Historical Villages of Portugal: social acknowledgment of a tourism visitation phenomenon

Abstract The Historical Villages of Portugal network, established by the Portuguese government in 1994, includes twelve villages located in the country’s Centro Region. This network, in which heritage and the rural environment constitute an ineluctable binomial, positions itself in the thematic touring segment. An estimated €45 million, financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), have hitherto been invested (in the enhancement of classified heritage, means of access and restoring public spaces and private properties). Within the scope of the national tourism range, the Historical Villages of Portugal may be perceived as a tourism visitation phenomenon, due both to the number of visitors and tourists they host and to the media coverage they have generated. This paper stems from examining 41 responses to a survey carried out of a representative sample of social actors (travel agencies, tour guides, directors of tourism magazines, radio/television broadcasters, journalists, university professors, actors and lawyers/judges) aimed at validating a group of reflections about this tourism field. Analysis of the data collected, resulting from the reliable views of a privileged social panel, enables the proposition of an analytical framework for the Historical Villages of Portugal, which remains a still evolving tourism product