The Ministry of Tourism reports that the Travel Bonus program could mobilize up to €25 million for the Valencian Community this year. The initiative, which aims to smooth out the tourist flow in the off-season, has already drawn more than 200,000 applications. Benidorm and Calp rank among the top destinations.
Statistics released this Thursday show that Turisme Comunitat Valenciana recorded 5,336 travel reservations in the first half of the year within the initial period of the 2024 Travel Bonus program, covering January 16 to June 3, with Holy Week excluded.
In this edition, the average supporting amount per booking stood at 605.78 euros. This enabled mobilization of 3,232,447 euros in the first month of the year for trips concentrated in the low season across the Valencian tourism sector. The forecast anticipates more than €25 million in funding for the sector during 2024.
Nuría Montes, a council member in this district, noted that the booking rate, closely mirroring the previous edition, reinforces the Travel Bonus as a tool to desensitize seasonality and stimulate tourist employment in the Valencian Community.
Montes added that the expansion of the Travel Bonus has spillover effects into other sectors of the economy, including commerce and transportation, so its indirect impact reaches far beyond tourism. She even suggested that benefits could rise three to four times its current level.
According to the tourism leadership, nearly 53,000 users and 15,000 bonuses had already been distributed, with the figure increasing as new shipments arrive weekly.
Montes emphasized that the edition has been well received and reiterated that the demand rate remains very high this year, noting that more than 120,000 appointment requests were recorded in the program’s initial hours, along with a current total of over 205,892 applications.
To access this support from the Generalitat, applicants must be of legal age and registered in the Community. Registrations began on January 2 and will continue until the final date, with 2024’s program running through November 30.
Candidates applying for the Travel Bonus in 2024 must opt for a stay of at least three consecutive nights. They may choose to receive a 50% discount on the reservation amount, up to a maximum of 350 euros.
Travel Bonus 2024 User Profile
Looking at the profile of travelers benefiting from the 2024 Travel Bonus and based on the results from the first month, lodging remains the preferred choice, with hotel stays comprising a large share of the total. The average payout for January bookings is over 605 euros.
Camping follows with about sixteen percent of bookings, rural accommodations account for around nine percent, and tourist apartments and houses represent roughly five percent of the total during the initial month.
The peak travel period appears to be May, followed by March and April, which posted substantial booking activity in the early months of the year.
In this edition, a total of 874 companies participate in the program. About 35% are travel agencies, 31% are hotels, and more than 19.5% operate in rural accommodation. The most popular destinations for 2024 include Benidorm, Calp, Peñíscola, Elche, Altea, Valencia, Morella, Gandía, Denia, and Alicante.
The Travel Bonus budget for this edition starts at 12.5 million euros. In the last edition, which corresponds to 2023 and allocated 15 million euros, a total of 41,997 reservations were recorded with 54,700 free codes issued.