Tenerife renews its ‘Smart Tourism Destination’ certification

Thursday, May 04, 2023 0

This accreditation highlights the sustainability, governance, technology, innovation and accessibility of the island

Tenerife has renewed its accreditation as a ‘Smart Tourism Destination’ after being evaluated by the State Company for the Management of Tourism Innovation and Technologies (SEGITTUR) and obtaining a degree of compliance of more than 80 percent.

The Smart Tourism Destination programme is a project that aims to contribute to improving the competitiveness of tourist destinations and the quality of life of their residents by focusing on five areas of action: governance, innovation, technology, sustainability and accessibility.

Some of the advantages of a Smart Tourism Destination include improving the efficiency of the production and marketing process, boosting sustainable development and improving the quality of stay of visitors and the quality of life of residents. In short, being a Smart Tourism Destination prioritises the positive effects of tourism in the long term.

The president of the Tenerife Island Government, Pedro Martín, emphasised that the island is the first Spanish destination to obtain the renewal of this precious certificate, which ratifies the commitment of the island and the way they work. He also shared this is the way Tenerife will continue attracting responsible visitors who are aware of the landscapes and communities they visit.

On the other hand, the CEO of the Tenerife Tourism Corporation, David Pérez, expressed and highlighted the “excellent” relationship that Tenerife has with the Secretary of State for Tourism: “We work hand in hand with SEGITTUR and Tourspain to achieve the objectives set. Our proactivity makes us one of the country’s leading tourism management bodies”.

The analysis carried out by the SEGITTUR team took into account the sustainability, governance, technology, innovation and accessibility of the island’s territory.

Sustainability: The Tenerife Reset Plan stands out. This plan includes various strategic lines related to offsetting the carbon footprint of the tourism sector such us improving mobility, digitization, promoting gastronomy, biodiversity, culture and improving paths and trails
Governance: Tenerife’s provision of services through the public-private participation model stands out
Technology: SEGITTUR valued the fulfilment of the requirements linked to tourism knowledge, with consolidated data intelligence by the Research Department of the Tenerife Tourism Corporation
Innovation: The organisation valued the work of the Tenerife Tourism Corporation in the development of new services through technological tools for communication with travellers, such as the award-winning GOIO virtual assistant
Accessibility: SEGITTUR considered the Island’s Accessibility Map

The renewal of the Smart Tourism Destination label has been possible thanks to the collaboration between the Tenerife Tourism Corporation, the Tenerife Island Government, local businesses and the University of La Laguna.

Tenerife currently forms part of the group of destinations (six from Spain and one in Latin America) that pave the way when it comes to the implementation of the Smart Tourism Destination model, placing it at the forefront of tourism development.