Looking back over 20 years of Almeria's sustainable tourism model

In 2005 Almeria hosted one of the most important sporting events in its history: the Mediterranean Games. Beyond the competition, the medals and the parade of international delegations, the event meant an unprecedented urban development project for the city: the Villa Mediterránea de El Toyo. Conceived as accommodation for athletes and delegations, its design was as ambitious as it was unique. Today, two decades later, El Toyo is considered a model of sustainability and tourism development.

The origin of El Toyo is directly linked to high-impact sporting events. At the end of the 1990s, when Almeria was chosen to host the 15th Mediterranean Games, the city hall and the Andalusian regional government promoted the development of an 'Olympic Village' like the one built for Barcelona '92 that would fulfil a double objective: to serve as accommodation during the event and to be converted afterwards into a modern, functional and sustainable residential area.

The site chosen was a large plot of 260 hectares in the eastern part of the city, next to the Retamar area and just a few metres from Cabo de Gata-Níjar natural park. The approach was ambitious from the outset. A low-density urban model, with 80 per cent of the land destined for green spaces, bioclimatic housing, hotels, sports and health facilities and an extensive network of cycle paths and pedestrian areas.

The first buildings in the Villa Mediterránea were the 351 bioclimatic properties that housed the athletes during the games. Spread over 19 blocks, these homes were designed by a team of architects led by Margarita de Luxán and Ricardo Tendero. They were equipped with solar thermal panels, cross-ventilation, home automation, fibre optics, communal gardens, communal swimming pools and sports facilities.

From the outset, the model was committed to energy efficiency and landscape integration. The buildings had a maximum of three storeys and the design was adjusted to the Almeria climate to minimise energy consumption. It was one of the first residential developments in Spain to comprehensively incorporate environmental sustainability and efficiency criteria.

El Toyo not only had in mind housing the athletes for the Mediterranean Games. Its development also included an 18-hole golf course, a promenade with gardens and an artificial lagoon, a network of pedestrian and cycle paths, sports areas, a central square for public use (Plaza del Mar) and five four-star hotels with a total of 1,100 rooms.

Three of these hotels were built specifically for the event and two more were opened in the summer of 2005. In total, the development had the capacity to accommodate more than 2,000 people, covering both the one-off demand of the games and future tourism projections.

In addition, El Toyo high resolution hospital of was built, a pioneering health centre at the time, which today continues to be a reference, with more than 190 professionals and specialised medical services.

El Toyo was so innovative that just two years after the games it received the National Prize for Sustainable Architectural and Urban Culture, awarded by the Civitas Nova Forum. The jury highlighted the application of renewable energy systems, waste collection, the pedestrian planning of the space and the balance between the built and the natural areas. In 2007 El Toyo was recognised as a reference in the field of bioclimatic architecture.

Difficulties after the event 

However, after the glitter of the games, in 2008, barely three years after its inauguration, the development was beginning to show signs of stagnation. Some of the hotels closed in the off-season due to lack of demand, Plaza del Mar remained unused and the multi-purpose building - planned for conferences and cultural events - never got off the ground. Part of the failure was explained by the lack of planning in the post-games era: there was no clear plan to revitalise the area once the event was over. The beach was not fully developed, access was limited and there was little commercial activity. The Villa Mediterránea, designed as a symbol of modernity, faced the harsh reality of a seasonal and undiversified tourist market. And also of course the global financial crisis that hit the entire western world between 2008 and 2012 and in particular Spain.

This was compounded by legal disputes with some developers, such as Ecovi, which claimed more than 400,000 euros from the city hall in 2013 for non-payments related to the maintenance of public spaces and common areas.

However, El Toyo has undergone a process of great revaluation in recent years, driven by the change in the tourism paradigm and the rise of active and sustainable tourism. Almeria city hall is committed to turning the development into a responsible tourism destination, supported by European funds and the reactivation of the promenade and Plaza del Mar.

In 2023, the city hall announced an investment of three million euros from European Next Generation funds to revitalise the area. Commercial spaces have been reopened, open-air sports areas have been set up and the connection with the natural park has been improved, promoting activities such as hiking, cycling and water sports. The Sun&Blue Tourism Innovation Congress which took place in Almeria has also been a boost to position El Toyo as a smart tourism laboratory, with technologies applied to destination management and environmental monitoring.

Today, some of the hotels have reopened and there is an established residential community. Its proximity to the airport, the natural park and the city, together with the privileged climate, have made the area one of the most popular for outdoor sports.

Despite the difficulties, the development has managed to maintain its founding principles: a commitment to landscape, accessibility and respectful urban design. The housing continues to be an example of energy efficiency, and the public facilities continue to be one of the most complete on the Andalusian coast.

El Toyo's great challenge continues to be to establish itself as a year-round tourist destination, but it is working on attracting events, conferences and cultural activities to allow this to happen. The city hall is also considering public-private collaboration formulas to attract investment and put into use some underused infrastructures, such as the conference centre and some of the empty plots of land.

Twenty years later, the Villa Mediterránea de El Toyo is a complex example of what a major sporting event can mean for a city. From being a development that was built to host the Mediterranean Games, it has gone through phases of splendour, abandonment and reinvention. Today it is steadily moving towards a model of sustainability that seeks to connect sport, tourism and quality of life. If it manages to establish itself as a benchmark in responsible tourism, El Toyo will be able to proudly claim its legacy: that of having been more than just accommodation for athletes, but a city designed for living.