Clúster

• Last week the monitoring commission for this tourism brand took place, which includes Galicia, Asturias, Cantabria, the Basque Country, and Turespaña.

The meeting of the monitoring commission of Green Spain, the tourism brand that brings together the autonomous communities of Galicia, Asturias, Cantabria and the Basque Country, as well as Turespaña, took place at Last week in Bilbao. The director of Tourism of Galicia, Xosé Merelles, participated in this meeting, which served to take stock of this year’s Action Plan and design the rest of the common actions that will be developed until the end of the year, especially in the area of international.

This strategic meeting served to strengthen the promotion of ecotourism and reaffirm the commitment to the sustainable development of tourism. At the meeting, the Operational Plan 2023 was monitored, as well as the situation of the project ‘Ecotourism Corridor of Green Spain’, financed with European funds, or the sharing of new initiatives for the modernization of the presentations of Green Spain in international markets.

The ‘Green Spain Ecotourism Corridor’ seeks to become the largest ecotourism corridor in Europe, uniting experiences adapted to various segments of demand through a great eco-touring route. The itinerary connects protected rural spaces where local tourism companies generate tangible and marketable experiences, promoted by public companies from the four participating autonomous communities.

Tourism in the four autonomous communities registered nearly 5 million travelers in the first half of 2023, which represents an increase of 14.5 points on average compared to the same period last year. At the meeting, the director of Tourism of Galicia praised the importance of the Green Spain brand for the promotion and revitalization of tourism and culture in the partner territories, ensuring that Galicia will continue to bet on this collaboration to continue obtaining great results.

Among the actions designed for this 2023, the España Verde brand will focus fundamentally on updating promotional tools and on initiatives such as the four thematic ‘Fam Trip Online’: one on the itineraries of the Camino de Santiago, such as the North or the Lebaniego; another on Enogastronomy, another on Cities and cultural heritage, and finally a fourth on Nature and ecotourism.

At the meeting, all the participants renewed their commitment to the tourism potential of this brand, which offers more than 2,000 kilometers of coastline, nearly 1,200 beaches, 31 spas and 9 thalassos, more than 60 golf courses, 20 Paradores de Turismo, and more than three hundred thousand accommodation places. Green Spain is a natural leader in nature thanks to its national parks, natural parks and biosphere reserves, with one million hectares of protected space.