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AMT Sol y Playa awards technological innovation in smart destinations

The Alliance of Sun and Beach Tourist Municipalities (AMT) presented the awards for the 8th edition of the AMT Smart Destinations Awards, as part of the #techYdestino forum at FITURTECHY, which was held in the context of the International Tourism Trade Fair (Fitur).

The AMT Smart Destinations Awards recognise the technological solutions and tools already implemented that help tourism destinations advance in their transformation towards Smart Tourism Destinations (DTI). In addition, a new category has been added to highlight an innovative project implemented by a destination.

The member municipalities of the AMT -Salou, Calvià, Adeje, Arona, Torremolinos, Lloret de Mar, San Bartolomé de Tirajana and Benidorm-, together with the Instituto Tecnológico Hotelero (ITH), recognise the efforts to overcome the challenges of digitalisation and sustainability in the tourism sector.

In the presence of the Secretary of State for Tourism, Rosario Sánchez Grau, representatives of the Alliance of Sun and Beach Tourist Municipalities, the ITH and SEGITTUR were in charge of presenting these awards to the entities and companies in the categories of integral management of the destination, interaction with tourists and citizens, environmental sustainability and promotion and marketing of the destination.

In the first of these, for ‘Integral Destination Management’, the winner was OK Located. This is a technological and innovative mobile platform focused on territorial cohesion, which digitalises cities and municipalities, allowing them to access tourist, cultural and commercial information through proximity.

In the category of ‘Interaction with tourists and citizens’, the winning proposal was Freeplantour. A platform that instantly generates travel itineraries for any destination in any language.

The third category awarded the ‘Promotion and marketing’ proposals. The jury took into account the work of Barceló Hotel Group. A digital platform that offers experiences in collaboration with local suppliers that invite travellers to immerse themselves in discovering their true essence

Also recognised in the ‘Sustainability’ section was Murmuration. A space that provides the necessary indicators to integrate environmental issues into all decision chains and for all stakeholders, including governments, businesses and the general public.

Finally, in the new category of ‘Innovative Destination Project’, the winner was the City Council of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. With its DataLAB project, it includes four initiatives based on digital transformation and artificial intelligence, continuous measurement, decision making, support for citizens, tourists and the business community, as well as efficient management of municipal services.

The Jury was made up of representatives of the Alliance of Sun and Beach Tourism Municipalities (AMT) and a group of professional experts from the national tourism and hotel sector, members of FITUR, SEGITTUR, Invat-tur and ITH.

The finalists in each category were:

  • Integrated destination management:

Placenet Internet of Places
Ok Located
Interactive System Developers

  • Interaction with tourists and citizens

Wireless Galicia
Freeplantour
Class One Group

  • Destination promotion and marketing

Keibell APP
Barceló Hotel Group
ID Tech & Com

  • Environmental sustainability

Effiwaste
AsoPMR
Murmuration

  • Innovative destination project

Las Palmas de Gran Canaria City Council
Benissa Town Hall
Dénia Town Council

About the AMT Sol y Playa

The Alliance of Sun and Beach Tourist Municipalities was created in 2017 with the initiative of eight pioneering tourist destinations in Spain, such as Adeje, Arona, Benidorm, Calvià, Lloret de Mar, Salou, San Bartolomé de Tirajana and Torremolinos. The key objectives are to address the problems affecting the financing of tourist municipalities and the commitment to the digitisation of the sector, sustainability, accessibility and cooperation between destinations.

Lloret de Mar present at FITUR 2025 with outstanding new features

Lloret Turisme, Lloret de Mar’s tourism management and promotion body, has kicked off the year by demonstrating its leadership in tourism at Fitur, Spain’s leading tourism trade fair, held from 22 to 26 January in Madrid. Lloret Turisme attended with a delegation led by the Mayor of Lloret, Adrià Lamelas, and the Councillor for Tourism, Frederic Guich. The Mayor explained that “2025 presents important opportunities for Lloret de Mar and with the recognition of the supra-municipal government for the work carried out in different strategic areas such as innovation and digitalisation, product specialisation and the commitment to the green and ecological transition, which allow us to continue to be a benchmark and leader in the sector”. Last year Lloret de Mar closed the season with a figure of 1,250,825 travellers and 5,405,176 overnight stays (according to INE data from January to November), with an increase in overnight stays, especially from May to October.

