The Andalucía Tourist Board (Turismo Andaluz) in conjunction with the International Association of Golf Tour Operators (IAGTO) staged an event in May at Villa Padierna Resort with the aim of strengthening the promotion of golf tourism to all golf destinations within the region.

Over 50 IAGTO golf tour operators from 17 countries met with 60 golf resorts, golf courses, hotels and other golf tourism suppliers from the Costa del Sol, Huelva, Almería, Cadiz, Seville, Córdoba and Granada at the inaugural IAGTO Andalucía Trophy  from 11-13 May 2015 in Villa Padierna Golf Resort, Costa del Sol.

With the 2015/16 golfing season just five months away, the timing was designed to arm Europe’s leading golf tour operators with a wider range of great value offers for golf holidays to Andalucía, Europe’s most popular golf destination.

IAGTO chief executive, Peter Walton, said “IAGTO has enjoyed a close working relationship with the tourist boards and private sector of Andalucía for almost two decades, but this event is significant in that it demonstrates the importance that the Andalucía Tourist Board attaches to the golf tourism sector. For Andalucía golf travel is much more than a niche market with golfers being influential in driving all forms of tourism to the region, including of course holidays where golf is the primary purpose of travel.”

In explaining why such an event is needed for what could be considered to be a well-known destinations, Walton added “Despite its position as the most visited golf destination in Europe, Andalucía includes many great golf destinations that are yet to be discovered by the vast majority of golf travellers, from the desert landscapes of Almería to the lush natural beauty of Huelva, teaming with bird and marine life. Andalucía is also home to an array of truly unforgettable ‘city golf experiences’ where visitors can immerse themselves in the history and culture of Granada, Córdoba, Málaga, Seville and Cádiz and still play golf every day at a variety of nearby courses.

“Just as importantly this event provides golf tour operators with the time to develop new offers for even the most established golf resorts of Costa del Sol and beyond.”

The IAGTO Andalucía Trophy comprised a series of networking functions, destination briefings and a full day’s workshop in addition to the trophy itself - a bespoke golf tournament at the Villa Padierna Resort designed to test the on-course skills of operators and suppliers to see if they were a match for their undoubted talent in creating great value golf packages.

Andalucía has the greatest concentration of golf courses in continental Europe.

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