Info & FAQs

Spain’s Sustainability Day  

Useful Information  

We are excited to welcome you on Wednesday, 17 April 2024! Below you’ll find all the information you need to know ahead of the day. The event is in Covent Garden at The Conduit (6 Langley St, London WC 2H 9JA). For further questions, contact the team at Spain@wearelotus.co.uk

Agenda

Download the full agenda here

Conference:

• 12:00 - 13:00: Registration: soft drinks & working lunch available 
• 13:00 - 13:05: Welcome from Manuel Butler, UK Director of the Spanish Tourist Office in London 
• 13:10 - 13:20: Foreword by Miguel Sanz, General Director of Turespaña
• 13:20: Panel 1 - Circular Economy
  • Moderator: Richard Hammond, CEO, Green Traveller. Panelists: Gabriel Llobera Ramis, Marketing and Communications Manager, Garden Hotels, Nadine Pinto, Global Sustainability Manager, The Travel Corporation (TTC), Carol Rose, Senior Sustainability Manager, ABTA, Coralía Pino, Head of Sustainability, ITH (Instituto Tecnológico Hotelero)
• 14:05: Sponsor Welcome by Leire Bilbao, Director, Visit Benidorm
• 14:12: Keynote speaker: Nejc Jus, Head of Research, WTTC 
• 14:35: Panel 2 - Biodiversity - Impacts and Interventions
  • Moderator: Richard Hammond, CEO, Green Traveller. Panelists: Terry Brown, Destinations Programme Manager, The Travel Foundation, Dylan Walker, Wildlife Tourism Expert, Wildlife Heritage Areas, Blanca Pérez Sauquillo, SG Marketing, Turespaña, José Marí Olano, Councilor for Large Projects, Valencia Green Capital, Zina Bencheikh, Managing Director, Intrepid
• 15:15: Coffee break 
• 15:30: Sponsor Welcome by Susanna Sciacovelli, Director of Demand and Hospitality, Tourism Mallorca 
• 16:15: Panel 3 - Accessibility & Inclusivity  
  • Moderator: Meera Dattani, Senior Travel Editor, Travel & Culture. Panelists: Angus Drummond, CEO, Limitless Travel, Alberto Gutiérrez Alberca, Traffic and Mobility Delegate, Valladolid, Miguel Carrasco, Director of Tourism, Impulsa Igualdad, Susan Deer, Director of Industry Relations, ABTA
• 16:22: Keynote speaker: Charlie Cotton, Founder, Ecollective Carbon
• 16:45: Closing remarks from Manuel Butler, UK Director of the Spanish Tourist Office in London 
• 17:00: Closure of day summit. Conference guests are welcomed to The Conduit rooftop to network ahead of the Spain's Sustainable Media Awards and to enjoy interactive experiences offering a "taste of Spain"

Media Awards:

• 17:00: Media registration: welcome drinks & networking 
• 18:30: Special Recognition Award by Wanderlust 
• 18:40 - 19:30: Spain Sustainable Media Awards sponsored by Región de Valencia & Mallorca 
• 19:30 - 21:00: Spanish style canapes & drinks bringing a taste of Región de Valencia & Mallorca. Event finishes

Transport

From London:

By Tube

• Covent Garden on the Picadilly Line (2 minute walk)
• Leicester Square on the Northern and Picadilly Line (5 minute walk)
• Tottenham Court Road on the Jubilee, Northern and Central line (10 minute walk)

By Bus

• The following bus routes stop near The Conduit: 139, 168, 172, 91, 98, 9.

From outside London:

• The Gatwick Express non-stop train service to Victoria runs every 15 minutes with a journey time of 30 minutes.
• The Heathrow express non-stop train service to London Paddington runs every 15 minutes with a journey time of 15 minutes.
• Charing Cross is the closest National Rail Station. Available routes can be found here. 

From Spain:

By Train

• It is possible to travel from Spain to London in a day via Paris. Take a TGV high speed train from Barcelona to Gare de Lyon, Paris. From there, transfer Gare du Nord, Paris, for the Eurostar to London St Pancras. More information can be found here.

