From tourist capital (Benidorm) to tourist capital (Antalya)

A business and institutional delegation from Benidorm, Costa Blanca and Comunidad Valenciana has been the first Spanish delegation to visit the tourist area of ​​Antalya, located on the Mediterranean coast of Turkey.

Antalya is known as one of the areas that competes with the main Spanish destinations in European tourism. With more than 11 million foreign tourists, a coastline of 650 kilometers and 590 hotels with more than 300,000 seats confirms its growth with great force in the international tourist scene.

The delegation is composed of the following people:

Antonio Pérez Pérez Mayor of Benidorm and President of Visit Benidorm
Antonio Mayor Suárez President HOSBEC and CEO Port Hotels
Leire Bilbao Laredo CEO Visit Benidorm
Nuria Montes de Diego CEO HOSBEC
Javier García Cuenca CEO Magic Costa Blanca Hotels
Federico Fuster López CEO Grup Fuster Hotels
Pere Joan Devesa Martínez CEO Poseidón Hotels
Josep Devesa Gascó Poseidón Hotel
Domingo Nualart Bayó CEO Flamingo Beach Resort
Carmen Sahuquillo Caplliure Marketing Director of Turisme Comunitat Valenciana
José Mancebo Aracil Director of Patronato Turismo Costa Blanca

Today's workday has begun with the meeting with the representatives of Jet2, one of the British tour operators who have experienced the greatest progression in the last 5 years, concluding that there are many points in common between these two tourist destinations so far away but so similar.

In the meeting held below with the governor of Antalya, the Valencian delegation was able to learn about the dimensions of this important tourist area: a population of approximately 2.3 million inhabitants, some 650 km of coastline and 200 blue flags on its beaches; It is an area with very little polluting industry and therefore has very low level of pollution both environmental and maritime being also 60% of its forest area.

In the tourist landscape, right now the most important markets in Antalya are the Russians, followed by the British and Germans. They have a wide portfolio of oriental markets that have allowed them to maintain optimal marketing levels during the Arab Spring crisis.

One of the most important differences is the public involvement in the launching of Antalya as a tourist destination, as we have been informed. The Turkish government's investment is € 30 for each of the passengers who visit the country precisely to overcome the crisis generated after the attacks of 2016. It also has extensive tax and concession advantages such as having free land for the construction and operation of hotel establishments and favors foreign investment.

At the business level there are many points in common and problems that both groups share. During the visit an interesting meeting was held with the Hotel Association of Antalya in which information about price parity clauses was shared with the OTAS, false claims from British customers, dependence on the tour operator (in Antalya it is the 70%) the problem of the digital platforms of 'collaborative' economy and the lack of skilled labor, as well as the difficulty to find workers in the sector. The main difference is the seasonality of the activity, which in Antalya covers six months a year and the little integration of tourists in the life of the city.