O posicionamento territorial a partir dos Itinerarios Culturais: o caso de Arzúa nos camiños de Santiago

Abstract

ResumoNas últimas décadas, foi aumentando a importancia das estratexias baseadas nos recursos endóxenos como forma de desenvolvemento das áreas rurais, sobre todo aquelas relacionadas co turismo. Así, a posta en valor de Itinerarios Culturais considérase unha ferramenta importante para o posicionamento territorial e o impulso de oportunidades empresariais neses espazos. O Camiño de Santiago, o máis coñecido dos Itinerarios Culturais Europeos nos que participa Galicia, constitúe un instrumento desexado por moitos territorios galegos que enfrontan problemas de perda de poboación e competitividade rural, a pesares de que gran parte dos municipios do interior por onde pasa o Camiño continúan nunha profunda crise económica e demográfica. A través do estudo de caso centrado no municipio de Arzúa, veremos que a integración real de elementos identitarios e recursos locais na estratexia de desenvolvemento turístico vinculado ao Camiño resulta fundamental para que este recurso xere impactos económicos no territorio. Palabras chave: Itinerario Cultural, camiños de Santiago, posicionamento territorial, marcas territoriais, Arzúa. AbstractIn recent decades, the importance of strategies based on the endogenous resources for the development of rural areas has grown, particularly those related to tourism. Thus, the enhancement of Cultural Routes is considered an important tool for the territorial positioning and the promotion of new business opportunities in rural areas. The best known European Cultural Routes which Gali-Rocío Toxo-AsoRei; inês GusmAn: O posicionamento territorial a partir dos Itinerarios Culturais: o caso de Arzúa nos camiños de Santiago cia participates is the Saint James Way, which represents an instrument desired by many Galician territories that suffer from population decline and rural competitiveness problems, even though a large part of the inland municipalities which the Way passes through continue to undergo a deep economic and demographic crisis. A case study focused on the municipality of Arzúa will show us how the true integration of identity elements and local resources in the tourism development strategy linked to the Way is essential to generate economic impacts of this resource on the territory.

The Pilgrim Consumer Behaviour along the Way of St. James

“…In the same way, the pilgrims walking less than 6 hours a day intend to spend more money per day. Therefore, we can conclude that the Way of Saint James seems to increase the availability of the pilgrims in spending money in the local communities during their pilgrimage contributing to the community development , as already stated by Toxo and Gusman (2018).…”

“…The majority of the towns are defined as peripheral territories and they look to the Way of Saint James as an economic and demographic opportunity to settle their population. These places will be able to take advantage of the Way of Saint James by defining a local promotion strategy, that highlights its endogenous products, creating thus its own identity (Toxo & Gusman, 2018).…”

“…The particular case of Arzua takes advantage of being a crossing point for several Ways of Saint James (Toxo & Gusman, 2018).…”

“…The Camino de Santiago has to be a way to create synergies between tourist agents and local producers, leading pilgrims to consume indigenous products. To seduce users of the Way of Saint James for a new visit, it would be important to invest in a good communication strategy of cultural and natural heritage, seeking that they choose a form of leisure with the greater associated expense (Toxo & Gusman, 2018).…”

“…Therefore, for this Itinerary to be effectively a guide to the development of the territory, it is necessary to create a strong image of the destination based on a consensus between the Public Administration, tourism agents, and the local population, in a solid local strategy (Toxo & Gusman, 2018).…”