Lloret de Mar, Smart Tourist Destination

One of the main novelties at Fitur was the awarding of the Smart Tourism Destination label. In addition to Lloret de Mar, only the following cities in Spain have achieved this objective: Barcelona, Bilbao, Benidorm, San Sebastián, Gijón and Santander.

The Smart Tourism Destination label is awarded by the Secretary of State for Tourism through SEGITTUR (State Society for the Management of Innovation and Tourism Technologies) only to destinations that obtain a score equal to or higher than 80% in the degree of compliance with the requirements that make up the DTI methodology, consisting of a total of 216 indicators from five blocks considered as backbone and essential to build a strategy for the future: governance, sustainability, accessibility, innovation and technology. In the last 2024, for example, different projects have been implemented, such as intelligent pedestrian crossings, the digitalisation of the  Tourist Information Offices or the video surveillance camera project to improve public safety at the points of greatest tourist influx.

Lloret de Mar presides over the Alliance of Leading Sun and Beach Tourism Municipalities (AMT) this 2025

The Mayor of Lloret, Adrià Lamelas, chairs the Alliance of Leading Sun and Beach Tourist Municipalities (AMT), an association comprising the eight main tourist destinations in Spain: Adeje, Arona, Benidorm, Calvià, Salou, San Bartolomé de Tirajana (Maspalomas), Torremolinos and Lloret de Mar. These municipalities receive 20% of the international overnight stays in Spain and generate 4% of the tourist jobs in Spain. The objective of the Mayor of Lloret is to continue working towards one of the main objectives of the alliance, which is to improve the financing of tourist towns and the coexistence between residents and visitors. Along these lines, Lloret de Mar Town Council is developing a Strategic City Plan with short-, medium- and long-term actions. Another strategic project is the positioning of these tourist destinations under the Blue Tourism concept, reinforcing their commitment to environmental sustainability. In this area, Lloret de Mar is also a pioneer with a tourism offer that includes a wide range of proposals in the natural environment and the regenerated water project to deal with periods of drought.

As part of FITUR, the Mayor of Lloret held a meeting with the other mayors who are part of the Alliance of Tourist Municipalities, who also took part in the round table discussion “Sustainable and digital destinations: the new gold of tourism”, a reflection on how destinations are incorporating sustainability and digitisation as a competitive advantage.

Inauguration of Next Generation projects in Lloret de Mar

In 2025, two important projects will come into operation in Lloret de Mar with European Next Generation funds: the municipal market, with a budget of 2.5 million euros, which will combine the sale of local products and gastronomic tasting, and the natural amphitheatre in the Santa Clotilde Gardens, with an estimated budget of 580,000 , which offers spectacular views over Cala Boadella and and the Costa Brava, and has a capacity for 300 people.

Lloret de Mar is one of the first municipalities to achieve the new recognition as a destination “Catalonia, HELLO family!”

As part of Fitur, Lloret de Mar has also won another award, in this case for its specialisation in family tourism. Lloret de Mar has become one of the first three municipalities to receive the “Catalonia, HELLO family!”.

The Mayor of Lloret received the award from the Honourable Miquel Sàmper, Catalan Minister for Enterprise and Employment. Miquel Sàmper, Minister of Enterprise and Employment, the recognition of the destination “Catalonia, HELLO family!”.

The Department of Enterprise and Employment, through the Catalan Tourism Agency (ACT), is promoting the new “Catalonia, HELLO family!” award to identify, publicise and promote in outbound markets those tourist destinations whose public-private offer has high standards of specialisation and adaptation to the family segment. Lloret de Mar has 24 certified companies, including hotels, activity companies and municipal facilities.

