Orderly tourism, with a strategy, and that develops by being “good for everyone”, is what the regional government is pursuing. According to the estimates of President Isabel Díaz Ayuso, the data on visitor arrivals this year are so good that she hopes that total tourist spending this year will reach 20 billion euros. At the moment, the regional Executive is launching a new campaign in which it intends to fight so that tourists stay a little longer with us.
The campaign is called “How many days will you stay?” and aims to invite tourists to discover, in addition to the capital, the other heritage and natural riches of the region, such as its three cities declared World Heritage Sites (Aranjuez, Alcalá de Henares and San Lorenzo de El Escorial). And also other capitals of nearby regions: Toledo, Segovia, Cuenca…
Ayuso spoke out in favor of visitors: “The Community openly says ‘Welcome to tourists,'” he noted.
Alongside them, the mayors of Aranjuez, Alcalá de Henares and San Lorenzo de El Escorial invited visitors to visit their unique cities, full of heritage. And the president summed up the essence of the region: “a community of contrasts”, with the great capital, a crown with several important cities, three towns declared World Heritage, eleven towns with historical values and great natural beauty in the surroundings.
The president wants “tourism to grow”, but with control, and always in such a way that “this growth is good for everyone”.
In the first seven months of 2024, more than 1.9 million tourists stayed outside the capital, 2.7% more than in the same period of 2023, representing almost 22% of the total number of arrivals in the region. Moreover, 25% of them were international travelers, representing almost half a million people.
And the forecasts are high: the year will close with a record total expenditure of international tourism that will exceed 16 billion euros, above the 13,000 achieved in 2023 and which, together with that of national visitors, will lead to exceeding 20,000, regional officials calculate.
