The innovation project ‘Xato Cube’ will start in March in Benidorm

Next March, Benidorm will be the first municipality to host the project called ‘Xato Cube’, an innovation project funded with European funds and supported by the Provincial Council of Alicante, in which, in addition to the city, La Nucía and Altea are also participating together with El Xato Restaurant to promote blue tourism and MICE in the region. This was announced today during the presentation of this project on the second day of the International Tourism Fair, Fitur, in an event attended by the Mayor of Benidorm and President of the Provincial Council, Toni Pérez; the Minister of Innovation, Industry, Commerce and Tourism of the Generalitat, Marián Cano; and the person responsible for the ‘Xato Cube’ project and general manager of El Xato, José Cano.

The ‘Xato Cube’ is the only proposal from the restaurant sector in the province of Alicante and one of the three from all of Spain selected by the Ministry of Industry and Tourism within the ‘Last Mile’ call for proposals of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, with a budget of 225,540 euros. It aims to configure a space based on a physical-digital OTT platform, with online videos that offer tourists and companies in the sector an immersive and interactive experience. Specifically, advanced digital technologies will be used, such as Artificial Intelligence and Big Data, integrating data from residents and tourists from the Smart offices of the destinations, and it will have an intelligent ChatBot to ensure that the user experience is intuitive and effective.

In addition to integrating all the information from participating destinations and companies, the project incorporates a regenerative and circular tourism intelligence system that prioritizes the recommendation of personalized and regenerative experiences and activities. This is a very attractive option for event organizers and companies involved in blue tourism that are committed to improving the impact on the local community and the region.

Benidorm will be the first municipality in which this project will be tested next March, after which it will also move from June to the other two municipalities participating in the pilot, Altea and La Nucía, said the regional minister Marián Cano. The regional leader congratulated the Michelin-starred restaurant based in La Nucía since 1915 for its “commitment to digitalization and innovation” as well as for placing the Marina Baixa “at the forefront.”

For his part, Toni Pérez has stated that this project is “one more example of the drive for innovation by the century-old companies in our province” and has highlighted that it is “an incentive to continue taking steps towards the much-needed digitalisation of our tourism sector and, especially, in the field of catering, where El Xato is undoubtedly the benchmark as a Michelin Star in Marina Baixa”.