The deseasonalization of tourism has been one of the sector’s great objectives for years. But achieving it is not easy. After all, the majority of the population usually travels in summer. And the sun and the beach continue to have a lot of pull. However, professionals in the field seek to make the tourist offer increasingly more varied, incorporating attractions such as culture, sporting events or so-called industrial tourism, among others. B-Travel, the show dedicated to tourism organized by Fira de Barcelona and held to this day at the Montjuïc fairgrounds, is a good example of these efforts.
“Tourism has already completely recovered from the impact of the pandemic and the prospects are good,” explains the president of B-Travel, Martí Sarrate. “Deseasonalization, tourism twelve months a year, brings economic tranquility to the sector,” he considers. According to him, to promote it “public-private collaboration is essential.” Sarrate believes that another key is to adapt to traveler demand and offer increasingly personalized trips. “We are unbeatable, but to achieve our objectives we have to promote ourselves,” concludes the also vice president of the Corporate Association of Specialized Travel Agencies (Acave).
A total of 129 regional, national and international exhibitors are present at the show. Among them, the province of Bizkaia is present for the first time as a differentiated destination. “We specifically promote non-peak periods. We no longer do campaigns for summer or Easter,” say the tourism officials of the provincial council who have traveled to Barcelona these days. In Bizkaia they offer attractions such as culture, sports and events, but in B-Travel they especially promote industrial tourism. That is, the old industrial sites and facilities that become a tourist attraction. In fact, at the fair they have a simulator with immersive reality to promote this product.
“Industrial tourism shows the history of the territory. In addition, we manage to take people to other towns beyond Bilbao. An example is Sestao, with unique facilities and all its working-class history,” they say from the provincial council, which has sought help from Next Generation funds to renovate disused industrial facilities and turn them into tourist attractions.
Industrial tourism, in fact, has had its own space in B-Travel for years. For example, Asturias shows its mining history and the Xarxa de Turisme Industrial de Catalunya (Xatic) is also present, an association endorsed by the Catalan Tourism Agency that brings together municipalities that are committed to this type of initiatives and decide to join forces. “Catalonia is as we know it today from the industrial revolution and we explain this change,” says the technical secretary of the entity, Pepi Martínez. “Industrial tourism helps deseasonalize. You don’t depend on time. Furthermore, it can be a complement to a stay, but it is also a way to get to know your country,” she considers.
Martínez relates that one of the trends is the “living industry.” These are companies with tourist charm that continue working on their activities today. Another advantage of industrial tourism, according to the technical secretary of Xatic, is that it is “spread throughout Catalonia.” So in addition to deseasonalizing, it also decentralizes.