José Fernando Vera-Rebollo

Beyond Megaprojects?. Water Alternatives for Mass Tourism in Coastal Mediterranean Spain

Water availability in adequate quantities and qualities is a fundamental requirement for tourism. In the Mediterranean, one of the world’s leading tourist destinations, water availability is subject to modest and erratic precipitation figures which may decline with climate change. The tourist industry therefore may have to assure future supplies by either recurring to new technologies such as desalination or increasing efficiency in water use. A third and yet little explored alternative would be to seek for complementary of uses with irrigation, the traditional user in many coastal Mediterranean areas and holder of substantial amounts of water. In this paper we present the example of the Consorcio de Aguas de la Marina Baja to show how Benidorm, in Mediterranean Spain and one of the most important tourist centers of the Mediterranean, obtains part of its water through agreements with farmers by which these trade their water with Benidorm and other towns’ treated wastewater of enough quality to be used for irrigation, and obtain several compensations in return. The advantages and disadvantages of the water trade between farmers and tourist interests in the Benidorm area are discussed and we argue that solutions to the pending water crisis of many coastal Mediterranean tourist areas may not need to rely uniquely on expensive technologies to generate new resources but may attempt other alternatives.

The end of growth in residential tourism destinations: steady state or sustainable development? The case of Calpe

This article discusses how the slowdown in the real estate market during the most recent economic and financial crisis has affected residential tourism destinations on the Spanish coast. The afore-mentioned crisis, which gave rise to a standstill in residential activity, coincided with the turbulences experienced in the competing destinations of Northern Africa, which brought about a record number of international tourist arrivals to Spain. The resulting situation enables us to explore the future scenario of all the Spanish destinations that, due to the depletion of available land, are reaching their maximum levels of urban growth. Examining the case of Calpe, a destination which is representative of the Spanish Mediterranean, the study analyses whether the foreseeable dynamics for the future are conceptualized in the favourable terms that characterize “sustainable development” or, on the contrary, exhibit negative implications which the classic economists refer to as the “steady state”.

Actas del Seminario Internacional Destinos Turísticos Inteligentes: nuevos horizontes en la investigación y gestión del turismo

Estas Actas recogen las comunicaciones presentadas al Seminario Internacional Destinos Turisticos Inteligentes: nuevos horizontes en la investigacion y gestion del turismo, celebrado en la Universidad de Alicante del 26 al 27 de octubre de 2017, en el marco del Proyecto de Investigacion «Nuevos enfoques para la planificacion y gestion del territorio turistico: conceptualizacion, analisis de experiencias y problemas. Definicion de modelos operativos para destinos turisticos inteligentes» (Proyecto CSO2014-59193-R) del Programa Estatal de I+D+I del Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad

Tourist mobility at coastal mass destinations: implications for sustainability

The aim of this paper is to analyse the spatial behaviour of mass tourism demand in coastal destinations and its implications from the point of view of sustainable tourism development. The paper is based on primary research carried out in one of the main Mediterranean tourist destinations, Benidorm (Spain). This research involved the use of Global Positioning Systems (GPS) devices for the tracking of a sample of 257 tourists (from Spain and United Kingdom). Although the research has an experimental basis, these advanced technologies allow new approaches to spatial analysis in order to achieve a better understanding of tourist mobility at coastal destinations. Until now, most studies of intradestination movements have been applied to urban and cultural destinations, where the points of interest and tourist routes are easily identifiable. However, spatial behaviour of mass tourism in coastal destinations has rarely been studied in detail using new tracking technologies. While tourist movements may seem, a priori, predictable, the identification of mobility patterns offers interesting results about the main characteristics of the tourist experience, the relationship with the urban model, the use of public and private spaces, the perception of the destination, and the differences between segments of demand. The conclusions of the study are relevant from the methodological and theoretical point of view, and include some recommendations for planning and destination management in the context of sustainability.

Adaptación del sector turístico al cambio climático en España. La importancia de las acciones a escala local y en empresas turísticas

El 5o Informe del IPCC (Panel Intergubernamental de Cambio Climatico, 2014) senala que el turismo sera una de las actividades economicas que mayores efectos negativos experimentara en las proximas decadas debido al calentamiento termico del planeta. En Espana, el turismo es una fuente principal de ingresos y de creacion de puestos de trabajo en su economia. De ahi que sea necesaria la puesta en marcha de medidas de adaptacion a la nueva realidad climatica que, en nuestro pais, va a suponer cambios en el confort climatico de los destinos e incremento de extremos atmosfericos. Frente a los planes de adaptacion al cambio climatico en la actividad turistica, elaborados por los gobiernos estatal y regional, que apenas se han desarrollado en Espana, la escala local muestra interesantes ejemplos de acciones de adaptacion al cambio climatico, desarrolladas tanto por los municipios (energia, transporte, vivienda, planificacion urbanistica) como por la propia empresa turistica (hoteles, campings, apartamentos). Medidas de ahorro de agua y luz, fomento del transporte publico y de las energias limpias, creacion de zonas verdes urbanas y adaptacion a los extremos atmosfericos destacan como acciones de mitigacion del cambio climatico en los destinos turisticos principales de nuestro pais.

Steamboats and pleasure travels: success and failure of the first Spanish initiatives in the mid-nineteenth century

Steam technology revolutionised maritime transport during the nineteenth century. Together with the establishment of the first regular lines, steamers soon led to the commencement of pleasure navigation. The aim of this article is to analyse the impact and scope of this process in Spain, by means of a study of the first experiences in the mid-nineteenth century. In addition to a brief introduction and final conclusions, the paper is structured around four sections. The first contains an appraisal of the situation of passenger transport. Some information is then provided regarding the first cruise in 1854. Next, the essay highlights some of the features of short excursions that were very well received by the public, especially in the island of Majorca. Finally, attention is given to a very special type of travel, the main attraction of which lay in the opportunity to witness an event of a military nature.