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ARCHIVED - Subsidised Imserso trips for pensioners to make a comeback on the Costa Blanca
The Valencia government has opened the door for the first arrivals of elderly holidaymakers in November
Spain’s popular low-cost holidays for the over-65s, known as the Imserso scheme, will make a comeback in Alicante province and the rest of the Valencia region in November, ending months of uncertainty.
Whilst the tourist sector is experiencing a long-awaited steady upturn, with a significant rise in hotel and other holiday accommodation occupancy levels, along with a surge in bookings for the next three months, particular in Benidorm, the subsidised pensioner holiday scheme could play a vital role in reviving the hardest-hit industries.
The Imserso tourism two-year contract has been awarded to Mundiplan, a tour operator formed by Iberia and Alsa, which will manage pensioners’ holidays on the Costa Blanca, whilst cultural trips will be handled by Mundosenior (Viajes Halcón).
Holidays and day trips will be advertised within the next few days, with the first pensioners expected to arrive from the first week in November, potentially safeguarding 4,000 jobs in the tourism sector, according to the regional government.
Sixty hotels in Benidorm, Calpe, Denia, Alfaz del Pi, Gandía, Guardamar, Javea, Peñíscola, Alicante, Torrevieja and Vinaroz, are involved in the scheme, normally welcoming an average of 180,000 retirees during the low season annually.
Valencia’s Hotel and Tourist Business Association (Hosbec) has welcomed the news.
General secretary, Nuria Montes, said: “It is a very important first step and we hope that within four to six weeks the senior tourists can start coming back.”
It’s estimated that the suspension of Imserso holidays in the region, due to the pandemic and protests, resulted in financial losses of around one-hundred-million euros, and dealt the sector a huge blow, with 65 hotels closed and more than 5,000 workers aid off.
But now it’s hoped that with prices for a 10-day break on the Costa Blanca costing from around 260 euros (full board and transport included), compared to around 390 euros in the Canary Islands, senior travellers will opt to spend their winter holiday in the Valencia region, giving the tourist sector a much-needed boost.
However, not everybody is in favour of the Imserso scheme, with the vice-president of the Alliance for Excellence in Tourism (Exceltur) José Luis Zoreda, arguing it is “absolutely out of date”.
At a press conference on Thursday October 7, he said that whilst none of the Exceltur members work with Imserso, they believe that the initiative is outdated “in terms of cost and prices”.
“The consideration of this travel program as a social benefit cannot be converted into an act of charity by the tourism sector, selling below cost to a group that does not have the purchasing power it had 30 years ago, when the scheme was introduced,” said Zoreda.
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