TravTalk India Online Magazine
Since stepping into her role as Director of Spain’s Tourism Office in India in September 2024, Elena Orland has championed a dynamic strategy to deepen Spain’s connection with India. Elena’s focus is now on diversifying India’s travel palette and promoting lesser-known regions like Extremadura and Navarra.
Hazel Jain
Elena Orland, Director, Tourism Office of Spain in India, has been busy since taking over the office in September 2024. This year, the NTO is planning multiple familiarisation trips for agents to Spain, the major one being a six-day MICE trip to Madrid and Seville. “The plan is to also promote lesser-known regions of Spain, such as Extremadura, Castilla y León, Castile La Mancha, Aragon, and Navarra. So, we will be having multiple famils and bring these regions closer to the Indian travellers. We also want the trade to discover off-the-beaten track itineraries in regions like Andalusia, Catalonia and Valencia,” says Orland.
She adds that one of the best ways to discover the destinations is to look for accommodation on Paradores – a public network of luxury hotels located in beautiful locations. There are currently almost a 100 paradores located throughout Spain. They usually have an average of 65 rooms, thus ensuring personal, quality customer service. More than half of them are located in historical monuments and buildings; and many others offer accommodation in national parks and outstanding natural spaces.
In addition, their restaurants serve a harmonious blend of traditional dishes alongside the latest culinary trends. All of this shows the commitment of paradores to sustainability and translates into a management model where the protection of historical and cultural heritage, care for the environment and the promotion of the local economy always prevail. In April 2025, the NTO will host a webinar on Paradores, as well as sustainable tourism products in Spain for trade.
India-Spain Dual Year
Last October, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Spanish President Pedro Sánchez declared 2026 as India-Spain Dual Year in order to strengthen bilateral relationship between the two countries in three main areas – Tourism, Culture and Artificial Intelligence (AI). The NTO will, therefore, plan a major roadshow and conduct other activities through the year. “Spain is one of the most visited countries in the world. In 2024, we had almost 100 million visitors in total with more than 226,000 visitors only from India. As compared to 2023, we are pretty much on track in terms of the number of arrivals. However, beyond the number of tourists, I would like to highlight that the per person tourism spending is about 2,600 euros by travellers from India, which is much higher than the overall average tourism spending per person in Spain. This data shows how Indian traveller recognises Spain for the value it offers,” Orland elaborates.
The number of solo women travellers to Spain is also growing, and Indian women are not an exception to this. “Solo travelling for women is more than a regular holiday. It’s about building confidence, about discovering new skills and about living on your own terms. Spain is a safe, friendly and warm country for solo travellers, and mainly for women. There are many experiences that women can enjoy like wine tasting courses, hiking, spiritual journeys, and of course shopping,” she adds.
