Spain's Q for Tourism Quality and SICTED for hotels and small properties: what they are, what they cost, how to get them and whether they help on Google or AI (2026)

Updated: 10 November 2026

Many hoteliers ask us whether the «Q» or the SICTED badge is worth it and whether it will help them show up on Google or in AI assistants. We read the websites and documents of ICTE, UNE, AENOR, SICTED and the Andalusian regional government (links at the end). We only give what they say; anything we could not check is marked «not confirmed». This is not advice.

Summary

The Q for Tourism Quality (Q de Calidad Turística) is a guarantee mark of ICTE, the Spanish Tourism Quality Institute: a voluntary certification obtained by meeting your subsector's standard and passing audits.
For hotels and tourist apartments the standard in force is UNE-ISO 22483:2020. The old UNE 182001 has been cancelled since 22 July 2020 (UNE). For rural accommodation, UNE 183001:2009.
SICTED is something else: a destination-based good-practice programme of Spain's Secretariat of State for Tourism, supported by the FEMP (Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces). Passing the evaluation earns the «Compromiso de Calidad Turística» (Commitment to Tourism Quality) badge.
Cost: SICTED's official guide says its methodology costs nothing for tourism businesses. Q fees (joining, audit, brand-use fee) are in an ICTE fee document we could not read: not confirmed.
Google and AI: we found no official source saying the Q or SICTED improve your position on Google or in an AI assistant. There is no official evidence.

The Q for Tourism Quality: what it is

According to ICTE:

ICTE is a non-profit body set up in 2000; it handles tourism quality standards, certification, promotion of the mark and training.
The Q is a voluntary certification «guarantee mark»: a business obtains it by showing it meets the technical requirements of its standard and by running a customer-focused, continuous-improvement management system.
Audits are carried out by certification bodies; for example, AENOR states that it certifies tourism quality and carries out the audits (price on quotation only).
Certificate validity and frequency of follow-up audits: not confirmed (not on the pages we read; they are in ICTE's general certification rules, which we did not read).

Which standard applies to your property

According to ICTE's catalogue and the UNE database:

Hotels and tourist apartments: UNE-ISO 22483:2020 «Hotels. Service requirements» (in force). ICTE sells it for €94.38 and a hotel self-assessment for €96.80.
UNE 182001 (2008 version, amended in 2010) is cancelled and replaced by UNE-ISO 22483:2020. Some websites still cite «UNE 182001»: same family, but the standard in force is the ISO one.
Rural accommodation: UNE 183001:2009 (€89.54) and its self-assessment (€96.80).
Holiday rentals (viviendas de uso turístico): we found no specific Q standard in ICTE's catalogue; not confirmed.
Sustainability: ICTE also certifies against UNE-ISO 21401:2019 (sustainability management system for accommodation).

What the Q costs

What we could check:

Free on ICTE's website: product sheets, joining conditions, audit and certification flowcharts and the general certification rules.
Paid: the standard (€94.38 for hotels) and the self-assessment (€96.80), VAT included according to ICTE.
ICTE publishes «Joining, Documentation and Brand-Use Fees 2025» and «Minimum audit times». We could not read their contents, so joining, audit and annual fees are not confirmed. Ask ICTE and the certification body before you start.
On top of that, if you hire one, consultancy to implement the standard (market price, not official).
Some regions and chambers of commerce have had grants or agreements with ICTE; ask in yours. Whether there are grants in Andalusia in 2026: not confirmed.

SICTED: what it is and what it costs

According to SICTED's official documents (calidadendestino.es):

It is a set of voluntary good practices for more than 35 tourism trades (hotels, restaurants, shops, guides, tourist offices...). The Secretariat of State for Tourism owns the methodology and the FEMP provides support.
It works by destination: your municipality or association of municipalities must have joined and have a SICTED manager. You join through that destination.
Steps: training (online training is free), technical assistance visits from an adviser, implementing good-practice manuals and an evaluation by an independent technician (whoever advised you cannot evaluate you). The badge committee meets in June and December.
Cost: the official destination joining guide says the methodology «has no cost for either the destination or the tourism services»; the main cost falls on the destination (the manager). Whether your destination charges businesses a fee: not confirmed; ask your town hall.
Validity of the «Compromiso de Calidad Turística» badge: the trade press (Hosteltur) says two years subject to ongoing review; we did not see this on the official website: not confirmed.

SICTED in Cádiz, Seville and Huelva

According to the Junta de Andalucía (figures as of 16 June 2025 and 2025 destination list):

Andalusia: 64 destinations and 1,558 badge-holding tourism services.
Cádiz (8 destinations, 73 badge holders): Campiña de Jerez (Jerez de la Frontera, El Puerto de Santa María, Puerto Real), Chiclana de la Frontera, Chipiona, Grazalema, Rota, Sanlúcar de Barrameda, Tarifa and Ubrique.
Seville (7 destinations, 174 badge holders): Carmona, Écija, Fuentes de Andalucía, Osuna, Santiponce, Seville and Utrera.
Huelva (4 destinations, 84 badge holders): Almonte, Aracena, Costa Occidental de Huelva (Aljaraque, Ayamonte, Cartaya, Gibraleón, Punta Umbría) and Mancomunidad Islantilla (Isla Cristina, Lepe).
If your municipality is not listed, you cannot join SICTED on your own: the destination has to join first. Check the current list with your town hall; it may have changed since 2025.
A separate Junta de Andalucía quality mark for accommodation: we did not find one; not confirmed.

Do they help on Google or AI?

What there is and what there is not:

We found no official source (ICTE, SICTED, Google or any AI assistant) saying that the Q or SICTED improve your position on Google or in an AI's answers. There is no official evidence; nor is there evidence of the opposite.
Google's «eco-certified» label is about sustainability and has nothing to do with the Q; we explain it at /hotel-sustainability-google-eco-certified-booking-2026.
What you can do: if you hold the Q or the SICTED badge, state it with its exact name, standard and date on your website and listings. A clear, verifiable fact is easier to cite than a generic claim, but nobody can guarantee a search engine or AI will show it.
The best-proven value of these certifications is internal: orderly processes, training and an external review of your service.

How iQuota helps

iQuota makes independent properties available to AI assistants with direct booking, payment at the property and 0% commission, with the price and terms each property sets. We do not certify quality or handle Q or SICTED applications. Nobody can guarantee that an AI will recommend a particular property.

Want AI to give your real prices, terms and certifications, with direct booking and no commission? The first 30 hotels join free until 30 June 2027.

See the Founding Hotels programme

Frequently asked questions

Which Q standard applies to a hotel in 2026?

UNE-ISO 22483:2020. UNE 182001 has been cancelled since 22 July 2020 and replaced by it, according to the UNE database.

How much does the Q for Tourism Quality cost?

The hotel standard costs €94.38 and the self-assessment €96.80 on ICTE's website. Joining, audit and brand-use fees are in an ICTE fee document we could not read: not confirmed.

Is SICTED free?

The official guide says the methodology costs nothing for tourism services and online training is free; the cost falls mainly on the destination. Whether your destination charges anything: not confirmed.

Will the Q or SICTED rank me higher on Google or ChatGPT?

There is no official evidence of that. No official source we read says so, and nobody can guarantee that an AI will recommend a property.

Is the Q the same as Google's «eco-certified»?

No. «Eco-certified» is a Google sustainability label; the Q is ICTE's service quality certification.

Sources

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