Lloret de Mar and Barcelona.

The Congress, which previously had to be postponed due to the pandemic, will take place on 25 and 26 November at the Olympic Conference Centre in the Catalan town of Lloret de Mar. The presentation was attended by Marta Domènech, Director-General of Tourism, Ion Vilcu, Director of the Department of Affiliate Members of UNWTO, Narcís Ferrer, Director of the Catalan Tourist Board, and Jaume Dulsat, Mayor of Lloret de Mar.

The Congress will have a total of 62 speakers from different countries such as the United States, Canada, France, Wales, Northern Ireland and Croatia. Leading figures from the world of sport and tourism, representing entities that are also UNWTO Affiliate Members, have already confirmed their attendance as speakers, such as Petra Stusek, President and CEO of European Cities Marketing; Kattia Juarez Dubón of the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme; Edwin Moses, Olympic medallist; Marco Mazzi, Vice- President of the International Sports Travel Agencies Association, and Mafalda Magalhaes, Director of FC Porto Museum.

Registration is now open at https://worldsportstourismcongress.org. The Congress will be a hybrid event, allowing both in-person and virtual participation, and aims to strengthen the relationship between sports tourism and sustainable and inclusive development, diversification, differentiation and de-seasonalization. Also collaborating in the organization of the event are the Costa Brava Girona Tourist Board and the City Council of Lloret de Mar through Lloret Turismo.

The Congress, which already had almost 400 pre-registered participants before the official opening of registration, will address topics such as the challenges for the sector posed by COVID-19; trends in sport and physical activity; innovation in the development of sports tourism; mass attendance at sporting events; as well as the environmental framework, diversity and inclusion in the world of sport.

The programme also includes other aspects, such as different public-private governance strategies, the digital transformation of the sector, e-sports, digital marketing, communication and commercialization. Over the two days of the Congress, there will be different sports activities for the participants, academic presentations and technical visits; in addition, spaces will be set up for networking to maximize synergies among the attendees.

Telepresence at the Congress through holograms

Among the innovations that the Congress will bring, as presented at the press conference, are two hologram booths to enable the participation of different speakers who will not be in Lloret de Mar in person. It will be the first event in Catalonia to use this advanced technology, presented at the Mobile World Congress 2021. Fibre-optics and 5G connectivity will make it possible to bring personalities from all over the world closer to the Congress remotely and in real time, through giant screens.

Tourism and Sports, a priority line of action for UNWTO

For the World Tourism Organization, Tourism and Sport represents a priority that it has been actively developing over the past two years. In addition to organizing this World Sports Tourism Congress together with the Catalan Tourist Board, UNWTO has supported other projects focused on this line of action.

UNWTO recognizes the beneficial bond of mutual reinforcement that unites tourism and sport. Key indicators such as employment linked to sport, the percentage of trips initiated for sports reasons, the total expenditure associated with these trips and public spending linked to sport, have been registering remarkable growth in recent years. Sports tourism also raises the visibility of destinations and encourages investment in infrastructure, with its positive multiplier effects at the economic and social levels.

In the current context of crisis that the tourism sector, in particular, and all other sectors of society and the economy are experiencing, the contribution of each component and subsector will be very important, and the area of tourism and sport will be no exception.

Beyond the economic indicators mentioned above, it is imperative to highlight the values that sport inspires and promotes, and that apply to all aspects of economic and social life, including tourism.

The Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organization, Zurab Pololikashvili said: “... the gradual resumption of the calendar of competitions and major sporting events is an important driver of the restart of tourism after the unprecedented shock of the pandemic. Sporting events can play a decisive role in the tourism development in destinations”.

Lloret de Mar – Costa Brava

In recent years, sports tourism has become a strategic sector in Catalonia thanks to its state-of-the-art facilities and the wide range of possibilities it offers for sports-themed stays for individuals and teams alike. In 2003, the Catalan Tourist Board created its Sports Tourism Brand, a distinction that is granted to municipalities, facilities and specialized companies that meet quality standards in the different sports disciplines and recognizes excellence in resources and services to practice sports or enjoy events and championships for elite athletes, professionals and fans of major sporting events.

Since 2006, Lloret de Mar has been recognized by the Catalan Tourist Board as a certified Sports Tourism Destination in the disciplines of football, athletics, swimming, group sports, triathlon and cycling. The municipality has an extensive hotel infrastructure to accommodate all attendees of the Congress and the different parallel events. Each year it receives more than 60,000 athletes and accompanying persons, and during 2019, it hosted a total of 446 sports events and competitions.

