Malaga will host the largest cruise ship event in Europe in September

Malaga will host the largest cruise ship event in Europe in September

PILAR MARTÍNEZ Thursday, 20 January 2022, 18:04

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Malaga is already preparing the largest cruise ship event in Europe. The Seatrade Cruise Med, which will be held on September 14 and 15, will bring together 600 participants, including executives from the world's leading shipping companies, at the Trade Fair and Conference Center. This event will reinforce the positioning of the Port and the city as a cruise destination. The presentation took place at the Malaga exhibitor at the International Tourism Fair (Fitur) in Madrid, with the presence of those responsible for the different administrations that have made it possible for this event to reach the capital of the Costa del Sol and has had the participation of the president of Puertos del Estado, Álvaro Rodríguez; the director of Events for Seatrade Cruise at a global level, Chiara Giorgi; and the president of Medcruise, Figen Ayan.

The Deputy Mayor of the City Council of the capital, Teresa Porras, opened the event by assuring that the celebration of the Seatrade Med "is wonderful news for the city". After highlighting the effort made by the administrations, he stated that «Málaga will be the world capital of cruise tourism next September 14 and 15. It will consolidate itself as a friendly city of a sector in which it aspires to attract shipping companies that place Malaga facilities as a base port or that establish stopovers. She has been convinced that Seatrade Cruise Med will contribute to the visibility and positioning of the destination.

Figen Ayan has recognized that this event is the largest cruise ship event in Europe and has valued the destination and the capital's infrastructures. The president, of which is the association that brings together 145 Mediterranean ports from 23 countries, has highlighted that "Málaga is a magnificent destination". Along these lines, Chiara Giorgi recalled that since the launch of Seatrade Med in 1996, this event has become the reference for this industry and the meeting place for professionals, shipping companies, operators, suppliers and destinations. The twelfth edition will be held in Malaga and it has been announced that in the previous event, which was before the pandemic, it brought together 4,300 visitors in the 170 exhibitors from 89 countries. In addition to attending 175 representatives of thirty shipping companies. ?Málaga is one of the most important ports in Spain and this event will mark the return of cruise ships after the pandemic. The Mediterranean continues to be a key segment for the growth and evolution of traffic in the sector and Seatrade Cruise Med will once again bring together all the protagonists with a renewed program, providing very interesting information on market trends and technological advances, and offering opportunities for collaboration to forge new connections," he said.

FITUR 2022 Tourism accelerates its technological transformation Pilar Martínez / Málaga

Malaga wants this event to spread throughout the city and for this it is already working on a program of activities that includes the initiative to turn El Palmeral de las Sorpresas into the deck of a cruise ship and hold shows, gastronomic experiences and games with which citizens will be involved in this event. The president of the Malaga Port Authority, Carlos Rubio, highlighted that Seatrade Cruise Med is the largest organization of cruise events and that the Malaga edition is intended to be special. "The meeting will involve all the citizens of Malaga, not just a specific professional sector, so we will carry out parallel actions so that everyone can join this celebration." He recalled that they hope in 2022 to consolidate passenger ship traffic at levels similar to those of 2019 and that Seatrade Cruise Med "marks the gun for a new stage of cruises".

At the end of year the first International Cruise Data Observatory that will allow knowing the activity and its impact. This initiative, in which it works jointly with the Faculty of Tourism of the University of Malaga, aspires to become the first database, which will be updated, with useful information for all agents in this industry, from shipping companies to Destinations. It was born with the intention of being a specific utility tool for the entire sector, facilitating the definition of the strategy for all the protagonists of this industry. This association has presented its action plan for this year at Fitur, which includes the roadmap for the promotion of Andalusia as a cruise destination. The manager of Suncruise Andalucía, Esther Molina, highlighted that in addition to attending the great world tourism event in Miami, forums have been planned in the different provinces to analyze issues such as employment and women in the maritime sector; experiences in the destination or digitization. A video was also presented at the event to promote the Andalusian ports.

The president of Spanish Ports has insisted that this is "a great opportunity to value the importance of Spain in the international cruise sector and the firm commitment of Spanish ports, such as Malaga, to innovation and sustainability to strengthen competitiveness'.

For his part, Francisco Salado, president of Tourism Costa del Sol, has been convinced that the destination will have a boost in this sector. ?Málaga and the Costa del Sol continue to gradually recover activity in the cruise segment. For many months, all the agents involved: shipping companies, ports, operators, shipping companies, tour operators and the destination authorities have done their homework to adapt to a new scenario, so we are amply prepared to guarantee the safety and well-being of passengers. cruise passengers, as well as hosting this event.

The presentation ceremony was closed by the Secretary General for Tourism of the Junta de Andalucía, Manuel Muñoz, considering that this celebration "will be an opportunity to continue advancing in the promotion of this province and Andalusia in general, but also an excellent opportunity to promote the business of companies in the region, to generate commercial contacts and, consequently, to contribute to the economy and employment in the community.

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TemasTeresa Porras, FEATURES, Cruceros, 2022 Features, Turistas

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