Costa del Sol to invest almost one million euros to promote the holiday destination in the UK

Next year will see the recovery of the hoards of British tourists that flocked to the Costa del Sol before the Covid-19 pandemic, tourism officials assured at the opening of the World Travel Market in London on Monday.

It comes as Turismo Costa del Sol president Francisco Salado revealed that almost one million euros will be invested in promoting the destination in the United Kingdom during the next financial year.

"Tourists from the UK staying in Malaga account for 70.3% of those in the whole of the Andalucía region and 9.3% of those in Spain. The overnight stays they generate: 79% of those in Andalucía and 8.5% of those in the country. And as for British arrivals at Malaga Airport, they represent 88.3% of Andalucía and 12.5% of the national share," he said.

Next year there will be more than 20 promotional initiatives to encourage British tourists to visit the Costa del Sol, Salado added. He also pointed out airlines' commitment to Andalucía and the plethora of flight routes between Malaga and the United Kingdom, with 14.4% more seats between the two destinations.

He said eight companies will operate flights to 17 cities in the UK until December. "The forecasts for the last three months of 2023 indicate a significant increase in the supply of seats from the British market to Malaga, which translates into about 85,000 more passengers," Salado added.

Air seats

The majority of airline seats are on routes between Malaga and London, closely followed by Manchester, in the north of England. More than 668,000 seats have been offered for the final three months of this year from the United Kingdom, with seven of eight airlines increasing their offer. Ryanair is the carrier that put the most seats on the market, followed by easyJet, Jet2.com and British Airways.

The risk of an economy on the verge of recession

National tourism board Turespaña's prediction of tourist arrivals for the winter season in Spain are strong but it warns of the country's delicate economic situation and a possible impact on travel. It points out that the country is on the verge of recession.

"The beginning of inflation as a consequence of the increase in energy prices as a result of the war in Ukraine, compounded by Brexit, will spark a possible recession by 2024, and this has led to a decline in the economic capacity of the British," the tourism body pointed out.