MARBELLA – British Prime Minister Boris Johnson took a week-long holiday in Benahavis near Marbella. Also, the area was the scene of two weeks of shooting a Netflix series. Both events have undoubtedly resulted in a large flow of Brits to this popular holiday coast in southern Spain.
Entrepreneurs are delighted with the fantastic publicity effect on the area these two events have had. They have helped save the end of the season. The effect was further enhanced because the school holidays also take place on these days.
Increase in British visitors
Various Spanish media like SUR and Preferente.com report on the sharp increase in the number of British visitors. Airport employees report the number of people arriving in Málaga recently from UK airports is greater than the number returning.
Laura Arce, for the municipality in charge of promoting tourism in Marbella, told local press that the impact of Johnson and also of the Netflix series is indisputable. She added that it is traditional for something like this to happen. Furthermore, she recalls other visits in the past that had an immediate positive effect on visits and bookings.
Highly dependent on the British market
Local businesses have welcomed the increase in the number of Britons with relief. As is the case for Spanish destinations such as Ibiza, Menorca, or Benidorm, the Costa del Sol is highly dependent on the British market. It has so far not responded well to the improvement in the coronavirus figures in Spain.
Until October 4, any traveller returning from Spain, even if he or she had been vaccinated, had to undergo a PCR test before leaving Spain and another within two days of arriving in Britain. These testing obligations normally entail higher costs and must be added to the cost of the air travel to Spain.
The Crown
At the end of September, The Crown’s crew returned to Marbella to shoot the fifth season of the famous series in the famous Puerto Banús marina and in the exclusive urbanisation of La Zagaleta. Also for the 3rd and 4th seasons, recordings were already made in the southern Spanish coastal town for the same series.
