Pilot project to recognise local services suitable for scientific tourism

Territorio Mudéjar is participating in a pilot project with European funding to design its own quality seal to distinguish local establishments with services suitable for scientific tourism linked to heritage and cultural resources.

The project, called Digitour, is funded by the European Commission’s Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises within the framework of the Cosme Cos-Tourinn-2020-3-04 programme and aims to boost the tourism sector by bringing together companies in this sector with providers of innovative and digital solutions using territorial and cultural heritage for tourism purposes. It is also linked to the work of creating networks of professionals with activity and impact in the villages that Territorio Mudéjar develops through its Research Stays and Projects.

The pilot project will begin with the redesign of the brand of the Posada del Almudí in Daroca – a historic building in the centre of the town – with an interesting rehabilitation – and an establishment in Romania, Pensiunea Septiembrie in the town of Elsenita – a recently constructed building integrated in the landscape of the Danube Gorges, in the surroundings of the Natural Park of the Iron Gates, a geopark declared World Heritage by UNESCO, whose associated heritage offers a high cultural value as well as a very interesting ethnographic development.

This union of European companies is, moreover, the result of the exchange trips of good practices of the European project MOMAr Interreg Europe led by the Diputación de Zaragoza and in which the association Territorio Mudéjar has actively participated since its inception in 2019.

This seal of quality recognises establishments that are prepared to cater for the tourism of people and professionals who travel to research, learn about or develop projects related to the heritage and history of the network of towns and villages in the Mudejar Territory and then translate this into their studies.

The pilot project will define the characteristics of hotel services for these customers with the aim of generating a European-wide flow of knowledge-driven travellers.

Globally, the Digitour project, in which Territorio Mudéjar participates, with 12 partner countries will launch 19 collaborative projects in which tourism SMEs and digital providers will collaborate. This will involve improving the tourism skills and capabilities in the cultural field of small and medium-sized enterprises through training and advice. It will also promote innovative ideas for SMEs to improve their offer and the management, marketing and promotion of their services in a new and sustainable way.

SMEs are the backbone of the tourism sector in Europe (they represent 90% of the companies in the sector) and, in this context, they play a crucial role in innovating and relaunching the sector. They often find it difficult to access digital tools and Digitour aims to help them become part of an innovative ecosystem. It does so by granting two types of vouchers.

One, for individual SMEs that want to improve their skills in digital tools. The other is for groups of SMEs cooperating on innovative projects or who want to participate in an international digital ecosystem.

Territorio Mudéjar: history from all its perspectives in the magazine Nsencia

We have the latest issue of Nsenzia magazine in which you can discover more about Territorio Mudéjar in a report that talks about our work and key projects.

Here is a sneak preview:

Montesquieu said that “happy are the people whose history is read with boredom”, because of the advantages of being aware of one’s roots and where we are going.

Nowadays it is something that is paraphrased but never put into practice, leading to a loss of identity and a host of petty mistakes. Fortunately, there is still a love of research and humanity.

Heritage, says Victoria Trasobares -director-, is the fourth pillar of development; this is how she conveys it in Territorio Mudéjar with an ambitious team in love with the possibilities of the historical identity of our territory.

A neat professional who knows the weight of the new generations, she offers an opportunity to students and professionals at different stages of their careers who are willing to reproduce such lessons, while discussing with them the best strategies to highlight the social function of the authentic spirit of each area.

The ‘Journey to Beauty’ route is a journey that faithfully traces the foundations of what rural evolution has presented and whose work has been adapted to the characteristics without leaving aside the present, as one of its objectives is to demonstrate – from the cultural fusion – how the chinks of the past are part of today. An ambitious work that not only deserves the recognition that characterises it: it is a clear example to follow in the protection of the echoes of a legacy.

Territorio Mudéjar returns to FITUR with its UNESCO World Heritage mark

Aragon conquered FITUR 2023 with its heritage and Territorio Mudéjar was there with our World Heritage brand that we were able to see in 360 degrees.

