The Southern Plateau Naturtejo Geopark, located in Central Portugal near the Spanish border, has joined UNESCO’s Global Geopark Network following an application by Naturtejo EIM (Joint Municipal Enterprise). This makes it the first park of its kind in Portugal to gain the global recognition.
The official recognition of Portugal’s first Geopark provides an exceptional opportunity to enhance the country’s offering of nature tourism, as well as creating jobs and promoting regional economic development. The integration in the global Geoparks network with UNESCO will also provide opportunities for Portugal to participate in renowned scientific and cultural projects.
The Southern Plateau Naturtejo Geopark brings together the municipalities of Castelo Branco, Idanha-a-Nova, Nisa, Oleiros, Proença-a-Nova and Vila Velha de Ródão, and puts them firmly on the tourist map by increasing the appreciation and education of the Earth’s history and natural sciences, such as geology and paleontology.
The Naturtejo Geopark has one of the country’s biggest networks of footpaths for long and short walks for active tourists to explore the geological interests, such as,
- Fossils Footpath (Rotas dos Fósseis, Penha Garcia)
- Mines Footpath (Rota das Minas, Segura)
- Ravines Footpath (Rota dos Barrocais, Monsanto)
- ‘Trilhos do Conhal’ 8km Footpath (Santana)
The ARPT Centro de Portugal (Central Portugal Regional Tourist Board), in collaboration with Instituto de Turismo de Portugal (Portuguese Tourism Institute), are dedicated to provide support to enhance nature tourism in Portugal with the Geopark playing a central function. They will continue to work with Naturtejo EIM to guarantee the promotion of Central Portugal and the opportunities that the Geopark brings to entice tourists to the region.
To further expand on the Geological discoveries a bilingual Portuguese/English book entitled The Southern Plateau Naturtejo Geopark – 600 million years in images has been published focusing on the natural landscapes of the Southern Plateau Naturtejo Geopark, with text by Carlos Neto Carvalho and photographs by Pedro Martins.
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