Carlos Álamo: “The ITSA World Tourism Congress is an opportunity to learn first-hand about the main research and tourism trends after the pandemic”

Gran Canaria will host the ninth edition of the ITSA International Tourism Congress next week. The biennial meeting of the International Tourism Studies Association (ITSA) is held, for the first time in Spain, between July 26 and 29 at the Expomeloneras Congress Palace, and represents “a unique opportunity for both Canarian professionals from the sector as well as students and interested parties can access the main research and trends with some of the most respected voices in the international university field at a key moment for the sector such as the recovery after the health pandemic," said Carlos Álamo, advisor of Gran Canaria Tourism.

This conference is held jointly with the 'V Spring Symposium in Tourism Development (Gran Canaria SSTD 2022)', under the title 'Corporate Entrepreneurship and Global Tourism Strategies after Covid-19'. The Conference is organized by the University Institute of Tourism and Sustainable Economic Development (TiDES) of the ULPGC and the Tourism Department of the Cabildo of Gran Canaria. It is also part of the Maspalomas Summer University program and has the support of the city council of San Bartolomé de Tirajana and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, as well as the support of Expomeloneras. More than 200 academics from different international universities of recognized prestige in tourism will participate as speakers.

This event represents the first time in the last 20 years that the biennial and academic proposal of ITSA, which brings together representatives of the main universities from the five continents that have degrees and postgraduate degrees in Tourism, is held in Spain and, specifically in Gran Canaria. Three main topics for the tourism sector will be addressed, such as the sustainability of tourism, tourism intrapreneurship and digital marketing, all under the motto of searching for recovery strategies for the tourism sector after the pandemic.  

The doctoral professor and tourism expert from the ULPGC, Teresa Aguiar, is the person in charge and President of this ninth edition of the congress, after assuming the vice presidency of ITSA for southern Europe. “We have been working for four years to get this event held in Spain, and more specifically in Gran Canaria, and we have managed to bring together more than 200 top world researchers who will show the tourism recovery strategies on the 5 continents after COVID-19. ”.

Among the speakers, the presence of names such as Alastair Morrison from the University of Greenwich (United Kingdom), Sangwon Park from Kyung Hee University (South Korea), Xinran Lehto from Purdue University (USA) and Dennis Garand from the University of Laval (Canada); all of them great researchers of recognized prestige worldwide in the areas of hotel management and tourism marketing. Interested entrepreneurs also have the possibility of delving deeper into these investigations, together with their authors, through a specific 'workshop'. 

“The most innovative thing is that, in addition, this World Tourism Congress will address for the first time the recovery of the tourism sector from three perspectives: from the point of view of the destinations, of the companies themselves and from the institutional point of view. And, in addition, we will have representatives from these three sectors in the Canary Islands, who will be part of a local debate table, to analyze the consequences of the pandemic in the Canary Islands and how work is being done in the destination and in the hotels," explains the professor. Teresa Aguiar.

“In a situation as complex as the current one and with so many variables and uncertainty, knowledge and research are more necessary than ever, especially when it comes from the most outstanding brains on the planet in this specialty. So this represents an opportunity to listen and take notes on the analysis as well as possible tools and recommendations,” Álamo explained.   

The Minister of Tourism pointed out that the Canary Islands is a leading region among European destinations and in its history it has been a pioneer in the implementation of tourism products that are a success today. “Tourism has changed some of its keys in this post-covid period. Tastes and trends vary and knowledge is what will allow us to anticipate and adapt to changes to remain competitive. In this scenario, it is more necessary than ever to listen to what the main researchers and thinkers on the planet have to say about it.”