Once again this year, we attended the International Tourism Fair held at IFEMA (Madrid), one of the main international meetings of the tourism sector. The Aragonese stand this year focused on the cultural and natural assets of Aragon declared World Heritage by UNESCO: Aragonese Mudejar art, the Aragonese section of the Way of St. James, the Pyrenees-Monte Perdido and the Rock Art of the Mediterranean Arc.

In this way, the aim was to showcase the Community’s heritage and, at the same time, the wide range of leisure and active tourism activities and products such as ecotourism, wine tourism, astro-tourism, family tourism, gastronomy, slowdriving, etc.

The director of Territorio Mudéjar, Victoria Trasobares, attended the fair and accompanied the European Heritage Institute in the presentation of the network of medinas.

Special interview on the anniversary of the declaration of the Mudejar as World Heritage in Nsencia magazine.

January brings us a special interview with the director of Territorio Mudéjar, Victoria Trasobares, in the latest issue of Nsencia, in which we take a closer look at the work of the organisation.

“We work on designing and developing strategies and implementing projects designed from a deep understanding of heritage resources as part of the development of rural communities and their inhabitants. We work in dispersed and sparsely populated places and with tailor-made models It’s no use copying what has been successful elsewhere, because it’s not the same to manage heritage in a town of 700,000 inhabitants as in another town of 100″, explains Victoria Trasobares.

And when asked if we still have a lot to know, he says: “Of course. The monuments and the context in which they are located influence the development of the communities and the territory. It is more necessary than ever to continue researching, but incorporating new visions, showing the work processes, the results, the people behind them and the proximity to the field”.

“We have launched 45 projects, 23 of which have arisen from the Gonzalo M. Borrás Gualis research stays and projects, an example of innovation inside and outside Spain. This initiative implements actions in pilot mode and offers results in research, communication and development-investment-financing. As an example, we have studied topics such as materials and techniques from the permanence of the trade, the conservation of buildings from the design of new uses while respecting historical uses, the communication of heritage and its social function, education and digitisation,” explains Victoria Trasobares.

How can projects be made to have an impact on the territory?

“With constant work, thinking strategically to highlight the uniqueness of our localities from the heritage point of view and looking for common lines of work. We try to connect with all the economic activities of the territory, generating high quality dynamics applied through professional networks. Perhaps our best skill is to find people with a forward-looking approach, who work in the medium or long term without losing sight of the present,” he adds.

One of your main actions to raise awareness of the Mudejar style has been the “Rutas Territorio Mudéjar, viaje a la belleza” (Mudejar Territory Routes, a journey to beauty). What does this temporary journey offer?

“The project is an example of the vision we have of heritage and its use for tourism. They are heritage routes to cultivate the spirit and to show a cultural leisure designed to suit the localities we visit, counting on the people. With our trainees, we are looking for a way to connect with new audiences. In this way, travellers find a heritage shown by professionals, with very careful logistics and personalised attention”.

Territorio Mudéjar Routes 2021

In a strategic alliance with the Tourism Department of the Provincial Council of Zaragoza, we present twelve routes accompanied by a complete tour of the villages of Territorio Mudéjar in a journey through the Mudejar period in our province that begins in the middle of the 13th century and ends in the last decades of the 16th century.

This journey takes us from the urban beauty of the coexistence of the Christian, Jewish and Muslim populations, to the emergence of the key works of the 14th and 15th centuries: the fortress churches and towers.

We want you to get to know our places, which is why each route will have a presentation date on which you can join us for free but always by making a reservation in advance through the agency that collaborates with us in this project and the link to which we leave you below.

We have organised presentations for the months of June, September and November that we will open progressively and we will finish in December with a great route through the Mudejar of Aragon, declared World Heritage by UNESCO and with which we celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the international declaration.

Would you like to join us?

