Rincón de la Victoria launches smart tourism data platform

The councillor for tourism, Antonio José Martín, explained: “Until now, much of the data we used to monitor the destination’s development was spread across different tools, sources and administrative bodies. This platform allows us to integrate and cross-reference this data to gain a more comprehensive picture of what is happening in our municipality and make more informed decisions.”

The mayor of Rincón de la Victoria, Francisco Salado, said: “This platform represents a step forward in the municipality’s digital transformation, as it enables us to turn the data generated by Rincón de la Victoria into useful information to help us plan more effectively. We are continuing to work towards establishing a modern, sustainable and smart tourist destination.”

The platform, developed by Innovasur, enables the collection, integration, storage, processing, visualisation and analysis of information from different sources and systems. In its initial phase it will mainly incorporate tourism and environmental data, although it is designed to gradually incorporate new sources and extend its use to other areas of local government.

The available indicators include data on climate, water consumption and the generation and types of waste, as well as trends throughout the year. The system also allows certain resources and services, such as the distribution of waste bins, to be mapped, thereby facilitating regional analysis.

This information makes it possible to identify periods of higher water consumption or waste generation and to analyse their possible relationship with factors such as seasonal tourism or population density in certain areas.

In the tourism sector, the platform brings together information on the number and nationality of travellers staying in tourist accommodation, visits to the main historical sites, and the activities of the tourist office. It also allows for the inclusion of data on visitor profiles, their motivations, the nature of their stay, their place of origin and their average spend.

In addition to this information, there is the localised data provided by Costa del Sol Tourism and Planning via its big data system, which includes indicators relating to tourism activity, employment and regional development.

The system is also designed to integrate data from other sources, such as transport routes and services, the use of audio guides at the Cueva del Tesoro and Villa Antiopa, and the activity generated by gamified tourist routes.

One of the strategic elements of the project is its interoperability with the Smart Destinations Platform promoted by SEGITTUR, which enables the municipality to expand its technological and analytical capabilities. This link will help to deepen visitors’ knowledge, improve tourism promotion initiatives and move towards a more segmented offering tailored to different types of visitor.

“We want data to become a useful tool for gaining a better understanding of our destination and guiding our tourism initiatives,” said Martín. “This information will enable us to analyse trends, gain a better understanding of our visitors and move towards a more efficient, sustainable and future-proof management system.”

The Smart Data Platform has been designed as a scalable, cross-cutting technological infrastructure, capable of incorporating new sources of information and gradually expanding its use by other municipal departments.

In June 2025, Rincón de la Victoria was one of only two destinations in Malaga province to receive funding earmarked for the roll-out of technological platforms and digital solutions in the destinations of the Smart Tourist Destinations Network (DTI), as part of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan (PRTR) and funded by the European Union through the Next Generation EU funds.

The grant, amounting to 253,312 euros, has enabled the implementation of the project ‘Rincón de la Victoria: full of life, smart and connected’, on which various municipal departments have worked in a cross-departmental capacity, including tourism, new technologies, environmental sustainability and grants.

In addition to the smart data platform, the project includes a tourist information service via Alexa, offering voice-activated enquiries about local attractions, places of interest, events and leisure activities, as well as the creation of geolocated audio recordings in which local residents share stories and memories linked to different areas of Rincón de la Victoria.

This initiative joins other measures undertaken by the town hall to drive forward the transformation of tourism in the municipality, such as the renewal of its membership of the Smart Tourism Destinations Network, the 2024 Digital Tourist Award won by Villa Antiopa in the immersive technologies category, the Tourism Sustainability Plan and the new Strategic Tourism Plan.

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