At Bikefriendly Group we have been committed since our beginnings to a new tourism model as a work philosophy. But what is behind this concept?
Spain is one of the leading tourist destinations worldwide, being one of the economic sectors that has best withstood the economic crises of recent years. However, Despite the economic benefits generated by the sector, conventional tourism can produce negative effects of great repercussion given the magnitude of the industry.: contamination of natural reserves, erosion, hotel overcrowding, displacement of the local population due to the arrival of visitors, etc. Circumstances that have motivated a necessary change of model towards what experts call sustainable tourism.
The definition of Sustainable Tourism according to the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) is: “Tourism that takes full account of current and future economic, social and environmental impacts to meet the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and host communities”. A new model that has the capacity to act as a catalyst for change in the world, benefiting the fight for causes such as hunger, peace and security, or the promotion of local economies, among many others. In order to increase awareness of the general population and public and private officials on this matter, as well as to increase its reach, The year 2017 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for development. A good starting point, without a doubt, on which to start working and which has a long way to go in the coming years, as we are already seeing from our own experience.
From his first steps, Bikefriendly Group is linked to one of the most effective forms of sustainable tourism that can exist: cycling. And this economic activity largely complies with the fundamental principles of this new tourism model. Namely, it has a minimal environmental impact, respects the sociocultural authenticity of local communities and integrates them into tourist activities, generates local employment and stimulates the creation of companies, reactivates rural areas and contributes to deseasonalizing tourist activity.
In this sense, all the establishments attached to our Quality seal, by the simple fact of being part of it, are already effectively betting on sustainable tourism. And many of them are already benefiting from some of the previously mentioned advantages, such as seasonal adjustment, improving their occupancy ratios in the low season thanks to the cyclist customer, who travels throughout the year. Likewise, as Travel agency, our tourist packages can be enjoyed throughout much of the year, contributing to the economic revitalization of many territories that, traditionally, concentrated their tourist activity in the summer months.
And they are, precisely, the territories with which, since Bikefriendly Consulting, we are working more in depth to establish this new model of sustainable tourism based on cycle tourism. Cycling has become the most practiced sport in Spain according to the sports habits survey carried out by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports. Thus, 38,7% of Spaniards who practiced sports in 2015 did so by bicycle. And when it comes to traveling and enjoying their vacations or weekends, the cyclist does not leave his bicycle at home. Quite the opposite. More and more people are traveling with their mounts in tow, whether to take stage routes, discover the surroundings of the place where they are staying by pedal stroke or participate in sporting events.
This is how they have been able to see it in territories such as Region of Madrid, the provinces of Barcelona, Huesca, Cáceres, or the Commonwealth of L'Alcoia and the Comtat (Alicante), with whom we are collaborating in the development of their strategic cycle tourism plans.
