María García, Councillor for Tourism in Orihuela, has reported that the Orihuela Tourism Department has received a grant 2,000,000 euro for the Destination Tourism Sustainability Plan 2023, financed entirely with funds NextGeneration EU of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan.
The grant award is the result of three years of work, submitted to the 2021 and 2022 calls under the previous PP-led Government, and has finally been granted in 2023 under the PSOE lead. Thus, García has stated that “the next legislature, whoever it is, Tourism is going to be marked by all the projects that have been presented in this initiative that has an execution period of three years”.
This plan focuses on the transformation of the destination management model based on the principles of collaborative governance and innovation, which will constitute the basis from which to diversify the tourist offer and guarantee the sustainable and inclusive development of tourism throughout the territory, aligning their actions with the Sustainable Development Goals. “In this way, we are committed to Orihuela being a tourist destination, not only to attract visitors, but also to be a tool to create job opportunities for the people who live here and to generate wealth in our city”, explained the councillor.
A project that has been drawn up with the participation of all social agents to find out the real needs of the municipality, SICTED, Focus Group and initiatives presented by the private and public sector of the city.
The proposal presented by the Orihuela City Council is transversal, inclusive and the objective is to carry out projects that not only affect tourism but also the sustainability and competitiveness of the destination from different perspectives.
Likewise, one of the main objectives is to diversify the tourist offer and reduce seasonality, as well as the promotion of the digital transformation of the tourism management model by incorporating tools that will allow analysing the impacts that tourism is generating throughout the territory and create proposals tailored to the visitor.
Thus, María García has reported that the plan contemplates, among other actions, “to install tourist signage on the coast that perfectly identifies both beaches and the municipal area. In Pedanías, place information panels through which residents can be informed not only about tourist activity, but also about municipal activities.
The project will work to meet the challenge of mobility by connecting the different urban centres such as the historic centre and closest districts through non-polluting means of transport such as electric bicycles or electric scooters and with the coast through a zero-emission bus tourism initiative “that will improve the transport of travellers and residents”. In addition, the councillor has highlighted the creation of a cultural walk with an itinerary that “has shade and vegetation so that visitors can shelter from the sun.”
