This app is targetted at potential tourists interested in enjoying ecotourism experiences in Spain, and at specialist travel agencies, both Spanish and from abroad, so that they can familiarise themselves with this product and offer it to their clients.
Ecotourist in Spain, an application to discover ecotourism destinations in the country with Europe’s greatest biodiversity and highest number of protected natural areas.
Sierra Nevada (Granada-Almeria), Muniellos-Fuentes del Narcea (Asturias) and the Villuercas Geopark, Ibores, Jara (Caceres) inaugurate the content of this brand new application developed by the Ecotourism in Spain Club.
Spain, with more than 1,500 protected natural areas, has more than 7 million protected hectares (nearly 13% of the country). Not only is it the European country with the most natural areas, but it also boasts the Natura 2000 Network’ s largest surface area. Including the area encompassed in this European network, the area of Spanish territory under some sort of protection rises to 28%.
Spain’s biodiversity parameters are also among the highest in Europe, with more than 8,000 species of flora (85% of the species in the EU), and nearly 50% of the estimated 142,000 of fauna in Europe. In both flora and fauna there are noteworthy numbers of autochthonous species. More than half of the European Habitats of greatest interest compiled in the Habitats Directive are found in Spain.
“Biodiversity is one of the main factors influencing travelling, since the wide variety of well preserved landscapes and ecosystems makes tourist destinations attractive. This is especially relevant in the case of nature tourism, which is based on discovering, enjoying and contemplating biological biodiversity.” (Nature Tourism Sector Plan, Spanish Government.)
These values, along with Spain’s extensive experience as a tourism destination, make Spain a world reference point for nature tourism or ecotourism.
A new application, “Ecotourist in Spain”, has been created with the aim of discovering the possibilites of Ecotourism in Spain and helping travel agencies to get to know this product. It is a free multiplatform app (mobile and fixed devices: web, iOS and Android) in English and Spanish whose aim is to improve the visibility, promotion and commercialisation of Ecotourism in Spain. The app has been developed by TUREBE, governing body of the Ecotourism in Spain Club, within the framework of an innovation project cofinanaced by MINETUR (Spanish Ministry of Industry, Energy and Tourism).
This app is targetted at potential tourists interested in enjoying ecotourism experiences in Spain, and at specialist travel agencies, both Spanish and from abroad, so that they can familiarise themselves with this product and offer it to their clients. It is a multiplatform App which combines information about our heritage with interactive challenges to encourage travel agents to get to know Spain’s ecotourism destinations and thus aid their commercialisation. Ecotourists and travel agents can also win prizes by completing the challenges in the app’s game. There are 12 video-challenges where you can get to know each destination and enter the competition to win one of the experiences promoted in the Ecotourist in Spain app. You have until 31st October 2015 to enter.
Ecotourist in Spain has information on three protected natural areas at present: Sierra Nevada National and Natural Park (Granada-Almeria), Muniellos-Fuentes del Narcea Biosphere Reserve (Asturias) and Villuercas Geopark, Ibores, Jara (Caceres). The app has a marked audiovisual component, which makes it both attractive and intuitive. Thus travellers can get to know these places in depth thanks to the informative nature of the app and so better plan their trips to these three destinations with the knowledge of their natural and cultural values and the ecotourism experiences offered by businesses in the Club.
Being an ecotourist is much more than visiting a protected natural area, it is also having a memoral experience, contributing to the conservation of the place and the well-being of local communities, as is defended by the International Ecotourism Society. This is well known by the protected natural areas and the companies which are members of the Ecotourism in Spain Club. This Club is a pioneering initiative set up by the protected areas and tourism companies (guides, activities, accommodation, restaurants) which have been selected for their commitment to sustainability and collaboration with the natural areas.
The destinations and businesses in the Club voluntarily comply with the environmental and social requirements established in the European Sustainable Tourism Charter in Protected Areas of the EUROPARC Federation. Thus they stand out as sustainable destinations and companies and connect their products to natural and cultural values by means of authentic, unique and memorable experiences. Spanish Biosphere Reserves and Geoparks have used the same focus and similar systems to make sustainable tourism stand out. The aim is to guarantee attractive and trustworthy natural tourism, which also contributes to local conservation and development. In fact, this product has been identified as strategic for Spain in several sectorial plans: Integral National Tourist Plan 2012-2015, Integral Rural Tourism Plan 2014 and Sectorial Plan for Nature and Biodiversity Tourism (RD 416/2014).
This app was launched on 17th June at the headquarters of the EFE agency in Madrid, to coincide with the first anniversary of the approval of the Sectorial Plan for Nature and Biodiversity. The launch was presided over by Jacob Petrus, presenter of the RTVE programme “Aqui la Tierra”, with the participation of Monserrat Fernandez , deputy director of the National Parks Autonomous Organisation, Juan Manuel Penin, director of Institutional Relations at the National Society for Management of Innovation and Tourist Technologies (SEGGITUR), Jose Antonio Montero, vice president of TUREBE, Enrique Lancis, Director of Business Development and New Technologies at SEGITTUR, Amanda Guzman, Director of TUREBE and Jose Maria Caceres, representing Lacq Consulting which developed the app.
Representatives of the businesses in the Club, natural areas, environmental foundations and associations among others were also present at the launch.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
