Environment and Tourism launches ‘Aragon with Soul’ to promote religious to

Environment and Tourism launches ‘Aragon with Soul’ to promote religious tourism as an economic engine for the region

08-04-25

The attractiveness of the region in this sense generates a global economic impact of 187 million euros per year.
The planned actions include the creation of promotional materials, a prominent presence at national and international tourism fairs, digital media and social networks and the training of specialised guides.

With the aim of revitalising religious tourism as a tourist product of the community, the Government of Aragon has launched the initiative ‘Aragon with Soul’, a project that seeks to position the territory as a spiritual destination of reference, betting on the value of its sacred art, its religious traditions and rich heritage.

Religious tourism is, in fact, an important economic engine for the community, with an estimated global economic impact of 187 million euros, a figure that underlines its relevance within the tourism sector as a whole. Examples such as Easter Week in Zaragoza, with 29 million euros generated, or the Drum and Bass Drum Route, which reaches 10 million, reflect the potential of these cultural and religious events as sources of economic and social dynamism. In addition, the Ofrenda de Flores, one of the most popular events of the Pilar festivities in Zaragoza, generates 10 million euros a year.

With this initiative, the Directorate General for Tourism and Hospitality reaffirms its commitment to a sustainable tourism model linked to the cultural and historical roots of the community, generating new economic opportunities through the enhancement of a spiritual heritage that is unique in Europe. The planned actions include the creation of promotional materials, such as a high-end professional folder, a guide for trade fairs and a large-format audiovisual production that will begin to be produced this Easter. In addition, the new product will have a prominent presence at national and international tourism fairs, as well as in digital media and social networks. The training of specialised guides will also be promoted through a platform shared with the Archbishopric of Zaragoza and the Schools of Tourism.

As an essential part of the project, a working group has been set up to validate the contents and guarantee the rigour of the materials generated. This group is made up of representatives of the six dioceses of Aragon, the Metropolitan Chapter of Zaragoza, the Sanctuary of Torreciudad, the Drum and Bass Drum Route, the Board of Brotherhoods of Zaragoza, the Brotherhood of San Juan de la Peña, the Monastery of Nuestra Señora del Olivar, the three provincial councils and the public entities Tourism of Aragon and Zaragoza Tourism.

The wealth of the community

Among the tourist and religious attractions of the community, the central role that the community occupies as a world epicentre of Marian devotion stands out. The Marian Route in Aragon leads the pilgrimage centres with international projection: the Basilica of El Pilar is one of the most visited temples in the country, with four million people a year. Added to this is the Sanctuary of Torreciudad, which has received twelve million pilgrims in its fifty years of history.

In addition, Aragon has an exceptional group of temples that treasure centuries of religious and artistic history. Since the Cathedral of Roda de Isábena was consecrated in 956, all the Aragonese dioceses have cathedral temples. Among them, the Cathedral of Jaca, a pioneer of Romanesque architecture on the peninsula, the Gothic and Renaissance cathedrals of Barbastro and Huesca, and the Mudejar cathedrals of Tarazona, La Seo and Teruel, declared World Heritage Sites by UNESCO, stand out for their heritage value.

Carthusian monasteries and monasteries also form part of Aragon's religious wealth. The Carthusian monastery of Aula Dei, with scenes from the life of the Virgin painted by Goya, and the monasteries of San Juan de la Peña, Sigena and San Victorián, some of them royal pantheons, show how spirituality has shaped the territory over the centuries. And in places such as the Monastery of Nuestra Señora del Olivar, in Estercuel, there is still an active religious community and new forms of spiritual tourism such as astro-tourism are being explored.

The pilgrimage routes are another of the reasons behind this proposal. Aragon is crossed by the French route of the Way of St. James, declared a World Heritage Site, and by the Jacobean Way of the Ebro. There are also routes of strong religious symbolism such as the Holy Grail, the Vera Cruz or the Way of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, which allow you to follow in the footsteps of great figures of Christianity.

Finally, the community offers an intense liturgical and festive calendar that runs from January to December, with celebrations such as Holy Week - internationally recognised in Zaragoza and in the municipalities of the Drum and Bass Drum Route -, Corpus Christi, the Miracle of Calanda or the processions of Daroca.

Founding Member of the World Religious Tourism Network

In addition, Aragon has been recognised as a Founding Member of the World Religious Tourism Network, a programme of Tourism & Society Think Tank made up of professional experts in tourism and society. The aim of the World Religious Tourism Network is to promote religious tourism and culture in all continents of the world, to create opportunities for new destinations and to strengthen the leadership of those religious destinations that have greater recognition. Religious tourism contributes to intercultural understanding, in a respectful and ethical manner, engages local communities and has a positive impact on them.

This recognition places the community as a reference in the field of spiritual tourism, in a context where 150 million people travel annually for religious reasons and where the overall economic impact of the sector reaches 13,000 million euros.

‘Aragon with Soul’ is also presented in a particularly propitious context: the Holy Year 2025, in which millions of pilgrims will seek places of encounter and spirituality. The Aragonese dioceses have designated twenty Jubilee temples (the Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of Pilar in Zaragoza, the Parish Basilica of Santa Engracia in Zaragoza, the Chapel of the Hospital of San Juan de Dios in Zaragoza, the Temple of the Miracle of Our Lady of the Pilar in Calanda, the Basilica of Santa María de los Sagrados Corporales in Daroca, the Cathedral of Tarazona, the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre in Calatayud, the Cathedral of Huesca, the Basilica of San Lorenzo in Huesca, the Monastery of San Salvador in Torrente de Cinca, the Virgen de La Alegría Chapel in Monzón, the Sanctuary of El Pueyo and the chapel of the Virgen de la Esperanza in Barbastro, the Virgen de La Peña Sanctuary in Graus, the Cathedral of Jaca, the Sanctuary of the Virgen de la Aliaga in Cortes de Aragón and the Parish Church of Cantavieja), an exceptional opportunity to consolidate the offer of religious tourism and attract visitors throughout the year.

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