Torremolinos hotel receives tourist award for 'half a century as an icon of the Costa del Sol'
La Barracuda was founded by Federico De Lucchi in 1975 and it is closely linked with the Rockin'n Race Jamboree festival, one of the most important such events in Europe
Hotel La Barracuda, one of the silhouettes that defines the skyline of La Carihuela, has received the recognition of Turista de Honor 2025, a distinction awarded by Torremolinos as the establishment, the result of the De Lucchi family’s vision, celebrates its 50th anniversary.
The venue for the presentation of this award was the accommodation itself, as part of the World Tourism Day programme. The event was attended by the mayor, Margarita del Cid; the delegate of tourism of the regional government, Carlos García; Esperanza González Pazos, CEO of Turismo Costa del Sol; Manuel Cardeña, president of the association of municipalities of the western Costa del Sol, as well as businessmen, representatives and workers of the sector.
Hotel La Barracuda, founded in 1975 by Federico De Lucchi, currently has a team of almost 90 people and boasts renovated facilities. Its history is linked to the Rockin'n Race Jamboree festival, unique in Andalucía and one of the most important in Europe, dedicated to the rock and roll of the 1950s and '60s and which has be running for 31 years.
La Barracuda is also an example of the good work of a family business, with Federico De Lucchi and María Nieves López, his wife, at the helm, whose work has been continued by four of their five children. Of López, Del Cid highlighted "her unwavering support, unconditional love and patience".
"I would like to express my deep and sincere gratitude to the La Barracuda hotel and the De Lucchi family. Today you are the main protagonists; we have come together to celebrate you and to thank you publicly for what you represent for Torremolinos. Above all, we are paying tribute to the people and to the soul of a hotel establishment that is linked to the history and development of our town," she said.
Good figures
The celebration of World Tourism Day also served to highlight that in August Torremolinos was the leader in overnight stays in Andalucía, with almost 720,500, representing an increase of 6.3 per cent over the same month last year, as Del Cid pointed out.
Torremolinos also tops the list of overnight stays in Andalucía with 197,285 more than Seville, the second on the list. In addition, the average stay of tourists increased in August to 5.22 days, 0.29 more than in August last year.
In terms of visitors, Torremolinos closed August with 138,071, 691 more tourists than in the same month of 2024, with 82,831 foreign tourists, 4,051 more than last year, which represents an increase of 5.1 per cent.
By nationality, it received 23,926 tourists from the United Kingdom, 3,112 more than in August last year. French tourism ranked second in terms of international visitors with 8,328 people, followed by the Netherlands with 6,815 and Ireland with 6,614 tourists.