By Air

• Several airlines including Vueling, EasyJet, Ryanair, Jet2, and Iberia regularly fly from Spanish cities to London Airports. 
  • Your most convenient route can be found here.

Accommodation:

If you are planning to stay overnight for the conference, London has many great options. The Spanish Tourist Office UK has secured special rates for delegates of the Spain Sustainability Day (between 16^th to 18^th) in the following Spanish hotel chains:

• The Caesar, Derby Hotels
  • Located in Paddington, 25 minutes from the venue via the Jubilee line, the Caesar is a charming boutique hotel comprised of Victorian style buildings.
  • Attendees receive a 5% discount by typing in the code SPAINDAY. 
  • The reservation is subject to availability and the rates available rate the moment the reservation is done. 
  • More information on receiving the discount is available here. 
• H10 London Waterloo, H10 Hotels
  • Located in Waterloo, 20 minutes from the venue via bus, the H10 London Waterloo is a hotel with unique architecture in asymmetric shapes and an elegant interior design.
  • Attendees receive a 15% discount by typing in the code SPAINDAY in the website’s search engine.  
  • Attendees will be able to select the room type, meal plan and rate they would like to book, and process the bookings themselves. Availability will be based on available rooms. In case of no availability, sales will be closed.

Food:

There are various sustainable food and drink options in Covent Garden. Suggestions include:

• Jikoni, Marylebone
  • Jikoni in London was the first independent restaurant to become carbon neutral in 2021.
• Frog, Covent Garden
  • Frog is built on a commitment to minimising waste in the food industry. Chef and owner, Adam Handling, promotes educating people on how to eat sustainably without compromising on flavour.  
• Spring Somerset House, Covent Garden
  • Spring’s Scratch menu is a separate menu made from ingredients that would otherwise go to waste, to raise awareness about food waste in the restaurant industry. It changes daily based on available ingredients.

Please kindly email spain@wearelotus.co.uk for any questions or concerns.  

Sponsors:

Destination Sponsors:

Spain Sustainability Day is proudly co-sponsored by destination sponsors Visit Benidorm and the Mallorca Tourism Board.

Sustainable development plans in Benidorm have been in place for many years and set a high standard for urban resource management in Spain. The city’s water management is an excellent example of this: historically, Benidorm has had significant water scarcity issues. However, due to investments over time, today 18% less water is consumed compared to 25 years ago, despite the fact that the resident population is 40% higher and that tourist overnight stays have grown by 26%. Regarding social sustainability, Benidorm approved its first Accessibility Plan in 2017 to make urban spaces more friendly to those with accessibility needs. Infrastructure changes enacted so far include the implementation of acoustic and vibrating traffic lights and installing flat platforms across over 40 streets and avenues.

As one of the most visited destinations for over-night stays in the world, Mallorca is continuing to work towards achieving responsible tourism in order to improve the island's coexistence. The Mallorca Responsible Tourism Commitment manifesto, declared in November 2023, highlights the island’s commitment to embrace a more sustainable and responsible future and communicates key responsible travel messaging to holidaymakers in Mallorca. The latest sustainable project, funded from tourism to the island, involves a new pedestrianised path between Santa Maria and Inca, creating a 2.7km route for cyclists to safely enjoy the island.

Coffee Break Sponsor:

Spain Sustainability Day is sponsored by coffee break sponsor Garden Hotels. 

Garden Hotels is as a Spanish hotel group for families and adults in Mallorca, Minorca, Ibiza, Huelva and Punta Cana. They are the first hotel chain in Europe to hold the Aenor Circular Economy Strategy Certificate,  received for the last two years (2021 and 2022), as well as the Best Sustainable Tourism Project at the Tourism Innovation Awards 2021. They are pioneers in the circular economy, established around solid values based on innovation, hospitality, commitment, enthusiasm, trust, quality and, of course, sustainability.