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Alicante is rethinking its tourism model after a record-breaking year
The city has become a year-round destination, but success brings its own pressures, and a new four-year strategy is already in the works
Alicante has had a remarkable 2026 for tourism. The city was already hitting post-pandemic highs over the summer, and the broader picture confirms a destination that has quietly reinvented itself. No longer just a beach resort for July and August, Alicante now draws visitors for Holy Week, the Bonfires of Saint John, its culinary scene, Santa Bárbara Castle and even its Monumental Nativity Scene in winter. Tourism now accounts for 15.47% of the city's GDP and 13.5% of total employment.But record numbers bring their own complications, and Alicante's Ayuntamiento is being candid about the need to manage growth carefully. Mayor Luis Barcala used World Tourism Day celebrations on Tuesday to signal that the city is "thinking about the present and future of tourism and the city in the medium and long term, with a comprehensive overhaul through the General Plan." It's a significant statement from a city that has benefited enormously from its tourism boom but is also feeling some of the pressures that come with it.
The pressure on housing is one of the most visible. Holiday apartments have reduced the availability of residential properties, and the Ayuntamiento has already approved a two-year moratorium on new licences in high-pressure areas. Street cleaning, public transport and services more broadly are also under strain as visitor numbers climb.
Councillor for Tourism Ana Poquet has spent the past year developing the Alicante Tourism Strategy 2027 to 2030, working closely with the sector. "It is about working together to shape the tourist Alicante we want for the coming years," she said. The regional secretary for tourism, José Manuel Camarero, framed the challenge neatly: "Markets have shifted, tourists' demands have changed, and we have changed as well."
The celebrations also included tourism awards recognising two businesses with deep local roots. Cruceros Kontiki, celebrating its 70th anniversary, received the Tourism Career Award. Its manager José Manuel Díaz recalled that his father "was the one who started the trips to Tabarca, and today we can say we have spent a lifetime linking Alicante with our great little treasure, this unique Mediterranean island." The Tourism Innovation and Sustainability Award went to Hotel La Milagrosa, whose managing director Juan Fernando Lozano paid tribute to the family who launched the original project back in 1958.
Image: Manuel Torres Garcia/Pexels
