The Lleida Fair hosts a conference on the profile of visitors looking to broaden their knowledge through the heritage of our landscape

(02/15/2014) “We believe that children who come to enjoy tourist activities today, tomorrow may awaken their interest in science.” This has been one of the arguments outlined in the day the tourist attraction of scientific, held as part of the first Hall of Sport and Mountain Tourism takes place this weekend at the Fira de Lleida.

The manager of the Espai Orígens Cristina Masvidal, said one of the trends that considers increasing demand this touristic segment. It said the new visitors want to enjoy a “global experience”. She said “we must take advantage of services such as guided tours in different parts of the territory, to explain that heritage we have, on the whole, in a certain area”.

Meanwhile, the scientific director of the Centre d’Observació de l’Univers Salvador Ribas, has lamented that Catalonia still is, by a large majority, a destination-based tourism snow, sun and sand. “People are still using these stereotypes,” he said. Still he was delighted by the volume of visitors that have visited places such as the Centre d’Observació de l’Univers, which have far exceeded expectations of tourists.

The head of Celístia Pirineus, Xavier Palau, believes that this type of tourism “makes sense in places where there is heritage to develop the Science.” This new business initiative, based on astrotourism was born under the recognition of the quality of the dark sky Montsec. The goal, he explained is “to make people feel emotions that occurs nightly as part of the heritage of our land.”

The session was organized by Espai Orígens and the authors of the documentary “La Serra del Cosmos” talking about the potential tourism of Montsec following the Starlight certification, also attended by the coordinator degree in Tourism at the University of Lleida, Natalia Daries, who has championed the need to involve the public sector, private and university to “ensure the enhancement and preservation of heritage.”