José Miguel Rodríguez Fraga, mayor of Adeje, and Adolfo Alonso Ferrera, tourism councillor, spoke to press today, Friday January 14th, about the upcoming Spanish tourism trade fair, Fitur, in Madrid next week. They outlined the strategies the borough has undertaken in the past months during the worst health and tourism crisis in the history of the islands, and the work that is planned in coming months which will hopefully see, according to the mayor “the recovery really beginning”.
The blow the pandemic dealt to the Canary Islands economic motor, tourism, was particularly intense in Adeje. Prior to the pandemic the area was considered the most competitive in Spain, reflected in visitor numbers registered by Exeltur. Adeje was in the top 15 most important destinations and forging ahead in job and wealth creation, with almost 16 thousand people employed directly in tourism, the highest number of 5 star hotel beds, and a €700 million turnover.
“We are hoping that all these elements will return to the destination post-pandemic”, stated the mayor. He said that following the initial haemorrhaging the importance was to deal with the health, social and economic emergencies caused by the pandemic. Now among the priorities is to realise the tourism model that will be promoted in Costa Adeje in the years ahead, making the destination more attractive, and focussing on a number of key areas, digitalization, sustainability and excellence.
Projects
In recent months Adeje has launched a good healthy practise project in the fight against Covid, creating a health destination stamp in conjunction with the University of Laguna tropical diseases department. “We were at the forefront in doing this as we had to show to the world that we are a safe destination, one that people can visit, and at the same time guaranteeing the safety of workers in the sector too”, commented the mayor.
Adeje is also, with some funding from the national government, continuing to work to advance Adeje as an Intelligent Tourism Destination, which emphasises the improvement of public services. “Our commitment to sustainability is absolute, and this is part of our journey along this direction”, Rodriguez Fraga commented, adding that this is part of the improvement of the quality of the destination but also of the lives of the people who live and work here”.
In this regard Adeje is already involved in a number of new green energy projects, including the creation of energy communities. This will directly involve homes and resident communities as well as public buildings in Adeje, in the use and spread of solar panels and photovoltaic energy creation and sharing, renewable and clean energy creating sustainable communities. “Combining this with our productive park which is already a reality, and currently providing tonnes of fresh food for our local food bank, we can see that the work we have done during the pandemic has already moved us forward in our commitment to a sustainable environment and in our battle against climate change”.
Adeje is also involved in similar projects with the AMTC, the association of Canarian tourism municipalities, with the association designation by the tourism ministry as part of a pilot project in seeking more efficient public services. Adeje is improving infrastructures too, such as a new public theatre space. “You might think this has nothing to do with tourism but these measures should improve the lives of those that live here and also serve to make Adeje a more attractive destination for quality investment, and help us meet the needs of the tourists who are still to visit. Those who are interested in coming to somewhere modern, but committed to sustainability and digital access, as well as promote a good quality of life for those who live and work here – that is also important for tourism”.
The mayor thanked those from the private sector who have not simply “and stoically kept going during the crisis but have actually reinforced their investment in Costa Adeje”. During the pandemic Adeje has opened three new hotels, two of them 5-star, and renewed seven others, with an overall investment of more than €150 million.
