Andalusia and the Costa del Sol travel to the ITB Berlin to look for new tourist profiles

The international tourism sector will gather starting this Tuesday at the ITB Berlin. Andalusia and the Costa del Sol will have their own presence at the fair, where they aim to consolidate and expand their reach to an important market, the German tourists, known for their higher spending level and longer average stays.

The goal is not only to target the same visitor profile but to open up new niches and attract a different audience—one that travels beyond the peak season and not just to the most popular destinations, but also a younger crowd with diverse interests who can become loyal tourists to Andalusia over the years. "We want to modify the traditional perception of the destination to make it more attractive to new generations of travelers," said the Tourism Councilor, Arturo Bernal last week, who explained that the main goal is business generation and highlighted segments like cultural tourism, golf and sports, congresses and meetings, or premium tourism as focus areas at this fair.

Andalucía and the Costa del Sol travel to the ITB to increase their share in the German market

Exhibitor

This year, Andalusia will have a 535 square meter booth, similar to the one used at the Madrid fair, Fitur, last January, featuring open spaces where modernity and tradition will come together. In addition to the agenda of meetings with German agents and operators to understand the market situation and trends, the regional government plans to meet with airline representatives to improve air connectivity to the region. "We seek to create synergies among professionals so that each Andalusian company returns with new contacts, commercial agreements, and the certainty that Andalusia continues to be a destination with enormous potential in Germany," summarized Bernal.

Dedicated Space

Tourism Costa del Sol will also be present at the Messe Berlin venue with its own space to ensure the growth that the German market is experiencing in the province, where it recorded a 9.9% increase in the number of visitors last year, also generating an economic impact of 1.281,9 million euros. "We have opted for a more ambitious presence because we want to continue to build loyalty among tourists with higher spending capacity and high satisfaction with our destination," said the president of the Provincial Council, Francisco Salado, at the presentation of the agenda for this edition of the ITB, where Costa del Sol will attend with a delegation of about fifty professionals and 35 co-exhibiting entities and companies, with meetings scheduled with both tour operators and airlines.

A Vital Market

"The German market is of vital importance to us. We come to Berlin to showcase everything that Costa del Sol can offer to an audience that is, undoubtedly, one of our most loyal," emphasized the president of Tourism Costa del Sol.

In hotels and apartments, last year, 356,000 travelers from Germany stayed in the province of Málaga, totaling 1.63 million overnight stays, which represents an 11.8% increase in accommodated travelers and a 13.5% increase in overnight stays, according to information provided by the Provincial Council.

Furthermore, four out of ten German travelers who stayed in hotels and tourist apartments in Andalusia did so in the province of Málaga, "which shows our undisputed leadership," emphasized Salado.

The profile of the German tourist visiting Costa del Sol typically includes people traveling mainly as couples or families, who mostly arrive by plane (two out of three from Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Berlin, and Munich), with an average stay of 7.93 days and a daily spending of 162.40 euros, 18 euros more than the previous year. Their main motivations are the cultural offerings, the sun, the beaches, and the climate, which continue to be decisive factors in their travel, the provincial institution recalled.

The cultural offerings, the sun, the beaches, and the climate are what the German tourist seeks in Málaga / F. EXTREMERA

Satisfaction Level

Moreover, their satisfaction level with the destination is outstanding, with an average rating of 8.6

Regarding the city of Málaga, it will have a 20 square meter booth at the Berlin fair. In this edition, the goal is to "strengthen and improve the perception of Málaga as a high-value destination."

The Malaga delegation has scheduled more than thirty meetings during the fair days.

Last year, Germany was the second market in overnight stays in the capital, only surpassed by the United Kingdom. Thus, this market accounted for a total of stays by 80,342 hotel German travelers.

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