THE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF ACTIVE TOURISM OPERATORS HAS DOUBLED IN THE LAST SIX YEARS

The economic impact, in Torroella de Montgrí and l’Estartit, of tour operators offering products linked to active tourism was around 800,000 euros per year in 2018, according to an internal study carried out by the city council. The work has also noted an exponential growth in this type of offer compared to 2012, when the last evaluation was made. In this six-year period, the number of operators that take the municipality into account in their offers has gone from 24 to 52 (+ 56%), and the number of products offered from 38 to 104 (+ 63.5%). In this section, the list is headed by cycle tourism (37 products), followed by hiking (24 products). 7 horse products, 5 mountain biking, 3 road cycling, 3 school trips and 3 multi-activity products have also been detected. By country, most of the products correspond to France (33), Spain and Catalonia (26), but there are also some from the United Kingdom (11), the Netherlands (11), Belgium (8) and Germany (6). Approximately 80% of these products are self-guided and 10% can be done with children. In terms of overnight stays, the average of the packages is around 7 nights, and practically 75% of the products analyzed spend one or more nights in Torroella or L’Estartit. In this case, it should be noted that the distribution of overnight stays is quite homogeneous and, although most of them stay in L’Estartit, where the largest supply of beds is concentrated, a high percentage of customers choose to stay in establishments in Torroella. Most of the products range in price from 500 to 1,000 euros, depending on the nights. The municipal tourism advisor and head of the study, Josep Capellà, recalls that this is a tourism profile that seeks a combination of physical or multi-activity activity, a quality environment and cultural immersion, whether through heritage, gastronomy or interaction with the local population. In this sense, the commitment that the City Council has maintained for years to sustainability and environmental preservation, added to the high natural value of the territory, is decisively contributing to turning the destination into a benchmark for active tourism on the Costa Brava. Sustainable tourism
On the other hand, the councilor for Tourist Destinations, Dúnia Oliveras, argues that it is a sector in constant growth and that its impact on the destination as a whole is not negligible for various reasons. Among other aspects, she highlights the fact that it works as a complement to the traditional sun and beach offer; it is a sustainable tourism model that is not based on volume, but on a wide range of quality and low-impact products; and it helps to redistribute the flow of visitors throughout the territory, because not all clients stay on the coast. On the other hand, Oliveras also highlights the marketing and notoriety factor that these tour operators develop, since they are recognized prescribers and opinion leaders in their sector. This makes it always a good indicator to be included in the selection of their destinations because they consider them to be of quality, which implies a very important indirect promotion. The councilor concludes that this study reinforces the need to work together under the umbrella of the Natural Park, since this brand has much more external strength than municipalities working independently.