FITUR 2025 kicks off with CIMET, the meeting of Ibero-American tourism ministers at IFEMA MADRID

IFEMA MADRID today, on the eve of the opening of FITUR 2025, hosted the 28th Ibero-American Conference of Tourism Ministers and Entrepreneurs, CIMET 2025, which was also attended by Rosario Sánchez Grau, Spanish Secretary of State for Tourism, Héctor Coronel, Director of Tourism at Madrid City Council, Daniel Martínez, Executive Vice President of IFEMA Madrid, and Arancha Priede, General manager of Trade Fair and Congress Business at IFEMA Madrid, along with numerous other representatives of the public and private tourism sector. The 45th edition of FITUR, the International Tourism Trade Fair, organised by IFEMA MADRID and with Brazil as a Partner Country, kicks off tomorrow 22 January and will run until 26 January.

During his speech, Daniel Martínez, Executive Vice President of IFEMA MADRID, stressed that "CIMET once again underlines the valuable contribution of the Ibero-American presence at our International Tourism Trade Fair, which this year is led by Brazil, our Partner Country in 2025. At IFEMA MADRID we are very proud of the role that FITUR plays for the Ibero-American nations, and we are deeply grateful for their renewed confidence throughout the 45 editions of the trade fair."

For her part, Rosario Sánchez Grau, Spanish Secretary of State for Tourism, said that "the tourism industry is strategic for the Spanish economy, as it is a major driver of the economy, contributing significantly to the inflow of foreign currency". She reminded us that "with the start of FITUR, Madrid becomes the world capital of tourism". Sánchez Grau noted that "2024 has been a very favourable year for the global tourism industry, which has recovered its pre-pandemic flow of tourists". She added that "the leadership of Spanish tourism has been consolidated by registering in 2024 a tourist expenditure of 126 billion euros, 16% more than in 2023, and the arrival of 94 million international visitors, 10% more". She pointed out these data ratify that "we are moving towards a more diversified tourism project, in line with the policies promoted by the government and with the public-private collaboration strategy".

Madrid, world capital of tourism with FITUR

Héctor Coronel, Director of Tourism at Madrid City Council, emphasised that "this week Madrid becomes the world capital of tourism, with a record number of countries participating in FITUR". In addition, Madrid "is also the capital of culture with some of the most important museums, theatres, festivals and concerts; the best destination in the world for congresses and conventions; the second most important city in hotel investment, especially in luxury hotels; and the world capital of audiovisual, sport and gastronomy; furthermore, we have climbed from 47th to 2nd place as the best urban destination in the world".

Arancha Priede, General Manager of Trade Fair and Congress Business at IFEMA Madrid, explained that the current edition of FITUR "confirms not only the tourism industry's capacity for transformation, but also its drive and determination to continue growing in a sustainable way". She added that "Latin America is a priority in our strategy, as demonstrated by the countless synergies we have built up over the years with countries in the region". Thus, "at this edition we have the official participation of more than 20 Latin American countries, highlighting the special presence of Brazil as a FITUR 2025 Partner".

CIMET is an annual conference organised by the NEXO Group, held under the honorary presidency of King Felipe VI, in collaboration with CEOE, IFEMA MADRID and FITUR. Ministers from 14 Ibero-American countries took part in this morning's meeting: Argentina, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Chile, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Puerto Rico and Uruguay, who explained the tourism investment opportunities in each of these countries. In addition, the President of CIMET and the NEXO Group, and Director of InvesTurAmerica, Eugenio de Quesada, presented the Digital Platform for the Internationalisation of Spanish Tourism SMEs in Ibero-America "investuramerica.com".

Spain: a magnet for tourists, investment and talent

The inauguration of CIMET was also attended by business representatives, such as Juan Molas, President of the Spanish Tourism Board, who highlighted "the great relationship between Spain and Latin American countries", and encouraged them to "look even more strongly towards Europe and Spain".

Jorge Marichal, President of the Spanish Confederation of Hotels and Tourist Accommodation, said that "tourism plays a fundamental role in society, the economy and sustainability", adding that "Spain is a country that attracts not only tourists, but also investment and talent". In his opinion, "tourism is an engine of economic and social growth shared by Spain and Latin America"; and "we must make progress in promoting key areas such as sustainability, innovation and talent retention" between the two regions.

Carlos Garrido de la Cierva, President of the Spanish Confederation of Travel Agencies (CEAV), expressed his conviction that, after the period of crisis, travel agencies "have re-emerged", as demonstrated by the latest revenue figures for the sector, which ascend to 30 billion euros. He explained "the importance of the Ibero-American market for agencies".

Víctor Moneo, Director of Alliances and Strategic Agreements at Grupo Iberia, recalled that "CIMET has become the traditional starting signal for FITUR, one of the major events in the tourism sector every year". He also reported that "more than 80% of the 94 million tourists who visited Spain in 2024 arrived in our country by air, which highlights aviation as one of the main enablers of an industry that contributes greatly to the economic development of countries and helps to generate prosperity in the different communities". 

Juan Carlos González, CEO and managing director of Ávoris Corporación Empresarial, said that "the group's commitment to Ibero-America is total, and we are increasingly strong as an issuing group of tourists linking Europe with Ibero-America". He also put the focus on "innovation and sustainability".

Miguel Mirones, President of the Institute for Spanish Tourism Quality and Sustainability (ICTES), made himself available to the tourism industry as a whole to contribute to boosting its "quality and sustainability", two elements "that should govern all its policies and strategies".

Rodrigo Esponda, Managing Director of Los Cabos Tourism Board (Baja California Sur), spoke about the interesting proposals offered by this destination. He also added that "Spain is going through a period of sustained growth and travellers from this country are looking for sophisticated experiences, in which culture and contact with nature are very important".

Quality and sustainability

During the conference, several panel discussions were held with the participating Ibero-American Tourism Ministers, including Daniel Scioli, Minister of Tourism of Argentina; Juan Oswaldo Manrique Camargo, Deputy Minister of Tourism of Colombia; William Rodríguez López, Minister of Tourism of Costa Rica; Juan Carlos García, Minister of Tourism of Cuba; Verónica Pardo Lagos, Deputy Minister of Tourism of Chile; Mateo Julián Estrella Durán, Minister of Tourism of Ecuador; Morena Valdez, Minister of Tourism of El Salvador; Harris Whitbeck, Minister of Tourism of Guatemala; Yadira Gómez, Minister of Tourism of Honduras; Anasha Campbell, Minister of Tourism of Nicaragua; Gloria de León, Minister of Tourism of Panama; Angie Duarte de Melillo, Minister of Tourism of Paraguay; Willianette Robles Cancel, Minister of Tourism of Puerto Rico; and Eduardo Sanguinetti, Minister of Tourism of Uruguay.

One of the discussions focused on ‘Hotels and Accommodation’ and was led by Juan Molas; another on ‘Travel Agencies’, by Carlos Garrido; and a third on ‘Quality and Sustainability’, which was moderated by Miguel Mirones. Another highlight was the presenting the CIMET 2025 gold and diamond insignia to Internationalisation in Ibero-America.

 

The closing ceremony of CIMET 2025 was attended by Carlos Daniel Martínez, Executive Vice President of IFEMA Madrid, and Juan Cierco Jiménez de Parga, President of the CEOETourism Council, as well as Juan Molas, Carlos Garrido de la Cierva, Víctor Moneo, Rodrigo Esponda, Miguel Mirones and Eugenio de Quesada, among other noteworthy guests.