Rogelio Martínez González is since managing director of Expourense, the Foundation of Fairs and Exhibitions of Ourense, an entity that has completed 25 years dedicated to the international promotion of the potential of the Galician territory (Galicia - Spain) among which stand out sectors such as the thermalism.
It has an extensive professional career in which he has always been closely linked to the territory.
He was mayor of the thermal village of A Arnoia, in the province of Ourense, and also vice president of the Provincial Council of Ourense and territorial delegate of the Xunta de Galicia, entities from which, as well as from Expourense, he has worked to promote the primary sector of Ourense supporting actions that involve its exit to the international market and the increase of its innovative capacity.
As an expert in public management, he has been part of the advisory committee of Termatalia for several editions actively participating in professional actions of the fair as the International Meeting of Public Policies of Thermalism that has coordinated on numerous occasions, both when the fair was held in Ourense and in some of the venues it has had in Latin America.
As managing director of Expourense he also assumes the position of director of Termatalia, International Fair of Thermal Tourism, Health, and Wellness, one of the five international fairs of Tourism that are celebrated in our country and that are ratified by the Government of Spain.
This year 2022, at last, the Fair returns in face-to-face format and presents a program of the most "powerful": from 27 to 29 will be the International Congress of Thermal Tourism, there will be technical seminars and courses and from 29 to 30 will be the days of Termatalia.
What are your objectives and what type of public are the different conferences aimed at?
We hope that Termatalia will serve as a meeting point for the professionals of the international thermal sector after these hard years of the pandemic.
We always say that this appointment turns on three axes: business, formation, and professional training. The technical conferences turn Termatalia into a forum of formation and specialized training in which every year participate the most recognized experts of the different disciplines that thermalism includes.
This year we have 70 national and international speakers that also position Galicia and Ourense as a center of professional training in the field of thermalism.
Ourense becomes this week in the epicenter of world thermalism with the celebration of the Third International Congress of Thermal Tourism, of Termatalia itself, and of the National Congress of the Spanish Society of Medical Hydrology.
These are three very important, parallel, and complementary events, and I would like to highlight the excellent collaboration between the organizers of the three events to coordinate the participation of as many professionals as possible in all of them. The success of each of these meetings is the success of all of them.
The program of the Termatalia 2022 Professional Technical Days will address thermal water from different perspectives: tourism, heritage, scientific and legal.
In addition to the round tables on water organized by the Vice-Rectorate of the University of Vigo, the Termatalia conferences also include the first session of the Congress of the Society of Medical Hydrology that will take place on Friday afternoon, September 30. This session will have the participation of prestigious professionals of the world hydrology, many of them authentic gurus for the professionals of the sector as it is the case, to give only an example, of Professor Johan Lambeck of Switzerland, a world reference in aquatic therapy
These days will also include the presentation to tour operators and specialized press of those thermal destinations that bet for Termatalia as is the case of the own province of Ourense, of Uruguay or of the regions of Murcia and Extremadura that already are close collaborators of the fair, to which in this occasion are added the Viles Termals de Catalunya.
There will be other presentations aimed at professional audiences such as the one offered by Aqualia on "New trends in the management of water, energy, and minerals in balneotherapy" or the presentation of a pilot study on the effects of balneotherapy in patients with persistent COVID-19 in the Vila Termal de Caldes de Montbui.
These conferences are complemented by specific training courses on mineral waters and on thermal peloids and with the presentations of the latest studies and publications related to the sector as it is the case of the project "TERMAGAL" promoted by the Chair of Medical Hydrology of the University of Santiago de Compostela and Balnearios de Galicia.
This year will also be approaching Galicia's numerous international guests partners.
Which ones would you highlight? What are their value propositions?
Termatalia 2022 has the participation of 140 exhibitors from 25 countries.
Among the countries that have made a firm commitment to this edition is Uruguay, which has confirmed the presence at the fair of its Deputy Minister of Tourism, Remo Monzeglio, who will participate accompanied by a large delegation of thermal businessmen of this country has increased its interest and participation in Termatalia in this edition that will also count with the presence of the Vice Minister of Tourism of Panama and the Ministers of Tourism and Health of the province of La Rioja in Argentina.
At Termatalia 2022 will be presented examples of cities, regions, and countries that have decided to bet on health tourism as a revulsive to other more traditional tourism products in the territory.
Uruguay participates as one of the countries with more prominence and will present its resources located mostly in the departments of Salto and Paysandú, where the water of the hot springs comes from the Guaraní Aquifer System, which is the largest in South America, and constitutes one of the most important subway water resources on the planet, due to its dimensions, and the quality and temperature of the waters.
Within Europe we have the presence as an exhibitor of the European Association of Cities with Thermal Heritage - EHTTA, which represents 50 thermal cities of 17 countries, some of which as Sao Pedro do Sul (Portugal), Wiesbaden (Germany) or Spa (Belgium) will participate directly, as well as Hungary, so we will have the opportunity to learn directly from the great destinations of Europe. Spain for its part is excellently represented through the presence of Thermal Villas of the FEMP although some communities also participate in an outstanding way as is the case of Viles Termals de Catalunya, Region of Murcia, Tourism of Extremadura and, of course, Galicia and the province of Ourense, hosts of the event.
What do you think is the outlook for the wellness market now after the end of the pandemic?
The current trend in wellness tourism is coinciding, I believe, in all countries and is aimed at seeking the mind-body connection in unique, nearby accommodations in natural environments.
Until before the pandemic, wellness tourism represented a powerful lifestyle trend and a growing global industry with a bright future..., but then came the global pandemic and the COVID brought a halt to the growth of recent years, just as it did with tourism (and virtually everything) in general.
At the moment it seems that the market is recovering. We believe that demand will recover and grow, but the needs and demands of wellness tourist have changed.
The new post-covid tourist is now going to request high value-added experiences that promote a healthy lifestyle that combines leisure and relaxation, but without forgetting prevention and rehabilitation.
It will also look for places of proximity, within its own country, not very crowded and quiet in contact with nature and with a good gastronomic offer, and there where we believe that the thermalism has its great asset.
This situation can become a good opportunity to give to the balneology and the thermal waters the recognition that they deserve, for its influence in the strengthening of the immune system and also because it can facilitate the rehabilitation of those people who have already contracted the virus.
What do you hope to achieve with the Fair this year?
The first thing is to serve as a great meeting point for the international health tourism sector after this hiatus caused by the pandemic.
And although the training activities can be followed online from anywhere in the world, we have clearly opted for face-to-face and face-to-face attendance.
The truth is that the professionals of the sector have responded to our call and we hope that it will be a great edition that will also mean the return to normality.
Thermalism has shown in the last years its capacity of deseasonalization and differentiation but now, with the situation caused by the pandemic, it is placed as one of the tourist segments called to grow, as a consequence of the increasing interest of travelers for tourism of health and well-being.
We hope that the business figures obtained by our exhibitors as a result of their participation in Termatalia reflect precisely that, that we live in good times for thermalism.
