Authorities from Malaga and Andalusia participated in an event held at the State Ports stand to present the upcoming edition of Seatrade Med 2020. The delegation held meetings with the main companies in the cruise sector to develop an attractive tourism offer for the next two years.
Within the framework of the international cruise fair 'Seatrade Europe', the Malaga delegation presented the next edition of Seatrade Cruise Med, which will take place in the capital in September 2020.
The State Ports stand, with the support of the event organizers, the Malaga authorities and the other Andalusian ports, hosted this meeting to showcase the port's offerings and the destination as the venue for this important international fair.
Seatrade Cruise Med will welcome the main players in the global cruise industry, giving important visibility to Malaga and Andalusia as a top-tier cruise destination.
The president of State Ports, Salvador de la Encina, highlighted the importance of another Spanish port taking up the mantle to host Seatrade Med 2020, stating that “it will give greater visibility to Málaga, but will also reinforce Spain’s role as one of Europe’s leading tourist destinations.” However, De la Encina emphasized “the need for all government bodies and economic and social stakeholders involved in this type of tourism to reach consensus in order to achieve the best results. We, State Ports and the Port Authorities, must also be proactive and continue to offer solutions to the challenges that are arising.”.
For his part, the president of the Port Authority of Malaga, Carlos Rubio, also highlighted the “magnificent opportunity that hosting an event of this nature represents for Malaga and the other Andalusian and Spanish ports, an event whose objective is to showcase the offerings of an expanding sector and discuss its future.” Rubio stated that the meeting “will analyze the main challenges facing the cruise industry, addressing environmental aspects, fleet growth management, and the integration of ports into the historic centers of cities.” He added that “parallel activities will be held alongside the fair to encourage the participation of Malaga residents.”.
Meetings with shipping companies and industry agents
Continuing with the Seatrade Europe program, the Malaga delegation, made up of representatives from the Port Authority, the Tourism Area of the City Council, Tourism and Planning Costa del Sol and Malaga Cruise Port, held meetings with shipping companies to continue promoting Malaga as a home port for cruises.
With this objective, the meetings focused on providing detailed information on port services related to the ship and passengers, the air connections available to the capital at a national and international level, as well as the main events held in the destination, which represent a significant attraction for passengers.
Conferences
The manager of Malaga Cruise Port, Susana Gutierrez, participated as a speaker in the conference “Small is Beautiful – Does Size Matter?” organized during the meeting to analyze the management of luxury cruise ships in ports, a booming activity in the port area and which in the last 2 years accounts for half of the calls in the Port of Malaga.
The next major event for the sector will be in April 2020. The leading international trade fair, 'Seatrade Cruise Global', held annually in Miami, will be the prelude to the Mediterranean meeting to be held in Malaga in September of next year.
