Spanish Tourism Dynamics: Factors, Regions, and Evolution

Factors Influencing Tourism

Tourism is subject to two major factors: natural and human.

Natural and Human Factors

• Natural factors: The natural relief can be abrupt (skiing in winter) or unchanged (mountaineering, hiking), while the climate supports sun and beach activities, water sports, and spas.
• Human factors: These include economic elements, such as the increase in living standards and currency fluctuations that make holidays cheaper.
• Technical factors: Improvements in transportation (commercial aviation, roads, and highways) are abundant and varied. The structure of accommodation includes hotels, apartments, guesthouses, cottages, and more. Additionally, the strategy of multinational tour operators makes tourism more affordable.
• Cultural factors: These encompass national parks, the Way of St. James (Camino de Santiago), artistic heritage, festivals such as San Fermín and Feria de Abril, and various museums.

Major Tourist Areas and Regions

Inland and Coastal Destinations

The tourist areas are divided into:

• Inside: This includes winter seasons (Central Pyrenees and Cantabrian Mountains), historic cities (Toledo, Salamanca, and Santiago), rural tourism, and ecotourism.
• On the coast: This area sees the most intense occupation due to the climate factor. Types of climate include:
  • Atlantic and Cantabrian: Characterized by mild summers, fresh seawater, and sunshine.
  • Mediterranean coast and islands: Key areas include Catalonia (Costa Brava: Rosas and La Selva; Costa Dorada: Salou), Comunidad Valenciana (Costa del Azahar: Benicàssim in Castellón; La Safor: Gandia; and Costa Blanca: Benidorm and Torrevieja in Alicante), Murcia (Costa Cálida: Manga del Mar Menor and Águilas), Andalucía (Costa de Almería: Roquetas de Mar and Sierra Nevada; Costa del Sol: Málaga, Torremolinos, and Marbella; and Costa de la Luz: Ayamonte to Huelva), the Balearic Islands (The sand of Alcudia and Formentera), and the Canary Islands (Las Cañadas del Teide and the Caldera de Taburiente).

The 1989 Traditional Model Crisis

Causes and Strategic Solutions

The crisis of the traditional model (1989) was driven by several causes:

• Prevalence of medium-low quality tourism: Higher prices were introduced without improvements in quality.
• Seasonality: High concentration in July and August leads to negative impacts on investment returns and creates odd jobs. The highest seasonality is found in Costa Dorada, Costa Brava, and the Balearic Islands, while minimum seasonality occurs in the Canary Islands, Costa del Sol, and Valencia.
• Congestion: Mass foreign and domestic tourism has saturated the Mediterranean coast, the Canary Islands, and the Balearic Islands, leading to low service quality. The northern part remains less saturated.
• Competition and Colonization: Competition from other Mediterranean countries and Western Europe, alongside the colonization by tour operators (foreign corporations and large travel agencies monopolizing demand and imposing prices), means tourism revenues often leave the country.

The solutions include: The establishment of Spanish foreign agencies and the direct recruitment of customers. Alternative tourism to mass models includes quality tourism for the affluent (historical visits, golf, water sports, etc., to enhance the Paradores), as well as social, rural, health, senior, and sports tourism.