The International Tourism Fair (FITUR) 2025, for world tourism professionals and the receptive and outbound markets of Latin America, has come to an end. The Marina Alta has been able to count on some representation, especially with the presence of the most touristic municipalities, mainly the coastal ones.
This year's edition of the fair has been affected by the controversial strategy set by the Valencian Regional Government's Tourism Department, under the leadership of Marián Cano. This year, the stands for municipalities without their own brand were removed from Hall 7 of IFEMA, where the Valencian Community was located. Thus, the towns that did not want to miss the event had to send their delegations of mayors, councillors and technicians under the auspices of the Visit Valencia, Alicante City, Visit Elche, Costa Blanca, Turismo de Castellón, València Turisme and Visit Benidorm brands.
From the region, Xàbia, Calp, Dénia, Benissa, El Poble Nou de Benitatxell, Teulada Moraira and Pego were clearly represented at the fair. Those who requested it were able to have their own small stage to present their tourist proposals for the new year. However, the general feeling of the majority of attendees was that it was not enough.
The aforementioned organisation established by the Conselleria has not been exempt from comments among the attendees of the region, who experienced the immaculate white space of the Valencian Community at Fitur as a soulless proposal. The lack of stands and the impossibility of showing themselves under the names of their municipalities or without explanatory brochures of the many possibilities offered by the Marina Alta made its participants feel somewhat invisible to the world. Not to mention the small and medium-sized municipalities that did not even bother to attend.
The purpose of the strategy, announced by the president of the Alicante Provincial Council, Toni Pérez, days before, was to focus on "greater municipal presence, as well as experiential and sensory strategies for the visitor." Pérez assured that the aim was to "prioritize the qualitative experience and not focus so much on the quantitative, since the figures support us as one of the favorite destinations at a national and European level and, therefore, we must focus on emotions."
El Discontent was staged by the socialist leaders from cities as important as Dénia, Gandia, Cullera or Sagunt, who came to lead a protest in situ in the pavilion. Theoretically, during the weekend, municipalities could offer their own material to the general public, but by then the media attention had already dissipated after most tourism professionals and politicians had left IFEMA.
However, the towns that were able to take advantage of the opportunity participated in the "street marketing initiative in the heart of Madrid, thanks to an interactive modular box," as Calp, which showed how its Holy Week was lived, or Xàbia, which broadcast a promotional video throughout the week its charms on 16 strategically located digital screens in some of the busiest spots in the capital.
Under the title "Costa Blanca Wine Experience", the potential of the Alicante Wines Designation of Origin was showcased, with the presence of its president and mayor of Llíber, Juan José Reus, and the Wine Route of the province. Some wineries from the Marina Alta were represented there, from Teulada Moraira and Xaló.
This is how the Marina Alta was experienced at Fitur 2025
The programme in the Costa Blanca area brought together Xàbia, Calp, Benissa, El Poble Nou de Benitatxell, Teulada Moraira and Pego to showcase their most innovative proposals to attract tourism in 2025. In addition, representatives from each municipality held various meetings with entities, associations and companies to outline the lines of tourism work for the coming months.
Xàbia
El Escacs Vivent de Xàbia, a Festival of National Tourist Interest, took the stage led by the mayor, Rosa Cardona, the councillor for Tourism, José Marcos Pons, the director of Living Chess, Raquel Violero and the president of the Mare de Déu de Loreto Festival Committee, Álvaro Monfort.
The town showed the evolution of this event that is about to celebrate 30 years of history. They made it clear that the Escacs Vivent show combines theatre, strategy and tradition with the dissemination of socially relevant issues, thus explaining its importance within the municipality.
Calp
For its part, Calp opted for tradition and its recently renovated historical heritage. Holy Week and the Queen's Baths took centre stage. On the one hand, to ensure that the religious event is recognised as a Festival of Regional Tourist Interest. On the other, to publicise the project to create a museum of the archaeological site next to the sea, which invites visitors after the completion of the first phase of the adaptation works.
The mayor of Calp, Ana Sala, the Councillor for Festivals, Mariola Mulet, Mireia Ripoll, Councillor for Tourism, and the President of the Junta Mayor de Cofradías, Pedro Ortolà, were in charge of the presentations. The Councillor for Tourism also took the opportunity to reveal the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the excavations of the Pobla d'Ifac, another important site, located on the slopes of the Penyal d'Ifac in Calp. A new image and an exhibition will open this new chapter of La Pobla in the municipality.
Benissa
The Mayor of Benissa, Arturo Poquet, and the Councillor for Tourism, Virginia Pérez, They presented their new tourist web portal. A project that will integrate the Tourist Intelligence System and the Digital Twin, two tools that allow the analysis of key data on the behavior and preferences of visitors.
Although it was not the only proposal of the City Council. The #BenissaNaturSport brand was consolidated one more year at the fair, positioning Benissa as a reference in nature sports tourism. They were also present with a showcooking of cruet de peix from the Pizzeria Chaplin Restaurant.
El Poble Nou de Benitatxell
Benitatxell entered Fitur with Two striking proposals. «Tourism to breathe», an itinerary of five guided meditations in iconic places in the town, such as the Portalet viewpoint, the Moraig cove, the Morro Roabit, the Les Fonts park and the Pous de l'Abiar, on the one hand. And, on the other, it offered a live demonstration of the making of reeds for the 'escaldà de la pansa' and an exhibition of local products.
Teulada Moraira
For its part, Teulada Moraira had a broad representation at the fair, contributing various tourist initiatives. new catalogue, Escape to Teulada Moraira, proposes activities, festivals and events that take place in our municipality throughout the year. It was also proclaimed as a "City of Culture and Sculpture", proposing a route of monumental sculptures that will connect its two urban centres.
El Teulada Moraira Auditorium He also presented the Alere/Dolia Wine Tourism and Gastronomy Exhibition within the framework of the showcooking from FITUR 2025, by executive chef Arturo Salvetti, who prepared roasted peanut squash with sea fennel, salted roe, local Marcona almonds and vermouth gelatin made with Muscat of Alexandria grapes.
Pego
The urban route “Exploring Pego: streets and legends” was the Pego proposal for this year. This itinerary has QR codes to show the history of the municipality in person.
AMT Smart Destination Awards and SICTED Awards
Benissa and Dénia were nominated for the AMT Smart Destination Awards, with the Smart Office of the Benissa Town Hall and the development of a technological tool for the identification of potentially unregulated tourist housing in Dénia. Finally, the award went to the third candidate, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, with its Datalab project.
For his part, the mayor of Dénia and Councilor for Tourism, Vicent Grimalt, received the third prize for “Best SICTED destination”This recognition highlights the commitment of the SICTED Dénia management team to the competitiveness of tourism services and the destination in general, as well as the promotion of the SICTED project within its territory.
And will Xàbia Town Hall manage to recover the blue flag distinction lost due to waste during the previous socialist legislature or not for the Arenal beach? It was the first one that the municipality obtained, last year the necessary corrections were not made; so much effort at FITUR and then the reality that tourists find does not correspond?
Tourists? And what about the locals? We also go to the beach, we pay for it with our taxes, all the services come from our taxes. Tourists? People passing through.