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. 🚀