Aukje van Gerven is responsible for organising and the co-creator and of Rewilding Europe’s rewilding tourism trainings. Here, she talks about the Greater Côa Valley, the initiatives developed so far and the potential of this territory.
Rewilding Portugal, together with Rewilding Europe and Nature Tourism Development, developed another training for nature guides after the success of the training carried out in 2021. This time within the scope of the LIFE WolFlux project, the training, focused on wolf tourism , intended to train nature guides that already exist in the territory or intending to develop this activity, related to this emblematic and endangered species, so that responsible tourism can be carried out in relation to it in this territory.
On the 10th and 11th of March, Rewilding Portugal brought together the partners of its nature-based and sustainable tourism network, Wild Côa Network, in a “fun trip” that served to create more bonds between the partners, allowing them to develop partnerships and concerted tourist offers. A network that operates in the Greater Côa Valley, on the wildest side of Portugal.
The LIFE WolFlux project, in an action coordinated by Rewilding Portugal and Rewilding Europe, developed, this November, the first training of nature guides, with the objective of betting on local entrepreneurship in the Greater Côa Valley and promote the operationalization of this activity in a more sustainable way and that respects and values the surrounding natural heritage.
WildCôa, by Paulo Martinho, is one of the members of the Wild Côa Network, an initiative promoted by Rewilding Portugal. As its name indicates, WildCôa offers you a personalized and differentiated way of getting to know the wildest side of Portugal in the Greater Côa Valley.
There is now a new business benefiting from the Rewilding Europe Capital (REC) funding facility, Flor Alta. This is a company based in Almendra, near Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo and offers a wide range of handcrafted and natural products, an alternative to the synthetic substances found in more conventional beauty products.
In Rapoula do Côa, right in the heart of the Greater Côa Valley and far from all the Portuguese urbanity, there is a thermal paradise still unknown to many, even those who live and are from the region, but which has been attracting more and more tourists and curious people from all corners of the country and the world.
The village of Vilar Maior, in the municipality of Sabugal, is gaining and giving new life to its historical and natural heritage. Right in the center of one of the new areas of rewilding in our country, it is a place with a lot to know, explore and visit, always with respect for nature.
Dream Overland is one of the partners of the newly created Wild Côa Network, being one of the important pillars to boost the region’s nature-based tourism and help to enhance its heritage
Last week, a new network of nature-based businesses created by Rewilding Portugal was launched. A new way to explore and discover what the Greater Côa Valley has to offer and that unites several businesses in the region in a common vision of a wilder and more sustainable future.