StartUps Festival Marbella: the first tourism hackathon on the Costa del Sol
StartUps Festival Marbella brings together entrepreneurs and developers at Marbella Social Hub to build the future of tourism on the Costa del Sol. Over two and a half weeks, ideas turn into real prototypes with the support of mentors, 20 top developers from Málaga and €3,000 in prizes. 🚀
Marbella is getting ready to become the hub of tourism innovation with StartUps Festival Marbella, the first tourism hackathon on the Costa del Sol. If you have a business idea related to tourism, restaurants, hotels, sports, environment, booking systems or payment apps, this festival is for you.
You don’t need to be a developer:
👉 20 top developers and mentors from Málaga will help you turn your idea into a real prototype.
👉 You’ll work with experts in AI, product and business.
👉 You’ll have the chance to win €3,000 in prizes and gain visibility with investors.
Kickstart – Friday 14th: share your idea
The festival starts on Friday 14th with the Kickstart event at Marbellup:
4:30 PM – Welcome, gift packs and group introductions.
Motivational talk, mentor introductions and an inspiring session on Business Model Canvas.
First group work session to shape your idea.
8:30 PM – Healthy networking dinner included, to meet people and start building your team.
It’s a friendly, open event: come with a clear idea or just a problem you’d like to solve. Together, we’ll turn it into something real.
15th–28th: online project development
From Saturday 15th to Friday 28th, teams work online:
You co-develop your idea with your team from anywhere.
You build a working prototype and refine your business model.
You get support from festival mentors, depending on their availability.
This is where ideas start to look like real products.
Friday 28th: focus and investors
Friday 28th is the final in-person work block:
4:30 PM – Focus session and project clean-up.
Group work, investor briefing preparation and check points with mentors.
Meal break and more work on prototype, pitch and presentation.
8:30 PM – Healthy networking dinner to share insights and get ready for the grand finale.
It’s the perfect day to align team + focus + investors and get your project ready for takeoff.
Saturday 29th: investor breakfast, awards & live concert 🎉
The festival closes on Saturday 29th:
8:30 AM – 🥐 Investor breakfast, group work and lunch break.
Elevator pitch rehearsals so you can present your idea clearly and in just a few minutes.
6:30 PM – 🏆 Awards ceremony for the most outstanding projects.
9:30 PM – 🎶 Dinner & live concert with food truck, the perfect way to celebrate and network.
Ready to join?
✅ No technical background required.
✅ You can join even if your Spanish isn’t perfect – with basic English or Spanish we’ll match you with a mentor you can connect with.
✅ It’s a real opportunity to test your idea, meet great people and plug into the Costa del Sol tech ecosystem.
📩 Sign up now and bring your idea to StartUps Festival Marbella. The best time to start is today. 🚀