The Government launches the Xacobeo National Tourism Plan with an investment of 121 million euros

The event was attended by the Minister for Industry, Trade and Tourism, Reyes Maroto, the President of the Principality of Asturias, Adrian Barbón, the Secretary of State for Tourism, Fernando Valdes, and the head of Culture, Language Policy and Tourism of the Principality, Berta Piñán. The event was also attended by the heads of tourism from 11 Regional Governments and associations representing the Camino de Santiago.

'The Camino de Santiago needs a specific plan to revitalise it, taking advantage of the Holy Year that will last until 2022. If the 1993 Xacobeo was fundamental in turning the Camino de Santiago into a star product of our tourism offering, 2021, the year of recovery, will mark a new milestone in the revitalisation of this thousand year old route', stressed the Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism, Reyes Maroto, at the presentation ceremony in the Museum of Fine Arts in Oviedo, the first of a tour that the Ministry will undertake to publicise the investments of this Xacobeo National Plan in the regions involved.

The minister explained that the Xacobeo National Tourism Plan is being developed within the framework of the Government of Spain's Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, the most ambitious public investment and reform exercise in Spain's recent economic history and the greatest opportunity for our country since it joined the European Union.

'The Xacobeo Plan incorporates measures to conserve and make better use of the Camino de Santiago, and to boost tourism and economic activity'.

'It is a great national project that unites us around an unrivalled cultural, heritage and experiential offer,' added Maroto.

The plan is structured around five main lines of investment, which the secretary of state detailed:

• Destination Xacobeo National Tourism Sustainability Plan for 2021-2022. With 45 million euros allocated, it will finance investments aimed at improving the urban landscapes crossed by the Caminos, such as those related to improving mobility, signposting and accessibility along the different routes of the Camino; beautification of historic centres or rehabilitation of cultural assets.
• Tourism Product Development Programme: The Camino is a product that transcends its initial religious origins and is now consolidated as a tourist attraction with enormous heritage, natural and cultural resources. Following the impact of the pandemic, a comprehensive strategy is needed to reposition the Camino as a safe, but also more inclusive, accessible and digital destination. Five million euros will be earmarked to generate or support products linked to the Compostela experience.
• Sustainable projects for the maintenance and rehabilitation of the historical heritage for tourist use of the Caminos de Santiago: A total of 65,286,148.27 euros will be spent on up to 61 public buildings to make them sustainable, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, modernising their waste management systems, reducing energy and water consumption and installing intelligent technologies.
• Intelligent Tourism Destinations Programme: Five million euros will be earmarked to support collaborative projects between destinations associated with the Caminos de Santiago that are members of the Network of Intelligent Tourism Destinations. With a maximum investment of one million euros per project, these must be initiatives that bring together the entire value chain and guarantee a real impact on the competitiveness and sustainability of the associated tourism offering.
• International promotion programme: Turespaña, through the foreign network of departments and its international promotion campaign, will invest 1,036,411 euros to promote the main routes of the Camino recognised by international organisations. The planned actions include the conversion of the public office of the Spanish Tourist Board in Rome, located on Plaza de España, into an Interactive Multimedia Centre (IMC) that will operate as an information point for the Xacobeo and whose inauguration is scheduled for 12 July.

Among the most important investments in the rehabilitation of historical heritage are the extension of the Museum of Fine Arts in Oviedo and work on the Cathedral of Mondoñedo (Lugo), the El Parral Estate (Burgos), the Palace of Fernández Alejo (Toledo), the Monastery of Iratxe (Navarre), the Royal House of Alzira (Valencia) and the New Monastery of San Juan de la Peña (Huesca).

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