Spain has 579 "blue flag" beaches in 2017

A total of 579 Spanish beaches along with 100 harbors will be able to fly the blue flag which confirms their excellent state of preservation, safety and the high level of services on offer to visitors, it was confirmed on Tuesday.

The announcement, which means Spain once again leads the world in its number of "blue flag beaches", was made by the Spanish Association for Environmental Education and Consumers (ADEAC).

Spain will have 7 less beaches with a blue flag classification than in 2016, due to the increase in requirements in the issue of water purification from nearby residential areas, water quality or the lack of lifeguards.

But the ADEAC President, Jose Ramon Sanchez, qualified the results as a "great success" for Spain, as 504 kilometers of the country's coastline has been given the blue flag rating after meeting demands on issues such as hygiene, sanitary conditions, safety, accessibility, information for visitors and the prevision of lifeguards.

The Community of Valencia on the east coast of Spain leads the number of beaches with a blue flag with 129 given the rating, while Galicia (north-west Spain) has 113, the Catalan region, 95 and the southern community of Andalusia 90.

The average time for evacuation from a blue flag beach in Spain to a medical center is 9 minutes, while 30 percent of the beaches have qualified nursing staff on hand and 82 percent have a defibrillator to give rapid help to possible heart attack victims.

Last season saw 75 million tourists visit Spain, and many of them came to visit the country's beaches.

Spanish Secretary of State for Tourism, Matilde Asian, welcomed Tuesday's news by saying the numbers showed Spain was an "indisputable leader" in world tourism, and that the number of clean and safe beaches had been a major factor in the nation's success as a tourist destination. Endit