AR-PA Cultural Tourism Fair and the International Inland Tourism Fair, INTUR, will be held simultaneously at the Valladolid Fair for the first time, from November 14 to 17.
The Junta de Castilla y León will have a prominent presence at INTUR, as a result of its commitment to inland tourism as an instrument for territorial cohesion and population consolidation. The regional government's commitment to promoting inland tourism will focus on wine and gastronomy, with gastronomic spaces, spaces on wine routes, with numerous activities, presentations, exhibitions and tastings, among other initiatives.
The presence of the Junta at the double event INTUR 2024 and AR-PA 2024 is physically articulated through an institutional pavilion, supported simultaneously by the two trade fair events. This institutional space occupies Pavilion 2 of the Valladolid trade fair centre, where INTUR 2024 is being held, located at the back of the centre and connecting it, through an immersive corridor, with Pavilion 4, where the AR-PA Cultural Tourism Fair will be held, thus forming an articulated whole with simultaneous presence at INTUR and AR-PA.
Pavilion 4 will feature the AR-PA Islands, three distinct spaces whose purpose is to develop the educational, cultural and artistic activities of the traditional AR-PA Family section. The Heritage Island, the Culture Island and the Language Island occupy a central position in the Junta's proposal. They are intended to show the wealth and new possibilities that are opening up to the management and innovation of cultural heritage, the variety and attractiveness of the cultural offer as a tourist resource, as well as the possibilities of the Spanish language as a resource for the arrival of foreign students.
Each island includes a central space for developing activities and stands where the three foundations of World Heritage Sites of Castilla y León will be present, such as Atapuerca, Las Medulas and Siega Verde, and the restoration schools of Castilla y León, dependent on the Ministry of Education.
The Heritage and Culture Islands will feature resources such as the Filmoteca de Castilla y León and the provincial and regional museums, with an exemplary institution such as Cluny Ibérica, a historic exhibitor and protagonist of AR-PA, or a reference centre in the Portuguese cultural panorama such as the Museo Nacional Soares dos Reis in Porto. On the other hand, a total of eight large free-standing display cases will contain as many outstanding pieces from the museums dependent on the Junta, distributed throughout the fair, marking the itinerary of the Museum Walks.
Finally, the Language Island, with this same focus as a space for educational and shared family activities, will host the libraries of Castilla y León, the Castilian and Leonese Language Institute, and the Editors' Guild.
Also within Pavilion 4 there are three rooms – Atapuerca, Siega Verde and Las Medulas– where the AR-PA Forum programme will take place, which will host the entire programme of presentations and technical sessions. The exhibition part in this Pavilion 4 closes with the AR-PA Initiatives section. This is a space for a total of 40 non-profit organisations from Castilla y León related to culture, cultural heritage and tourism, which are offered the possibility of exhibiting their projects.
The new proposal includes the holding of a new AR-PA International Congress, which will take place on 14, 15 and 16 November.
