SUR in English is not new to the World Travel Market in London. Twenty five years ago, delegates attended the event, then in its fifth year, taking note of the immense potential of the fair held in the capital city of the main source of Spain’s incoming tourism market. Spain was already British holidaymakers’ favourite destination and SUR in English had been created to serve the rapidly expanding residential tourism sector, so it was only a small step for those first SUR in English delegates to decide to take a stand at the World Travel Market. Twenty five years on, the World Travel Market has grown almost beyond recognition, but the SUR in English stand continues to be the centre of attention for everyone with an interest in tourism in southern Spain.

This year being the newspaper’s 25th anniversary year, the annual SUR in English dinner which has become a feature of World Travel Market week in London was planned to pay special tribute to Spain’s tourism sector, and was held in the magnificent Ironmongers’ Hall (a spectacular setting also chosen as a backdrop for some of the first ‘Harry Potter’ films). Guests included the President of the Junta de Andalucía, José Antonio Griñán; Secretary of State for Transport, Concepción Gutiérrez; the head of Tourism at the Junta, Luciano Alonso; the Director General of Turespaña, Antonio Bernabé; the Spanish Ambassador in London, Carles Casajuana; Euro MP and former Development Minister Magdalena Álvarez; the President of the Malaga Provincial Government and of the Costa del Sol Tourist Board, Salvador Pendón; the Mayors of Malaga, Francisco de la Torre; Seville, Sánchez Monteserín; Marbella, Ángeles Muñoz; Mijas, Antonio Sánchez; Antequera, Ricardo Millán, and Benalmádena, Enrique Moya; the Presidents of the Chamber of Commerce, Jerónimo Pérez Casero, and of the hoteliers’ association Aehcos, José Carlos Escribano; the Director of Spanish Airports, Javier Marín, numerous tourism councillors from the Costa del Sol, and other tourism professionals and businesspeople. Vocento, the multimedia group of which SUR in English is a part, was represented by its CEO, José Manuel Vargas, and its regional deputy director for Local Media, Juan Soto. The Director General of Prensa Malagueña, Jesús Alloza, and the Editor in Chief of SUR, José Antonio Frías, hosted the event along with other SUR in English and SUR representatives.

To commemorate the past 25 years of collaboration between the newspaper and Spanish institutions in the promotion of tourism, sculptures in the form of Malaga’s lighthouse were presented by SUR to Turismo Andaluz and Turespaña (the Spanish and Andalusian tourist boards, respectively); the Spanish Embassy in London; the Costa del Sol Tourist Board; the Tourism Department at Malaga City Hall; Aehcos; and the Malaga Chamber of Commerce.

The ceremonies were then turned on their head when the President of the Junta de Andalucía, José Antonio Griñán, congratulated SUR in English on its 25th anniversary and made a presentation, on behalf of the Junta and in recognition of 25 years of support for the tourism sector, of an original statue by Malaga sculptor Jose Seguiri, which was accepted by Vocento’s CEO, José Manuel Vargas. The tributes to SUR in English during the evening were constant, and were followed at the stand at Excel with another, when tourism professionals from the Costa del Sol presented SUR in English with a 25th anniversary gift.