This new recognition is the evolution of the family tourism brand created 20 years ago by the Catalan Tourism Agency, of which Lloret de Mar has been a certified destination since 2010.

150 most influential tourism professionals 2025 event

Businessman Damià Font, founder of Marmirada and owner of the Hotel Acapulco; Cristina Cabañas, president of Guitart Hotels; and Elizabeth Keegan, manager of Lloret Turisme were this year’s winners at the official presentation of the sixth edition of the list of the 150 + Influencers in the tourism sector, which took place at Fitur.

Pride Costa Brava (4 to 6 July).

Within the framework of Fitur LGTB+ Lloret Town Council and the Plurals association presented the poster for the “IV PRIDE COSTA BRAVA – Abanico’s weekend 25”to the Minister for Equality, Ana María Carmen Redondo, which will take place from 4th to 6th July and which has become the benchmark LGTBIQ+ event on the Costa Brava.

20 years of filming in Lloret de Mar: new Lloret Film Office website

In 2025 Lloret de Mar also celebrates the twentieth anniversary of the creation of the Lloret Film Office which, under the umbrella of Lloret Turisme, promotes the attraction of audiovisual productions in Lloret de Mar with the aim of creating a new focus for economic dynamisation, deseasonalising and taking advantage of the high promotional impact of this industry.

The new Lloret Film Office website, a platform that provides information on the procedures, locations, filmography and services and facilities offered by Lloret de Mar for producers and location scouts, was presented at Fitur, specifically in the Fitur SCREEN space.

Over the past 20 years, more than 800 productions have been shot and photographed in Lloret de Mar, with major projects such as House of the Dragon, Uncharted, El Inocente, Mano de Hierro, Casa en flames or Mrs. Davis. In addition, there are also many advertising production companies that have become loyal over the years and have shot commercials in Lloret for brands from different fields such as retail, automotive, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and technology.

Lloret de Mar becomes a Smart Tourist Destination

The Secretary of State for Tourism, Rosario Sánchez, has presented the Mayor of Lloret de Mar, Adrià Lamelas, with the recognition that makes Lloret de Mar a Smart Tourism Destination after being assessed by the DTI methodology of the Secretary of State for Tourism, as part of the FITUR international trade fair.

The Mayor of Lloret explained that “this is a strategic milestone as Lloret de Mar has stood out in many areas and has positioned itself as a benchmark in terms of sustainability and accessibility”. Of the more than two hundred diagnoses carried out throughout Spain, only seven destinations have demonstrated that they meet more than 80% of the requirements and can be considered smart destinations: Lloret de Mar, Barcelona, Bilbao, Benidorm, Donostia-San Sebastián, Gijón-Xixón, and Santander. This recognition will be valid for the period 2024-2026, when Lloret will again have to pass the audit by the Secretary of State for Tourism.

The city of Lloret de Mar has been analysed in the 5 axes of the methodology (governance, innovation, technology, accessibility and sustainability), where 97 requirements and 261 indicators have been analysed.

Lloret de Mar has achieved the best scores in the areas of sustainability, accessibility, governance and technology, while it is in innovation where it has the greatest room for improvement, as reflected in the diagnosis report drawn up by the State Society for the Management of Innovation and Tourism Technologies (SEGITTUR).

Of all these, sustainability is Lloret de Mar’s strong point, with 100% compliance in 24 of 38 requirements. These include: management of the destination’s seasonal nature, legislation for natural and cultural heritage, marketing for sustainable tourism and protection of the local natural environment and its biodiversity, among others.

Accessibility is also another notable area in the city, as Lloret de Mar obtained the highest score in requirements such as: planning in terms of accessibility, encouraging user participation in improving accessibility, promoting the development of accessibility through technological/innovative solutions, and information and prior planning for users with different needs.