The routes under the theme the Mudejar, Mestizo Land and borderland lead us to the localities in which the Christian, Jewish and Muslim cultures developed in an extraordinary and lasting way. The planned trips will allow us to understand how this period of cultural fusion is still clearly reflected today in urbanism, the houses and monuments of these towns that played an important role in the Aragonese territory during the 12th and 13th centuries. We will discover it in the Jewish, Moorish and Christian quarters of large urban centres such as Calatayud, Daroca and Borja, as well as in more rural towns such as Villafeliche, Mesones de Isuela, Torrellas, Magallón and Tauste.

SEE MAP

Route 1. The mudejars, mestizo land and borderland.
Daroca, Villafeliche and Calatayud

SATURDAY, 12 JUNE.
CLICK HERE TO MAKE A RESERVATION
https://www.viajarporaragon.com/territorio-mudejar-ruta-01/ 

Route 2. The mudejars, mestizo land and borderland.
Magallón, Torrellas and Fréscano

SATURDAY, 25 SEPTEMBER.
CLICK HERE TO MAKE A RESERVATION
https://www.viajarporaragon.com/territorio-mudejar-ruta-02/ 

Route 3. The mudejars, mestizo land and borderland.
Saviñán, Mesones de Isuela and La Almunia de Doña Godina

SUNDAY, 17 OCTOBER.
CLICK HERE TO MAKE A RESERVATION
https://www.viajarporaragon.com/territorio-mudejar-ruta-03/ 

Route 4. The mudejars, mestizo land and borderland.
Velilla de Ebro, Fuentes de Ebro and Quinto

SATURDAY, 13 NOVEMBER.
CLICK HERE TO MAKE A RESERVATION
https://www.viajarporaragon.com/territorio-mudejar-ruta-04/ 

Keys to a style. Origins and typologies

These routes allow us to immerse ourselves in the origins of the style, from the transition from fully Western languages to a new language in which the Islamic building tradition will gradually gain ground, with its particular technical solutions, its quality and an attractive and captivating aesthetic.

Route 5. Keys to a style. ILLUECA, ATECA, CERVERA DE LA CAÑADA AND TORRALBA DE RIBOTA

SATURDAY, 19 JUNE.
CLICK HERE TO MAKE A RESERVATION
https://www.viajarporaragon.com/territorio-mudejar-ruta-05/ 

ROUTE 6. KEYS TO A STYLE. ZUERA, ALAGÓN, TAUSTE AND ERMITA DE CABAÑAS (LA ALMUNIA DE DOÑA GODINA)

SUNDAY, 14 NOVEMBER.
CLICK HERE TO MAKE A RESERVATION
https://www.viajarporaragon.com/territorio-mudejar-ruta-06/ 

Keys to a style. Towers

The incredible building activity during the medieval period in Aragon, and especially in the valleys of Zaragoza, offers attractive itineraries with magnificent buildings that are the keys to the construction of the style.

Route 7. Keys to a style. Towers:
Terrer, Aniñón, Ricla and Belmonte de Gracián

SUNDAY, 20 JUNE.
CLICK HERE TO MAKE A RESERVATION
https://www.viajarporaragon.com/territorio-mudejar-ruta-07/ 

Route 8. Keys to a style. Towers.
Romanos, Villarreal de Huerva, Mainar and Villar de los Navarros

SUNDAY, 26 SEPTEMBER.
CLICK HERE TO MAKE A RESERVATION
https://www.viajarporaragon.com/territorio-mudejar-ruta-08/ 

Route 9. Keys to a style. Towers.
Longares, Cosuenda and Villamayor

SATURDAY, 26 FEBRUARY.
CLICK HERE TO MAKE A RESERVATION
https://www.viajarporaragon.com/territorio-mudejar-ruta-09/ 

The Mudejar space

The route of the fortress churches, located in beautiful country houses perfectly designed in accordance with the orography of the landscape, takes us through urban centres designed in an effort to create spaces for life in which the use of resources is compatible with respect for nature and the sustainability of the territory.

