Benidorm hosts the 2nd edition of the National Congress of Journalism and Tourism

More than 200 people have been following the development of the II National Journalism and Tourism Congress since this morning via streaming, organized by Visit Benidorm and Sergestur -Tourism Management Services- which, for the second consecutive year, is being held in the city, specifically in the Town Hall Assembly Hall. A congress in which communication professionals and the tourism industry meet to discuss the relationship between both sectors, and in which different tables, conferences, and two-way debates will take place.

In addition, and like last year, this II National Congress of Journalism and Tourism is very committed to sustainability, in tune with the Benidorm destination and the philosophy of Visit Benidorm. For this reason, as it did in its first edition, it will compensate the carbon footprint generated by the trips to Benidorm of the speakers and participants of the event through the planting of trees.

The congress program began with the online conference 'A strategic axis: communicating tourism' by the general director of Turespaña, Miguel Sanz, who highlighted that this event will be held precisely in Benidorm, the "tourism pillar of Spain", the "capital of smart tourism" being the first certified DTI in the world, the protagonist of "such a profound transformation" as a destination and that "is becoming a benchmark".

After announcing that Turespaña will soon launch "a communication strategy" focused on sustainability, Miguel Sanz gave way to the first table of the day, entitled 'From online to the metaverse, online tourism (communication in institutions and companies' moderated by the editor of Hosteltur, Manuel Molina, with the participation of the president of the Instituto Tecnológico Hotelero (ITH) and vice president of the Magic Costa Blanca chain, Javier García, and the former president of ITH and CEO of Artiem Hotels, José Guillermo Díaz; and Marian Muro, former general director of Turisme de Barcelona.

This was followed by the first debate, described in the programming as a 'cockfight', between Esther Eirós, presenter of the space 'Gente Viajera' on Onda Cero Radio, and José Luis Yzuel, president of the Hospitality Association of Spain. Both discussed how to improve the relationship between journalists and gastronomic tourism professionals.

The second 'cockfight' brought together Fernando Valmaseda, CEO of the RV Edipress Group and director of the 'Miradas Viajeras' program on Capital Radio and Movistar+, and the president of the Hotel Business Federation of Mallorca, María Frontera, who discussed of communication agencies as a strategic partner of tourism in its different aspects and with its different agents. After them, the second table was held, 'The old rock media never die: their credibility is useful', under the direction of the director of Institutional Relations of Fepet, Ignacio Vasallo, and in which the travel journalist Alicia Bea, editor of the Objective Viajar blog, and Francisco José Benito, editor of the newspaper Información de Alicante.

Subsequently, the Director of Innovation, Education and Research of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), Natalia Bayona, offered the conference 'Innovation in communication in tourism. It was followed by a round table on 'Data, technology, sustainability and communication', moderated by the presenter of the congress and journalist from the Diario de Huesca Javier García Antón, and in which Laura Garrido, CEO of the consulting firm Ético, and Isidro Fernández, CEO of the technology company Bumerania.

The morning session closed with the conference 'The power of the story, offered online by Eva Ballarín, an expert in Tourism, hospitality & restaurants.

This afternoon, Benidorm will be very present in two of the three planned activities. First, at the table 'Success stories in tourism promotion, experiences, in which the manager of Visit Benidorm, Leire Bilbao, together with the general director of Lloret Turismo, Elizabeth Keagan, participates. The presence of Benidorm is completed with the interview that the journalist Javier García will carry out with Nuria Montes, general secretary of the Hosbec hotel association, and which will serve as a prelude to the presentation of the conclusions of the congress.

Before the interview with Nuria Montes, the second table of the afternoon will take place, under the name 'Time for snipers, time for entrepreneurs. Searching for gold for free will bring together the journalist and blogger Nani Arenas and César Sar, journalist, traveler, and head of the documentary series 'El Turista'.