Iniciativas Eco-responsables y RSE

🏠 Barcelona aims to collect €100 million in 2024 with the Tourist Stay Tax (IEET). The municipal surcharge on this tax will increase by €0.75, reaching €4, effective October 1, 2024. Rates per night will be €7.5 for 5-star hotels, €5.7 for 4-star, €6.25 for tourist apartments, €5 for other establishments, €6 for cruises over 12 hours, and €7 for cruises under 12 hours. Since 2012, Barcelona has raised €253 million with the tourist tax, with €115 million for the municipality and €55 million from the surcharge in less than two years. The funds finance city services impacted by tourism and projects like festivals and educational center air conditioning.

📖 Ilunion Hotels, led by CEO José Ángel Preciados, aims to balance responsibility with profitability and societal well-being. They've been working for two years to incorporate their ethical values into the Food & Beverage sector, with the project Umániko. This initiative offers 100% accessible spaces and focuses on sustainability, efficiency, and social commitment, including local and seasonal produce, animal and staff welfare. Umániko will be implemented across 13 of their 15 Special Employment Centers, where over 70% of staff have disabilities, by the end of the year. Openings scheduled for October 14 at multiple Ilunion Hotels locations such as Ilunion Pío XII and Ilunion Suites Madrid, with others following, including Ilunion San Mamés on October 21 and Ilunion Fuengirola and Ilunion Hacienda de Mijas on October 28.

📡 In Castellón, on September 24, 2024, HOSBEC and ITH organized the "ITH Hotel Energy Meetings" to assist hotels in energy savings and decarbonization. The Generalitat Valenciana will soon offer aid for energy efficiency, totaling 21 million euros, with an execution period until June 30, 2025. These funds aim to support the decarbonization of industrial processes within the PERTE de Descarbonización Industrial project. The event, hosted at Hotel Jaime I, aims to maximize energy savings, reduce costs, and aid in transitioning to renewable energies and sustainable practices for the hotel sector.

🏨 deLuna Hotels announced the start of construction for Gran Hotel Luna de Cádiz at Estadio Nuevo Mirandilla, set to open in December 2025. The 4-star hotel will have 240 rooms, exclusive spaces, spa, gym, pools, and a buffet. Architect Jose Antonio Albarrán Bailén designed the 17,484.20 m² project, with a 15-month construction timeframe. A public tender by Cádiz's council in 2022 allowed deLuna Hotels to acquire part of the stadium for €25 million. The hotel chain, expanding beyond Granada for the first time, has partnered with the Instituto de Fomento, Empleo y Formación (IFEF) for a training program, guaranteeing jobs for at least 65% of its 45 participants, equating to 29 full-time permanent positions.

📝 Resuinsa Group will showcase their textile quality, design, and innovation at EquipHotel, Texcare, and Interihotel during November. With their own stand, they will exhibit their luxury textile line and sustainable solutions at EquipHotel in Paris (3-7 November), Texcare in Frankfurt (6-9 November), and Interihotel in Madrid (19-21 November). They lead in sustainable textiles for hospitality, with a focus on circular economy through a CDTI project (RECOFID IDI20240132) for recycling used hotel textiles. With 45 years of experience, Resuinsa customizes textiles to match hotel identities and emphasizes their commitment to quality, design, sustainability, and R&D investment.

🏕 Kampaoh, founded in 2016 with a pilot of 30 tents in Tarifa, announced the creation of a €50 million investment vehicle, Naturally invested, to launch projects through leasing and purchasing camping sites in nature. Advised by Baideko, Kampaoh seeks investors via this fund to develop and manage sustainable camping and tourist establishments. By the end of 2024, the company aims for 4,500 accommodations across 92 locations in Spain, France, Italy, and Portugal. After a funding round of €8 million led by JME and Eutopia VC and an additional €14 million capital in January 2023, Kampaoh recorded €23 million in revenue for 2023 and closed summer 2024 with €32 million in income.

✈ Wizz Air will start long-haul flights with the A321XLR from March, launching a route from London Gatwick to Jeddah, and from June, Milan to Abu Dhabi. Base fare for a one-way ticket is just over €235. The expansion into luxury and low-cost polarizes Madrid's hotel industry, with Spanish investors and hoteliers increasingly entering the luxury segment, traditionally seen as "sexy" despite room rates over €1,000. Agencies demand efficient commercialization of Imserso travel, expressing concern over the lack of response from the Institute for Elderly and Social Services (IMSERSO) regarding improvements after issues last season.

💰 The Instituto Tecnológico Hotelero (ITH), in collaboration with HOSBEC and AEDH, will host the "ITH Hotel Energy Meetings 2024" in Castellón on September 24, 2024, focusing on energy efficiency solutions aligned with the upcoming Generalitat Valenciana's grants from the Next Generation Funds. These grants, totaling €21 million, aim to improve energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, with an execution period until June 30, 2025, as part of the PERTE de Descarbonización Industrial. The event at Hotel Jaime I will feature experts from companies like Daikin, Bosch, and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, providing insights on energy production, management, and alternative energy solutions.

🏕️ Arabia Saudí apunta a atraer 200 millones de turistas en 2030, con proyectos como Neom (26,500 km² con 10 proyectos distintos), The Red Sea (100% sostenible, 35 islas), y Al-Ula (estilo Cañón del Colorado), además del nuevo Riad. Mientras tanto, Abu Dabi amplía Yas Island con cuatro parques temáticos y Saadiyat Island, conocida como "la isla de la cultura". Dubai reinicia Falcon Island, y Omán enfoca en turismo natural con el Grand Tour de Omán y Frankincense Riviera. Qatar innova con Qatar Host, una formación digital para 85,000 personas. Expertos como Eulogio Bordas sugieren que empresas españolas deberían capitalizar en estos desarrollos turísticos.

🌊 Loro Parque Foundation celebrated its 30th anniversary with a charity gala dinner last Wednesday, gathering around 700 attendees at Hotel Botánico & The Oriental Spa Garden. The event highlighted over 30 years of work in protecting threatened species and their habitats and emphasized contributions to ongoing research and efforts to mitigate climate change effects on marine ecosystems of the Canary Islands.