Route 10. The Mudejar space.
Tobed, Maluenda and Morata de Jiloca

SUNDAY, 21 NOVEMBER.
CLICK HERE TO MAKE A RESERVATION
https://www.viajarporaragon.com/territorio-mudejar-ruta-10/ 

Route 11. The Mudejar space..
Borja, Castejón de Valdejasa and San Mateo de Gállego

SATURDAY, 16 OCTOBER.
CLICK HERE TO MAKE A RESERVATION
https://www.viajarporaragon.com/territorio-mudejar-ruta-11/ 

20th Anniversary Mudejar World Heritage

The last route is dedicated to the paradigms of the style that hold the UNESCO World Heritage brand. The collegiate church of Santa María de Calatayud, the church of Santa Tecla de Cervera de la Cañada and the church of la Virgen de Tobed reveal a magnificent heritage legacy located in urban complexes and landscapes of surprising beauty and endowed with character and intelligence.

Route 12. 20th Anniversary Mudejar World Heritage.
Tobed, Calatayud and Cervera de la Cañada

SATURDAY, 11 DECEMBER.
CLICK HERE TO MAKE A RESERVATION
https://www.viajarporaragon.com/territorio-mudejar-ruta-12/ 

Route 12. 20th Anniversary Mudejar World Heritage.
Tobed, Calatayud and Cervera de la Cañada

SUNDAY, 12 DECEMBER.
CLICK HERE TO MAKE A RESERVATION
https://www.viajarporaragon.com/territorio-mudejar-ruta-12/ 

NOTE. The actions of this project related to the dissemination in the ARATUR 2022 Aragonese Tourism Fair, the management of the reservation system and the logistical needs of travel have had the economic collaboration of the Government of Aragon through the aid of the year 2022 for private non-profit tourism entities for tourism promotion actions.

The Journey to Beauty route rounds off the celebrations marking the 20th anniversary of the declaration of the Mudejar as World Heritage

More than 80 people took part in the special Territorio Mudéjar route through Calatayud, Cervera de la Cañada and Tobed, which brings to a close the celebrations of the 20th anniversary year of the declaration of the Mudejar as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The event was attended by researchers, students, professionals and collaborators who work with the organisation under the direction of Victoria Trasobares. In addition, specialists such as Professor Esteban Sarasa, an expert in Aragonese medieval history, the architect Javier Ibargüen, representatives of the town councils of Calatayud, Cervera de la Cañada and Tobed, José Manuel Aranda, José Manuel Gimeno, Nuria Amela and Pascual Royo, the mayor of Ateca, Ramón Cristóbal, as well as the congresswoman Noemí Villagrasa, also took part in the event.

It not only included visits to monuments declared UNESCO World Heritage Sites, such as the collegiate church of Santa María in Calatayud, the church of Santa Tecla in Cervera de la Cañada and the church of the Virgin of Tobed, but also included exclusive visits to unusual places such as the viewpoints of the Mocha Tower in Calatayud: the viewpoints of the Torre Mocha in Calatayud as part of an interesting itinerary through the Moorish and Jewish quarter of Calatayud by Javier Gómez Patrocinio and Laura Villacampa, authors of the Mudetrad project; micro concerts of viola da gamba, lute and flutes in the churches of Cervera de la Cañada and Tobed by Carlos Bonal and Fernando Marín, a work derived from the research stay that studies the acoustics of Mudejar buildings; a tour of the coastal paths of the churches of Cervera and Tobed, to finish in the Mudéjar Museum of Tobed with a tasting of local gastronomic products including a sample of wines from the D. O. Borja, Cariñena, Cariñena, Cariñena, Cariñena, Cariñena, Cariñena, Cariñena and Cariñena.O. of Borja, Cariñena and Calatayud.

The conference was a tour of the main projects that the Territorio Mudéjar network is developing in the 40 partner villages. “It has been a technical day through a very special journey through the heritage of our villages in which we have shown some of the results that are having our research stays that, in its fourth call, already have an international character and that allow us to deepen our knowledge of the Mudejar. We have interspersed walks and visits with explanations of projects. We have also done it in a special way, for example, with live music resulting from the work of our research stays, short 12-minute concerts in each of the buildings we have visited. The experience has been magnificent, the attendees have known all the work we do and its processes through a visual and experiential catalogue”, explains the director of Territorio Mudéjar, Victoria Trasobares.