In terms of governance, Lloret de Mar scored 100% in the creation of the tourism product, the training programme in the local authority and in companies, the public-private and public-public partnership structures, and the monitoring of actions to promote tourism.

Lloret de Mar‘s degree of compliance is also high in many of the requirements of the technology axis, achieving 100% in cloud and edge computing solutions, sensorisation and management systems, tourism intelligence, traceability of promotional campaigns and smart signage, among others.

The analysis carried out by SEGITTUR during the diagnosis process also showed that Lloret de Mar stands out in terms of innovation, such as the promotion of open innovation, the development of innovative tourism products and services and process innovation.

Action plan

Among the areas for improvement, especially with regard to innovation, it is proposed to draw up an innovation strategy, promote innovation in tourism through calls for tenders, strengthen training in innovation for innovative staff, draw up a social innovation plan, carry out surveys on the perception of innovation in the destination and on the measurement of innovation in tourism companies.

The recommendations contained in this roadmap will help Lloret de Mar to continue to focus on those issues in which it already has extensive and successful experience. The city will also be able to reinforce its actions in the areas for improvement highlighted in the diagnosis report.

Lloret de Mar, in the person of its mayor, Adrià Lamelas, chairs the Alliance of Leading Sun and Beach Tourism Municipalities (AMT) this 2025

The conference “Lloret de Mar presides over the leading sun and beach destinations”, which was held today at the Lloret Theatre, was attended by some seventy participants, including political representatives from the region, members of the tourism sector and the general public. The event was attended by the Director General of Tourism of Catalonia, Ms. Cristina Lagé and the Secretary of State for Tourism, Ms. Rosario Sánchez.

This event marks the start of Lloret de Mar’s presidency, in the person of its mayor, Mr. Adrià Lamelas, of the Alliance of Leading Sun and Beach Tourism Municipalities (AMT), an association made up of the eight main tourist destinations in Spain: Adeje, Arona, Benidorm, Calvià, Salou, San Bartolomé de Tirajana (Maspalomas), Torremolinos and Lloret de Mar. These municipalities receive 20% of the overnight stays in the whole of Spain and generate 4% of the tourist jobs in Spain. The Mayor of Lloret, Adrià Lamelas, stressed in his welcome speech that “Lloret de Mar during this presidency maintains its desire to promote co-governance and work together for responsible tourism that guarantees the well-being of both its residents and visitors”. A challenge that he stressed is “key to the future of tourism, not only for the destinations in the alliance but also for tourism worldwide”. The programme continued with a keynote speech by Dr. Carles Torrecilla i Gumbau, Professor of Marketing Management at ESADE, who spoke about the need to build a value proposition for sun and beach destinations, integrating the visitor economy and the carbon, water and cultural footprint.

The round table under the title “Shared Challenges”, which has counted with the different authorities of the member municipalities of the AMT, has dealt with different strategic blocks such as tourism financing, co-governance, sustainability and digitalisation or the tourist-resident coexistence. The final presentation, given by Mr. Carlos Sintes, Senior Account Manager of Mabrian Technologies, dealt with the opportunities of Big Data and its analysis to contribute to the transformation of sun and beach tourism in Spain.

In the closing speeches, the Director General of Tourism of Catalonia, Cristina Lagé remarked that “The alliance between sun and beach destinations is a necessary collaboration for the growth of the sector. We have understood the importance of modernising tourism through smart and digital solutions. Tourism is participating in a very necessary process of adaptation to the new context that is living and transforming society”. And the Secretary of State for Tourism, Rosario Sánchez has stressed that “The fundamental role played by the Alliance in building a common strategic agenda is key to positioning Spain as a global benchmark in sustainable tourism. This agenda must place people at the centre of actions, with responsibility and balance as fundamental values guiding tourism activity”.

14 hotels and 6 restaurants in Lloret de Mar receive the Little Foodies accreditation, a seal of quality created by Lloret Turisme and the Alícia Foundation for good, healthy and sustainable children’s restaurants.

