Barcelona is starting to breathe a sailing atmosphere like never before with the celebration next year of the 37th edition of the America’s Cup. And those who have always promoted this sector in the Catalan capital hope to be able to take advantage of the important sports competition. This is why the Barcelona International Boat Show, which will take place from October 11 to 15, is confident that the collaboration with the prestigious event will help it grow in the number of visitors.
The show of boats and their accessories closed last year with 50,000 visitors. The director of the event, Josep Antoni Llopart, explained yesterday during the presentation that this year they hope to surpass this figure. “The America’s Cup will arouse the interest of new groups”, he argued.
The America’s Cup will be very present at the show. “We will be a bridge of connection between the city and the most important sailing competition in the world”, described the president of the Saló Nàutic. In addition to the talks about the event, during the fair you can test a simulator of one of the boats in the competition. “It will imitate movement, the air, it will have virtual reality and it will be inaugurated for the Nàutic”, said Xavier Andrades, of the America’s Cup Experience. You can also visit the exhibition located in the old Imax. All with a discount for those attending the Nautical Show.
At the same time as there is this positive synergy, the celebration of the America’s Cup has complicated the organization of Nautic. The competition already occupies spaces on the docks that have traditionally been used by the fair. A fact that has forced a reorganization.
However, there has been a “slight decline” in exhibitors, Llopart acknowledged. Eventually there will be 240. The floating display will reach 160 boats and will have 22,000 m2 of exhibition space. “The challenge has been to accommodate all the requests”, said Llopart.
All options are open regarding the celebration of the Nautic next year, when it will coincide with the America’s Cup. From trying other locations to changing dates to not holding the show. But, according to Llopart, the outlook will be different in the future: “The America’s Cup will be a growth lever for the next editions”, said the director of the Saló Nàutic.
