Cluster

The president of the Cluster participated with Nava Castro and a group of businessmen of the tourism sector in the presentation in the Italian capital of the promotion of Galicia focused on the Xacobeo.

The Rome Exhibition Centre hosted on Tuesday the first of two events scheduled this week in Italy to promote Galicia as a destination, focusing on the tourism offer related to the celebration of the Holy Year and Xacobeo 2021-2022. A delegation made up of the director of the Galician Tourism Agency, Nava Castro; the president of the Galician Tourism Cluster, Cesáreo Pardal, and representatives of the tourism sector acted as ambassadors of Galicia to Italian businessmen and journalists, who were able to get to know the Galician offer through a workshop.

During the presentation, Cesáreo Pardal updated the famous expression “all roads lead to Rome” to explain that “all roads lead back to Rome and, today above all, all roads lead us to Galicia”. “The Way of St. James, and the celebration of the Jubilee years that we call Xacobeo, is currently the biggest and best sign of identity for tourism in Galicia. Our land and our people have been accustomed to receiving visitors since the Middle Ages. This accumulation of knowledge has resulted in a destination prepared, welcoming and highly specialised in a type of tourism that is leisurely, not overcrowded and with spiritual and cultural concerns”, said the president of the Cluster before explaining that Galicia is not only the destination of the different itineraries of the Way.

Tourism at sea, thanks to the calm beaches of the estuaries and marinas; rural tourism of quality framed by a territory with a long tradition of agriculture, livestock, crafts and wine; the tourism of meetings, conventions and congresses, with cities of reference in the field of fishing (Vigo) or fashion and design (A Coruña), and the cultural heritage, headed by the religious architecture born under the impulse of the phenomenon of the pilgrimage, are some of the elements that Cesáreo Pardal highlighted in his speech in Rome. In addition, he pointed out that the promotion of all these aspects has been the endeavour to which the Galician Tourism Cluster has been devoted since its creation in 2013. “Our role has been to offer a strategic vision for tourism in Galicia, hand in hand with the Administration, through the Galician Tourism Agency, and with experts. This scheme of collaboration between the public, private and knowledge has resulted in the solid and attractive offer that we can present to you today”.

Cesáreo Pardal closed his speech by pointing out that there are three main challenges for the future: “To advance in the consolidation and promotion of Galicia as a safe destination; to continue our path in the configuration of a smart destination and suitable for the digital transformation of society; and to preserve our spaces and be respectful with local communities to maintain our character as a sustainable destination”.

Milan, on Thursday 11, will be the second and last stop of a trip that aims to give a boost to the celebration of the Holy Year outside Galicia and, especially, in a country like Italy, which is the second largest issuer of foreign pilgrims to the Way of St. James.