Related links

• Download the news release in PDF
• World Sports Tourism Congress
• Sports Tourism
• Affiliate Members

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Grupo Xcaret in Mexico, tourism as a partner to sustainable development

• All Regions, Americas
• 14 Jul 2021

A new agreement between the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and Grupo Xcaret shows how public-private partnerships can promote destinations and rural environments through tourism.

Extension of the collaboration between UNWTO and the Grupo Xcaret has coincided with the opening of the new Hotal Xcaret Arte, an important investment that reveals the confidence of the Grupo Xcaret in the sustainable recovery of tourism. It is also taking shape in the context of the International Year of Creative Economy for Sustainable Development declared by the United Nations.

The agreement covers increased collaboration by UNWTO with one of its most active affiliate members in the promotion of sustainable tourism and of social responsibility in the private sector towards the conservation and promotion of natural and cultural heritage through tourism.

Shared goals

This agreement is an important step in the continued expansion of our collaboration for better, more sustainable and creative tourism

The agreement was confirmed in the framework of the recent first official visit by the UNWTO Secretary General, Zurab Pololikashvili, to Mexico, during which he met President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and the Secretary for Tourism, Miguel Torruco.

In addition to the meetings at the highest political level, UNWTO set up new collaboration with the State of Yucatan and expanded the existing collaboration with the Government of the State of Quintana Roo in the Mexican Caribbean.

Such shared goals mark the relationship between Grupo Xcaret and UNWTO since the group joined the Organisation as an Affiliate Member in 2004, the year after UNWTO became a specialized United Nations agency.

Public-private collaboration

Tourism in Quintana Roo has proved to be an example of efficient public-private collaboration in tourism, whose benefits reach beyond the tourism sector.

“This agreement is an important step in the continued expansion of our collaboration for better, more sustainable and creative tourism”, said Secretary General Pololikashvili, who stressed the support it will provide for the destination and its culture and the impetus it will bring to rural development.

“This agreement”,  according to architect Miguel Quintana, “reaffirms our commitment as a sustainable, 100% Mexican enterprise whose business model is based on ethics, respect for human dignity and a commitment to biodiversity and the creation of shared value in the communities in which we operate.”

The ceremony for the signing of the agreement by the Secretary General of UNWTO, Zurab Pololikashvili, and by architect Miguel Quintana Pali, President and Director General of Grupo XCaret, was held in the presence of witnesses of honour, the Mexican Secretary of Tourism Miguel Torruco and the Governor of the State of Quintana Roo, Carlos Joaquín González.

Related Links:

• Download the news release in PDF
• UNWTO in Mexico to Build on Historic Political Support for Tourism
• UNWTO Affiliate Members

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UNWTO gives voice to the initiatives of the private sector at FITUR 2021

• All Regions
• 21 May 2021

UNWTO Affiliate Members from the tourism sector, including private entities, associations and tourism boards across the world, have presented their initiatives and projects on tourism recovery at the ‘’UNWTO Affiliate Members Corner’’, held on 21 May at FITUR 2021, the International Tourism Fair Trade in Madrid (Spain). The forum, organized by the UNWTO Affiliate Members Department, provided a professional space for the UNWTO Affiliate Membership to showcase their projects at this important international tourism fair, one of first international mobility events in Europe.

The event saw initiatives covering topics such as the digitalisation and innovation in tourism, marketing strategies for the recovery of tourism, and reactivation strategies to achieve a safer, more inclusive and more sustainable tourism sector when travel resumes.

Among the participating companies were top private entities, tourism boards, tourism organizations and associations such as Expedia Group, Allianz Partners, the Moscow City Tourism Committee (Russia), the Catalan Tourism Board (Spain), the Turkey Tourism Promotion and Development Agency (Turkey), Quintana Roo Tourism Promotion Council (CPTQ) (Mexico), Turisme de Barcelona (Spain), NECStouR (Belgium), the Tourism Observatory (Eurecat), FENALCO (Colombia), Fundación Mallorca Turismo (Spain), the Starlight Foundation (Spain), Turisme de Barcelona (Spain), Expedia Group (USA), Turismo de Santiago de Compostela (Spain), World Leisure Organization (USA) and the Guanajuato Tourism Observatory & Secretary of Tourism of Guanajuato (Mexico).

