Reyes Maroto brings Xacobeo closer to Rome

For Maroto, "this new multimedia space opens a window to bring the Xacobean route to the centre of Rome, the nerve centre of tourism, and to show potential visitors all the cultural, heritage and experiences offered by the Camino de Santiago". For the head of Tourism, this multimedia centre "is a key point in the external promotion of the national Xacobeo plan, a great national project that aims to unite territories and people around a unique tourism product, which offers unique experiences that we want to involve our visitors in", she stressed.

The Minister was accompanied at the inauguration by Alfonso Dastis, Spanish Ambassador to Italy and San Marino; María del Carmen de la Peña Corcuera, Spanish Ambassador to the Vatican; Miguel Sanz, Director General of Turespaña; Jorge Rubio, Councillor for Tourism in Rome and Maria Nava Castro Domínguez, Director General of Tourism of the Xunta de Galicia.

Interactive Multimedia Centre

The new Multimedia Centre, located in the iconic Piazza di Spagna, aims to attract more travellers captivated by the Camino de Santiago from Italy, the first country of origin of the pilgrims. In 2019, the pilgrim reception office of the Cathedral of Santiago registered 28,749 pilgrims from Italy, 8.27% of the total. Through its programming, the tourist office in the Italian capital offers a space dedicated to the Camino de Santiago, which has been equipped with state-of-the-art technological infrastructure. An extensive agenda of events will be organised around this multimedia centre, coordinated by Turespaña's tourism department in Rome.

For this centre, Turespaña has worked on a specific Xacobeo 2021-22 content project that includes eight infographic videos on the Camino de Santiago; interactive cartographic navigation on all the stages of the northern, French and primitive routes; as well as an update of all the tourist resources with multimedia information.

In addition, in the Italian market, online actions have been programmed such as webinars on the Camino de Santiago; a virtual event to present Xacobeo 2021-22 to professionals and the media; as well as familiarisation trips, specific to the Routes for agents and journalists; a specific Xacobeo communication plan and a specialised online marketing campaign. Turespaña will also set up a website and distribute written material and videos produced by Turespaña in several languages.

The Multimedia Centre will remain as a permanent infrastructure of the Turespaña Office in Rome, although its use during the years 2021 and 2022 will be limited to the promotion of the Xacobeo. This centre, located in the heart of the Italian capital, will be devoted primarily to the dissemination of cultural and historical heritage of religious origin or use.

Promotion of the Camino de Santiago

The Camino de Santiago is part of the international promotional campaign for summer 2021,"You deserve Spain" that Turespaña launched in mid-May for the recovery of tourism. Initiatives such as the Multimedia Centre in Rome, among others, contribute to the international promotion of the Camino de Santiago, the first European Cultural Itinerary, reinforced by the visibility provided by the celebration of the Xacobeo year, an event of exceptional cultural, historical and tourist importance for Spain.

Non official translation