FITUR TRAVEL & TOURISM CONVENTION AT IFEMA, THE MADRID CONVENTION CENTRE  2018

Parador de Merida (Photo by Paradores via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA4.0)

by Margaux Cintrano

The capital of Spain, Madrid, started off 2018 on the right foot with two major conventions back to back:  FITUR, the worldwide yearly Travel & Tourism Convention held at IFEMA the week of January 17th   and the 16th anniversary of Madrid Fusion, the world-renowned Gastronomic and Wine Trade Fair which took place across the street from IFEMA, at the Palacio de Los Congresos.

This year´s FITUR programme was chock full of events, worldwide travel destinations and an amazingly outstanding dimension on wines and cuisine.

The visiting guest  trilogy from Asia were Japan, China and India,  with an enormous feast for the senses, and that presented fantastic exhibitions of their traditional cultures, art and gastronomy.

The most enticing tastings of tapas were served by many of the regional Spanish kiosks along with knowledgeable and English speaking travel agents.   

The best hotels of all budget types, and travel bureaus,  offered original tours, travel packages, deals, city escapes, and everything that one could imagine on their dream trip.

The spotlight was on the Paradores of Spain, the Iberian Peninsula, Italy, Romania, Hungary, Switzerland, Portugal, Spa Boutique Hotels, Russia, Japan, China, and India.

THE PARADOR HOTELS 1928 – 2018

The Parador mission,  visions and values encourage the Chain of Hotel establishments based on accessible, diverse and personalised quality service, with an obligation veering towards sustainable Spanish Tourism, natural environmental and historical regions,  and to act as a point of reference for the best in Spanish Tourism.

The Parador Hotel Network believes that a good trip is an overall experience that encompasses accommodation, gastronomy, activities in the destined zones of travel and to enjoy, the utmost factor ..

The Paradores offer Cultural Routes, Urban and Rural Routes,  Historical Routes, The Coastal Routes, The Route of the Monasteries, The Route of the Ancient Kingdoms, The Routes of the Mozarabs and Nasrids, Seasonal  Sport Routes, Gastronomic Routes, The Pyrenées Route, The Wine Routes, The Pilgrims Routes, and the Heritage Routes (www.parador.es — trilingual website: English, Spanish & French ).