They will mean an economic loss in tourism of about 5 million euros in the Hurdes region (Cáceres), it is 70% compared to the previous year, a tourist campaign that represents 50% of the annual income of the area, as reported by the president of the Hurdes Tourism Association (ATHUR), Ignacio Paredes.
The president of the ATHUR Tourism Association has highlighted that the negative publicity in the national media has done a lot of damage to the region, the fire started in one of the 44 farmhouses that it has and quickly spread to Salamanca, “although they continued talking about Las Hurdes, so tourists have assumed that everything was burned when in reality it was only a very small percentage”. Ignacio Paredes points out that no important natural or material resources have been affected, and that “they continue to have an environmental paradise to enjoy this summer with more than 100 selfie points in its 500km2 area, with waterfalls, streams, meanders, architecture… “.
During the week of the fire “the reservations and the tourists who were staying could be maintained”, but since then the cancellations have been massive”, which is why it is being an “economic disaster in the territory”.
The region of Las Hurdes has a capacity of 1,500 beds, surrounded by a natural landscape and a unique environmental richness and with some 26 natural pools that make summer a unique opportunity.
Tourists
The Extremaduran tourist comes throughout the year, but the rest of the national tourism in a massive way arrives to the Hurdes mainly in the summer, they arrive mainly from Madrid, Castilla La Mancha, Andalusia, the Basque Country and Barcelona. Ignacio Paredes points out that all tourism has been lost from the latter in this campaign.
During the pandemic they noticed that Extremaduran tourists went out of their way to help the local economy for which they are very grateful, he highlights; but in this case, the fires have affected other areas and a greater presence has not been noticed, so they continue to encourage tourists to come to the area, he said.
Ignacio Paredes points out that the Hurdes “are intact” and “are waiting for you to come to know them or to enjoy this beautiful place”, because if Extremadura is the great unknown, the Hurdes much more so.
Heiress to an unjust black past marked by hunger and misery that Buñuel reflected in his work Tierra sin Bread, King Alfonso XIII traveled to that area 100 years ago and since then improvements began that little by little changed the reality of a region that It is not black, it is not poor or miserable, those images of extreme poverty were far from showing a privileged enclave in nature, adventure and astronomical tourism. From the area, according to Ignacio Paredes, the great kindness of the people from Hurdona stands out, which surprises the foreigner. The typical architecture of Buñuel’s time is still maintained, and the house with the trousseau where the King slept remains intact, tourist resources that tell the history, present and future of a unique area.
Promotion
This is how they wanted to show it with , although as Ignacio Paredes points out, it has not had the necessary impact because perhaps “from the region the opportune approach was not given to show all the potential of an area that has virgin nature, incalculable hundred-year-old trails for lovers of hiking or cycling, myths and legends, being the first region with Starlight certification in Extremadura, an accreditation backed by UNESCO for the quality of its skies”.
The singer Soraya Arnelas recently visited Las Hurdes to show the world that it is still green, the advertising impact cannot yet be assessed, but what they are very grateful for and value is that Soraya gave up her cachet to reinvest it in the companies of the region. The basketball player, José Manuel Calderón will also go to the region to show the reality and help the region.
Las Hurdes is still green, a paradise in the southwest of the peninsula that captivates everyone who visits it, a privileged place in the world with incomparable environmental richness.
Facebook Comments
Disqus