Benidorm achieves certification as the world's first Smart Tourist Destination

Benidorm has become the first Smart Tourism Destination (DTI) in the world, having achieved the Q Mark awarded by the Institute for Spanish Tourism Quality once the audit has been completed in accordance with the UNE 178501 standard for the Tourist Destination Management System Smart made by AENOR. This norm was promoted by Segittur, the State Tourism and Innovation Society dependent on the Secretary of State for Tourism, within the Spanish Association for Standardization, UNE.

This was announced today by the mayor, Toni Pérez, who recalled that Benidorm has been working since 2016 to achieve this certification that makes it the first Smart Tourist Destination (DTI). The process of implementing the Management System for Smart Tourist Destinations (SGDTI) in accordance with the UNE Standard has been coordinated by Mercedes Llorca, responsible for the Ente Gestor. A Gestor Entity conformed by municipal technicians; the manager of Visit Benidorm, Leire Bilbao; and the technical advice of the head of the Tourist Intelligence company, Celia Romero.

The mayor stressed that Benidorm "has worked hard to be part of the smart tourism management model", which will mark "the repositioning of destinations"; and added that "in the very near future, tourism and the success of a destination will not be conceived without the application of tourism intelligence; an application in which Benidorm is already a pioneer ".

The president of the Institute for Spanish Tourism Quality Miguel Mirones congratulated the mayor of Benidorm and the municipality as a whole for having achieved the Q Mark and invited other municipalities and destinations in our country to begin the certification process to become smart destinations. "This certification increases the quality of the tourists' experience, encourages continuous improvement, improves the relationship between residents and visitors and allows them to better adapt to the needs of the latter through the treatment of information and data."

For Sergio González, Manager of Innovation and Product Development of AENOR "Benidorm, which was a pioneer in the certification of Surveillance and Smart Management Systems, now extends its commitment to quality tourism with its certification as a Smart Tourist Destination, which places at the forefront of the sector. With this certificate, Benidorm is committed to placing tourists at the center of their policies, anticipating their needs and responding to them through innovation, new technologies or sustainability ".

The UNE 178501 Standard of SGDTI establishes the requirements that must be met by any destination that wants to be smart and that pivots on five axes: Sustainability, Accessibility, New Technologies, Governance and Innovation.

The certification audit has a scope throughout the municipality of Benidorm, as well as the level of specialization in tourism products: Sports, Health and Welfare, Congresses, Gastronomy, Film Office, Shopping and Benidorm Green.

The audit report highlights the commitment to innovation and development of Benidorm as DTi, as manifested by the work that has been carried out in recent years, the participation in projects developed in this field and the involvement of all the personnel interviewed during the audit, also highlights the creation of the Smart Office DTI: Technical Office of Innovation and Intelligence and the development of a surveillance system and tourism intelligence.

About the Institute for Spanish Tourism Quality

The Institute for Spanish Tourism Quality, a Spanish, private, independent and non-profit organization, participated by the Secretary of State for Tourism, the autonomous communities, the town councils and the main associations and federations of tourism companies. Recognized in all the national scope, the ICTE is an entity of Certification of Systems of Quality specially created for tourist companies. It exclusively manages and manages the Q Brand, the most visible element of the entire System, whose generic name is "Spanish Tourist Quality", common to any activity related to tourism services or products and which guarantees the fulfillment of a series of characteristics contributing prestige, differentiation, reliability and rigor to certified tourist establishments.

About AENOR

AENOR is a professional services entity that identifies and helps correct gaps in the competitiveness of companies, sectors and the economic fabric through the generation of trust. AENOR is the leading entity in certification in Spain.

AENOR is a global entity, which already develops operations in 90 countries in the activities of certification, verification, validation, inspection, analysis, training and information services. In Spain it has a network of 20 sites.

Currently, more than 80,000 work centers have some of the AENOR certificates in fields such as Quality Management, Sustainability, Safety and Health at Work, Digitalization or Compliance.

Among the differential competitive advantages of AENOR are the highest brand recognition between companies (B2B) and consumers (B2C); have their own staff, which allows them to manage accumulated knowledge for the benefit of their clients; innovate in resolving new competitiveness gaps thanks to its proximity to knowledge sources; and its geographic and sectorial capillarity.