The organisers of the VI Fairway –comprising the companies Trevisani, Viajes Viloria and Mr Turismo Marketing en Acción– have given a positive assessment of the event, highlighting that it has been ‘an unprecedented success in terms of attendance’, with close to 5,000 participants. Part of this increase in attendance is due to the reinforcement of leisure activities organised both for the Open Day itself and for Monday and Tuesday. The VI Camino de Santiago Forum was held between 9 and 11 November at the Museo de la Cidade da Cultura de Galicia.
The gastronomy-related proposals -notably the Gastroway Vermú & Tapas A provincia que sabe (Vermouth & Tapas: The Province that Tastes) by the Provincial Council of A Coruña, which was combined with the Señora DJ session, workshops and show cooking- were by far the most popular. Not surprisingly, places sold out quickly, indicating their great popularity with the public.
Another of the great attractions of the VI Fairway was the Tourism and Camino Fair, in which more than 70 national and international exhibitors participated. Of particular relevance was the Visit Portugal space, which attracted numerous people with the various initiatives developed over the three days of the event, especially those related to Portuguese gastronomy. ‘The wide and varied range of products and services on offer led to the generation of a large number of business contacts and also aroused interest among the public, who found Fairway to be the ideal place to plan their next getaway,’ explains Ana Trevisani, co-director of the event.
In addition to the fair and the leisure activities, the event became the centre of attention thanks to its Tourism and Camino Forum, which was attended by more than 600 people in its various sessions. As co-director Tono Mugico pointed out, ‘the debates on touristification and tourist tax attracted the most attention and, in keeping with the spirit of Fairway, we facilitated the sharing of ideas between the different parties involved in the issues that concern the sector’.
This discussion highlighted issues such as the need to coordinate efforts between administrations to optimise tourist flows on the Camino de Santiago. On the subject of touristification itself, both institutions and private entities concluded that it does not exist as such, but that problems arising from occasional overcrowding at specific times and places must be addressed by adopting measures to decentralise and deseasonalise visitor flows as far as possible.
In the debate on the tourist tax, it was not possible to specify exactly where the money will be invested or whether it will directly benefit the sector. Among the areas in which it could be invested, problems such as the loss of airport connections in the Galician capital, which are very damaging to the sector, were mentioned.
The opening conference, featuring the director of the Galician Tourism Agency, Xosé Manuel Merelles, and the vice-president of the Provincial Council of A Coruña, Xosé Regueira, also generated great interest, as did the round table discussion on the democratisation of the Camino de Santiago and the recent changes to the regulations for obtaining the Compostela. On this last point, it was not possible to shed light on the Church’s motivations for these changes or on the choice of certain routes over others.
The largest workshop
Last Monday and Tuesday saw frenetic activity throughout the day in the workshop section. “This year we had 43 hosted buyers from 18 different countries and more sellers than ever before, 140 in total, many of whom were participating for the first time. This allowed us to hold around 3,200 business meetings,” explains Manuel Oreiro, co-director of the event.
‘Both Hosted Buyers and Sellers expressed their satisfaction with the outcome of these meetings and the business opportunities they open up.’ As a result, we can talk about higher business figures than in previous editions. The fact is that ‘Fairway is now considered the sales platform for products and services related to the Caminos, with companies from Asturias, Cantabria, Navarra, Lugo, Ourense, A Coruña, Pontevedra and also from northern Portugal taking part,’ concludes Oreiro.
One of the key factors that has made tour operators even more interested in the Camino is the organisation of three Fam Trips prior to Fairway. On this occasion, around thirty Hosted Buyers were able to discover and experience the English, Portuguese and Vía de la Plata routes for themselves. These initiatives were made possible thanks to the support of the Provincial Council of A Coruña, the Provincial Council of Pontevedra and INORDE, respectively.
Finally, another attraction for the Fairway audience was the various prize draws held to celebrate the event’s tenth anniversary. To participate, visitors had to fill in their My Camino credential and hand it in with 10 stamps from different exhibitors at the fair. During the three days of Fairway, more than 300 credentials were distributed, which were eligible for one of the seven grand prizes: a trip to Ilha Terceira (Azores) -courtesy of YuTravel; stays and experiences in Caravaca de la Cruz -courtesy of Murcia Tourism; cabins in Beche -courtesy of the Association of Municipalities of the English Way; and stays at Caldaria Balnearios -courtesy of INORDE; as well as lots of products of differentiated quality (PDO, PGI, organic production and artisan food) -courtesy of AGACAL.