Today we have also taken the opportunity to present the latest issue of the magazine Nsencia, in which Territorio Mudéjar and its 40 partner villages have a special role.

Visit of the AMIR project, a network of museums that promotes cultural mediation activities carried out by migrants.

A few days ago we hosted a visit from the AMIR project (Accoglienza, musei, inclusione e relazione – hospitality, museums, inclusion and relationship).

This is a project managed by a network of museums that aims to propose cultural mediation activities carried out by migrants. It currently consists of 20 mediators and 11 museums, collections, villages, churches and public spaces in Florence and Fiesole.

AMIR is a project curated by Utopia Station and the thematic museum network Musei di Tutti.

The project leaders Chiara Damian and Silvia Borsotti travelled to Territorio Mudéjar. Also involved in the project as cultural mediators were Nagham Khalil (graduate in archaeology), Luisa Romano (graduate in history and art history), Marwa Elaomaryine (graduate in economics and commerce) and Patrik Padilla (graduate in economics and commerce).

This is a European funded project through Erasmus +. The visiting organisation is a social cooperative Stazione Utopia and they work at the museum in Fiessole, a town near Florence, with whose university they are connected.

The group participates in a seminar on cultural mediation to talk about its work on the integration of young first generation migrants through culture and museums.

The group visited us accompanied by Pilar Biel (professor of Art History and director of the master’s degree in cultural heritage management at the University of Zaragoza) and Jorge Jiménez (professor of Art History at the University of Zaragoza).

In addition to a study visit to the headquarters in Tobed, to Ricla (Castle project) and La Almunia de Doña Godina; they attended the presentation of Territorio Mudéjar “New partners” in Utebo where more than 60 people attended and the travelling exhibition commemorating the 20th anniversary of the declaration of Mudejar architecture as World Heritage was inaugurated.

Students at the University of Experience learn about the Mudejar space

The 4th B students of the subject “Mudejar, emblem of Aragon” of the University of Experience have carried out several days of learning using the heritage space as a place of knowledge. Walking through the Mudejar space, discovering the light atmosphere and even being able to touch the Mudejar materials have turned the buildings, monuments and villages of Territorio Mudéjar into a textbook for active and innovative learning.

For several days 55 students visited the villages and monuments of Tobed, Cervera de la Cañada, Aniñón and Torralba de Ribota. The closing ceremony of the course took place on Tuesday 8th November in the Parroquieta de La Seo after visiting the Mudejar monastery of the Canonesas del Santo Sepulcro (Canons of the Holy Sepulchre).

Visit of Cultur Viajes, of the Santa María la Real Foundation

We love to host those who come to know and learn about the heritage of Territorio Mudéjar. A few days ago, we had the opportunity to share the visit of Cultur Viajes from the Santa María la Real Foundation: Route of the Arts in Aragon.

This trip was based on true cultural tourism: signature trips, sustainable and with attention to detail, a formula that coincides with our way of understanding tourism in heritage sites and spaces.

We visited Calatayud, Tobed and Daroca. The trip was supervised by María Heredia Mundet, director of Cultur Viajes, and was assisted by Victoria Trasobares, director of Territorio Mudéjar.

The trip, with 25 heritage travellers, has served to bring the two entities closer together and may be the seed for future projects.

Territorio Mudéjar presents its main projects and the touring exhibition in Utebo

The director of Territorio Mudéjar, Victoria Trasobares, presented the organisation this Wednesday in Utebo together with the mayoress of the town, Gema Gutiérrez. There she spoke about the lines of work, the projects, such as the routes, and explained what it means to be part of the Territorio Mudéjar network.

In addition, we were able to see the travelling exhibition “Mudéjar exhibition, the intelligence of beauty. 20th anniversary of the UNESCO World Heritage declaration”.