Today, at the Velamar restaurant in Lloret de Mar, Lloret Turisme and the Alícia Foundation awarded the seal for good, healthy and sustainable children’s restaurants to a total of 20 establishments, 14 hotels and 6 restaurants. This certification certifies that the establishments that have passed the audit guarantee a balanced diet for children during their holiday stay. The manager of Lloret Turisme, Elizabeth Keegan, explains that “traditionally, children’s food during the holiday period has been linked to unhealthy and repetitive menus, but nowadays families are also demanding that healthy food can be guaranteed for their children during their holidays”.

Before starting the project, a survey was carried out among catering establishments. The main data highlighted that 33% are already accredited with the Family Tourist Destination certification awarded by the Government of Catalonia; 97.4% are family-friendly and 56% offer a buffet or children’s menu (of which half of them have a differentiated space for children with little variety on offer). Ninety per cent of respondents also reported that they had not received any training in children’s food and, in conclusion, 95% said that they felt they could improve their children’s offer and were willing to do so.

The audit, which is based on the plate method, establishes that children’s menus should contain 50% vegetables, 25% carbohydrates and 25% protein foods. It was carried out by professionals from the Alícia Foundation, who assessed different criteria according to the following blocks:

  • Safe: compliant with regulations and adapted to allergies and/or intolerances and safely presented (the more separated, cut and peeled the better).
  • Sufficient: rations should be adjusted to children.
  • Balanced: ensuring the presence of vegetables, wholemeal foods and the use of olive oil, among others.
  • Ecological: that strives for the presence of fresh, seasonal and local food, as well as having a recycling and waste separation system, among others.
  • Economic: the price should be adapted to the quantities served to children and water should be offered as the first choice.
  • Practical: to provide a service that promotes the autonomy of the child.
  • Ethics: that the child is considered as an equal partner and that the basic rights of families are guaranteed.
  • Significant: ensuring the presence of dishes from the territory.
  • Stimulating: offering attractive dishes and encouraging gastronomic discovery.

 

The Mayor of Lloret, Jaume Dulsat, and the Councillor for Bars, Restaurants and Cafeterias, Lara Torres, presented the certification to the following accredited establishments: Costa Encantada aparthotel, Evenia Olympic Garden hotel, Evenia Olympic Palace hotel, Evenia Olympic Park hotel, Evenia Olympic Suites hotel, Guitart Central Park Aqua Resort, Acapulco hotel, Anabel hotel, Marsol hotel, Rosamar Garden hotel, Rosamar Marítim hotel, Samba hotel, Surf Mar hotel, Xaine Park hotel, and the restaurants Can Bolet, Can Guidet, El Trull , Mas Romeu, La Rambla and Velamar.

Apart from awarding the diplomas to the establishments, the Little Foodies brand was also presented during the presentation, which gives visibility to all this commitment to healthy children’s food and which includes a new graphic image, the seal, different physical and digital supports, a landing page (littlefoodies.lloretdemar.org) in four different languages, several promotional videos and a specific image bank.

The Mayor of Lloret, Jaume Dulsat, explained that “this accreditation combines our commitment to gastronomy and family tourism, which is a product that has become firmly established in Lloret over the last few years”. He added that “the success of these projects depends on this public-private partnership”.

In 2018, Lloret Turisme launched the Strategy to boost the gastronomy sector in Lloret de Mar 2018-2022 in collaboration with the Alícia Foundation and with the support of the Lloret de Mar Bars, Restaurants and Cafeterias Guild and the Lloret de Mar Hotel Guild. During this time it has carried out different actions in the two strategic lines of the project. In the health area, all kinds of training courses have been organised for kitchen teams (allergies and intolerances, veganism and vegetarianism) and the destination currently has more than 15 gluten-free establishments accredited by the Coeliac Association of Catalonia and 21 with the AMED seal of the Public Health Agency of Catalonia, in the promotion of Mediterranean food. In terms of identity, the Americanos Cuisine recipe booklet was created.