The Mayor of Elche, Carlos González, and the Councillor for Tourism, Carles Molina, held a meeting this week with the president of the Association of Tourist Companies (AETE), Rafael Blanquer, and its board of directors in order to strengthen collaboration for the development of the Strategic Tourism Plan of the municipality.
The mayor announced that the council has requested a grant of 3 million euro from European Funds for the development of the main lines of action of this plan.
“Tourism is a strategic and essential economic activity for the city, a key factor in the economy to promote growth and to transform Elche”, declared the mayor, who added that “we are committed to the tourism industry as one of the main engines of growth and I am convinced that tourism has to have a crucial role in the next five years”.
As González pointed out, “the meeting has served to strengthen the alliance between the tourism sector and the Council, which is based on the one hand on the recently approved Strategic Plan for Tourism, and on the other on the objective of attracting European funds to finance the 40 measures of the Strategic Plan that will be decisive in turning Elche into a relevant tourist destination within the Community and Spain”.
For the mayor, it is essential to take advantage of three fundamental levers for the city’s tourism development, such as the Palacio de Congresos, the return of the Lady of Elche, and the European Green Capital status.
“We have talked specifically about the progress that has been made in relation to the Palacio de Congresos, to promote congress tourism, and also about the need to continue working so that the Lady of Elche can come home to the city, as a great tourist attraction, and, on the other hand, we have reaffirmed our unequivocal commitment not to apply the tourist tax to favour the recovery and consolidation of the sector”.
