Spain: Salamanca upgrades tourism sites with €3.5 million sustainability plan

International

Ieronimus cathedral complex and historic Fonda Veracruz gain new visitor facilities as Spain invests in more sustainable and digital tourism

Salamanca is upgrading two of its cultural attractions as part of a €3.5 million Tourism Sustainability Plan financed through Spain’s Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan. The projects focus on the Ieronimus site within the cathedral complex and the 19th-century Fonda Veracruz.

Spain’s Minister of Industry and Tourism, Jordi Hereu, visited both projects to review the work. The investment combines the conservation of historic buildings with new visitor facilities, digital interpretation and measures designed to broaden the tourism offer in the UNESCO-listed city.

New areas open at Ieronimus

At Ieronimus, the cathedral complex has undergone a series of improvements that add new areas accessible to visitors, exhibition resources and immersive audiovisual installations.

One of the main changes is the opening of the space beneath the cathedral roof. Previously inaccessible to the public, the area offers visitors an opportunity to explore a lesser-known part of the historic complex and see the building from a new perspective.

Hereu said the improvements to Salamanca’s historical and artistic heritage reflected the Spanish government’s commitment to “a more sustainable and digital tourism model” capable of generating added value and improving the visitor experience.

During the visit, the minister was accompanied by Salamanca Cathedral dean Jorge García Gómez, government subdelegate Rosa María López Alonso and Salamanca’s fourth deputy mayor Fernando Rodríguez Alonso.

Fonda Veracruz given a new role

The same Tourism Sustainability Plan also includes work on Fonda Veracruz, a building dating from the 19th century.

The project has restored and adapted the historic property for a new function as a visitor reception, information and cultural centre. The transformation is intended to bring the building back into active use while adding another point of contact between visitors and Salamanca’s cultural heritage.

€232 million invested across Castile and León

The projects form part of a much broader tourism investment programme in Castile and León. According to the Spanish government, more than €232 million has been allocated to the region for 125 tourism sustainability projects.

Further investment covers tourism-related digitalisation, diversification and the conservation and development of historic heritage used for tourism.

The Salamanca projects illustrate how that funding is being translated into individual attractions: historic structures are being preserved while previously inaccessible spaces, digital interpretation and new cultural facilities expand the ways visitors can experience the city.