Ion Vilcu, Director of the UNWTO Affiliate Members Department, said: "I am very pleased with the level of participation in the UNWTO Affiliate Members Corner at FITUR 2021, and the very interesting projects shared. The event offered the perfect opportunity to learn from each other, exchange ideas and expertise and cooperate more closely to restart the tourism sector. From the Affiliate Members Department, we are committed to continue supporting the activities of our members through initiatives such as this one, in the common effort to advance the resumption of a better, more inclusive and sustainable tourism sector''.

Related Links

• Download the news release in PDF
• UNWTO Affiliate Members Corner 2021
• Working With the Private Sector
• Guiding tourism's recovery

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Tourism for all – UNWTO presents “Accessibility and Inclusive Tourism Development” - Compendium of Best Practices

• All Regions
• 19 May 2021

The UNWTO Affiliate Members Department, within the framework of the activities of the Working Group on Accessible Tourism, organized the Expert Meeting on Accessible Tourism – Good Practices on Accessible Tourism in Nature Areas at FITUR Next.

This event provided a space to recognize the importance of incorporating accessibility into the tourism practices in nature environments, share knowledge and experiences by UNWTO Affiliate Members and other tourism stakeholders, and provide recommendation on how to strengthen accessibility and create an accessible tourism for all.

At the event, the publication Accessibility and Inclusive Tourism Development – Compendium of Best Practices, available in the UNWTO E-Library, was launched and presented to the audience. This publication is the result of the work carried out in the last months by the Working Group on Accessible Tourism, coordinated by the Affiliate Members Department and chaired by the Spanish Network for Accessible Tourism (Red Estable).

We trust this publication will provide all relevant stakeholders with tools and resources to make their tourism destinations, facilities and services accessible for all

Its aim is to create an accessible pathway in nature, from which to descry a new approach for inclusive tourism development in natural areas, which is very much in line with the UNWTO priority to foster an Accessible Tourism for All and so contributing to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The compilation of best practices included in the publication and the final recommendations provides innovative, inclusive, and sustainable solutions that enable access to nature for all the people.

In the words of UNWTO Secretary General Zurab Pololikashvili: There is still a lot of work to be done, as we are still far from guaranteeing a universally accessible tourism sector. However, we trust this publication will provide all relevant stakeholders with tools and resources to make their tourism destinations, facilities and services accessible for all. We also hope it will serve as a source of inspiration for them to continue working, so that tourism becomes truly accessible.

Within the framework of the event, representatives of the entities which contributed to the publication shared with the audience their projects, all very different in terms of contents but sharing the common goal of promoting an Accessible Tourism for All and supporting the right of people with disabilities to travel. Accessible accommodations in nature, accessibility to natural parks and beaches, and the use of plastic to manufacture accessible products were only some of the topics that were presented.

RELATED LINKS

• Download the news release in PDF
• Expert Meeting on Accessible Tourism: Good Practices on Accessible Tourism in Nature Areas
• Accessibility and Inclusive Tourism Development in Nature Areas – Compendium of Best Practices

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UNWTO Supports Special Edition of the CaixaBank Hotels & Tourism Awards at FITUR

• All Regions
• 19 May 2021

The third edition of the CaixaBank Hotels & Tourism Awards was held today at the CaixaBank stand at Fitur, the first major international mobility experience in Europe this year, with the presence of Ion Vilcu, Director of the Affiliate Members Department of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), and representatives of CaixaBank Hotels & Tourism.

These awards are yet another example of the commitment of CaixaBank—a UNWTO Affiliate Member—to the tourism market and, specifically, to social and innovative projects in the tourism sector in Spain.

In this special edition, the best social and innovative initiatives launched by the sector in 2020 to adapt to the COVID-19 crisis were recognized. Three private Spanish entities in the hotel sector, Artiem Hotels, Apartmentos Vistasol and HOSBEC, were announced as the winners in the national phase of this third edition for their respective initiatives in the “Social”, “Innovation” and “Institutional” categories of the awards.

The jury for the awards was composed of CaixaBank specialists in the tourism sector and Corporate Responsibility, professionals from leading institutions in the sector, such as the UNWTO and the Spanish Confederation of Hotels and Tourist Accommodations (CEHAT), as well as representatives of chambers of commerce.

The UNWTO welcomes with great enthusiasm the initiatives of CaixaBank Hotels & Tourism aimed at implementing more sustainable practices, which ultimately make tourism companies more competitive, with the goal of promoting the development of the sector in line with the values and priorities of the 2030 Agenda.

RELATED LINKS

• Download the news release in PDF
• FITUR 2021 | UNWTO Activities

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