We leave Limburg looking forward to the next major event in the cycling and cycle tourism sector worldwide:l Velo City 2019 Dublin (June 25 to 28), where cycle tourism will have a leading role for the first time.
September is the month of returning to work, charging batteries and starting new projects, and in Bikefriendly Group We had a date marked in red on the calendar: the Eurovelo and Cycle Tourism Conference 2018.
On September 26, 27 and 28, the Belgian region of Limburg became the international epicenter of the cycle tourism sector, bringing together more than 200 professionals and public institutions from all corners of Europe. In its fourth edition, the European Cyclists' Federation (from now on ECF) has managed to definitively consolidate this event, an unequivocal symptom of the good state of health that the bicycle tourism sector enjoys today.
under the motto “experience the authentic”, this year the congress has focused on sharing experiences and reflecting through presentations and debate spaces on the following topics:
Innovation in the cycle tourism sector, the role of infrastructure, promotion and communication strategies, efficient management of cycle tourism resources, intermodality and development of experiences and products. And it is on this last topic that Bikefriendly Group's participation in the congress focused through the presentation:
"5 key factors in developing successful cycle tourism products" (5 key factors for the successful development of cycle tourism products).
A presentation where successful cases of our work methodology used for the development of cycle tourism products in the different territories where we work were presented, based on 5 fundamental aspects or principles.
- Territorial specialization
- Specialization of the local private tourism sector
- Complementation with the existing tourist offer
- Adequate promotion of a Bikefriendly destination
- Marketing ecosystem
We also highlight the participation of Barcelona Provincial Council, who presented through Josep Rodriguez (responsible for European projects and international relations) specialization strategy that the province is currently developing and the main initiatives on which it is working, which highlights the Vies Blaves project, a 306 km long route system that will link 65 municipalities and that will definitively contribute to the consolidation of the practice of cycle tourism in the territory.
The day of presentations concluded with the intervention of the director of the Eurovelo project, Adam Bodor, who highlighted the clear commitment of the European Union to the promotion of cycling and cycle tourism for the coming years, as well as the forecast increase in resources allocated to the development of infrastructure and other types of investments for this purpose. A commitment that must mainly involve collaboration between different countries, coordination between the main agents involved and the necessary specialization and differentiation in the face of the emergence of large groups in the cycle tourism sector. Finally, the opportunity was taken to invite all attendees to participate in the next major event in the cycling and cycle tourism sector worldwide: the Velo City 2019 Dublin (June 25 to 28), where cycle tourism will have a leading role for the first time.
AdIn addition to presentations and spaces for debate and networking, various activities were organized during the Eurovelo and Cycle Tourism Conference to learn about the Limburg region and the projects that are currently being developed to increase the practice of cycle tourism. Among them, the recently inaugurated route “The Meusse a Vélo – Massfietsroute”, future route 19 of the Eurovelo network that follows the 950 kilometers of the course of the Meuse River from its source in France (Pouilly-en-Bassigny) to its mouth in the North Sea (Hoek van Holland – Netherlands). With the help of those responsible for the project, we had the opportunity to learn in situ key aspects in the design and commissioning of the route, such as the infrastructure, the signaling system, the management and conservation model or collaboration strategies between agents from 3 different countries.
Before come back to home We attended a meeting between European tour operators, promoted by the ECF itself, aimed at sharing the needs and concerns of the sector. All participants agree on the need to create spaces that facilitate collaboration between travel agencies (wholesale and retail) and tour operators to offer higher quality products to customers. In addition, emphasis was also placed on the coordination and harmonization of criteria of the different quality seals existing in Europe, giving them greater visibility and participating jointly in the specialization of the sector.
We return home with a backpack full of knowledge, examples of good practices, contact cards, friendships, new projects and, above all, the conviction that the sector is in better shape than ever and that we face the coming years with optimism and with desire to continue working for the competitiveness of the territories, the development of sustainable tourism and social and territorial cohesion through cycle tourism.
