All posts by : Communications

Download the full press release in English here. 

EHTTA announces next International Congress on Thermal Tourism

The European Historic Thermal Towns Association is delighted to announce its next important event, when the Association will be working with the UNWTO as part of its 2023 work package. The International Congress on Thermal Tourism will be held in the French town of Nancy, and will be linked to the annual ‘International days of Thermalism and Wellness’ taking place from 8th to 10th November 2023 at the same time.

The host city of Nancy is opening a new thermal complex in spring 2023, after a 100 million Euro programme of investment. The long-awaited “Nancy Thermal”, based on a 1910s complex in the heart of the Ducal city, also known for the Place Stanislas, a UNESO World Heritage Site, provides the organisers with a good reason to welcome international delegates to a thermal congress. The Nancy metropolitan area, located in the heart of the Grand Est Region, is the most European of France’s regions bordering 4 countries, and is a great choice for the next congress location. It is hoped that the Thermal Congress will become an annual event.

In September 2022 “The Thermal Congress”, as it became known, was hosted by the Province of Ourense (Galicia) attracting 277 delegates and speakers from 22 countries and catching the attention of a wide range of international media.
“For us it is very important to keep the positive spirit and continue the discussion started in Ourense this year.”, said Manuel Baltar, EHTTA President. “We have demonstrated that this is a subject that is becoming increasingly important to wellness and health tourists, and as a sector, we need to be ready to welcome them. Sharing best practice, discussing new trends, improving our offer is essential if our historic thermal towns are to compete with purpose-built destinations. We know that we have a very attractive and unique combination of wellness, heritage, landscape, gastronomy and architecture in our towns, but we cannot be complacent, so meeting together as a sector, more regularly is going to be very important as we move into and era of mindful post-pandemic, environmentally sustainable travel”.
The European Historic Thermal Towns Association is an Affiliate Member of UNWTO, and significantly is the only Cultural Route of the Council of Europe to be associated with UNWTO.
Jean-François Beraud, President of the Fédération Thermale et Climatique Française, which organised the French Days of Thermalism commented: “We are very pleased to be hosting the 2023 International Congress on Thermalism and Wellness in Nancy. The French thermalism sector meets regularly to discuss important issues, and we are glad to have the opportunity to share our experiences and knowledge with a wider audience outside France and of course to learn from others too. We are delighted to see the new complex in Nancy opening this year and hope to see a great audience there in November.”

Looking forward to the event is also Ion Vilcu, Director of the UNWTO Affiliate Members Department:

“We are very happy to be supporting our Affiliate Member EHTTA to raise awareness about the many benefits of thermal tourism. Nancy is a great destination to keep building on the knowledge and experiences already discussed during the latest congress in Ourense. We look forward to meeting in Nancy and further explore how thermalism can be developed in other destinations.”

More details about the 2023 International Thermal Congress in Nancy (France) can soon be found here: www.thethermalcongress.com.

– ENDS –

#thermalcongress23 #thermaltourism #nancythermal #thermaltravels #historicthermaltowns

Download the full press release in English here.

For further information please contact:

Simone Zagrodnik, EHTTA Executive Director:                     simone.zagrodnik@ehtta.eu

Notes to Editors:

1.     EHTTA is a membership organisation representing nearly 50 members in 17
countries. 

2.     EHTTA was certified as a Cultural Route of the Council of Europe in 2010 and is one of 48 Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe which provide a wealth of leisure and educational activities for all citizens across Europe and beyond and are key resources for responsible tourism and sustainable development. The certification “Cultural Route of the Council of Europe” is a guarantee of excellence.  

3.      EHTTA was founded in 2009 with six Founding Members: Acqui Terme (Italy), Bath (UK), Ourense (Spain), Salsomaggiore Terme (Italy), Spa (Belgium) and Vichy (France).

Download the full press release in English here. 

Cultural Routes Best Practices Award 2022 for “Thermal Travels” campaign 

Last Friday, at the 11th Annual Advisory Forum of the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe in Chania, Crete (Greece), the European Route of Historic Thermal Towns received the “Best Practices Award 2022” for its “Thermal Travels” promotion campaign. The Board of the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe (EPA) has recognised best practices implemented by certified routes, which have been drawing attention to the priority fields of action of the programme, one of them being the promotion of Europe’s shared cultural heritage.

 

In the early summer the European Route of Historic Thermal Towns ran an online awareness-raising and promotional campaign with the motto “Thermal Travels – Immerse yourself in the spa culture of Europe” in central European countries and North America. The campaign was co-funded by the European Travel Commission and put this Cultural Route in the spotlight, inviting people to discover the spa towns in Europe as a transnational tourism product and as part of visiteurope’s approach of “inviting the curious”.

“I would like to thank the Board of the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Cultural Routes for this prestigious award”, said EHTTA President Manuel Baltar, “I am proud of the fact that the Historic Thermal Towns have received this prestigious award for a second time. The story of the historic thermal towns of Europe is woven into the story of Europe and its people. It is part of Europe’s shared memory, culture and traditions, and as a Cultural Route
of the Council of Europe its cultural heritage is recognised and celebrated. We are working on raising the awareness for this, in Europe and abroad and this is why we truly appreciated the opportunity to co-operate with the European Travel Commission for the first time”, he explains.

 

The range of activities in the framework of the Thermal Travels campaign included a collaboration with FITReisen, a leading tour operator in health travel, who promoted the historic thermal towns on its German-speaking and French-speaking website and  channels.

Three writers and influencers from the US visited France, Germany, Italy, Czech Republic and Greece, with impressive outcomes: resulting in online articles on vogue.com, various newspaper and travel platforms, plus the reach of the influencers focused on wellbeing and spa travel.

 

“This campaign let us target people interested in cultural travel, with an interest to discover smaller, less known destinations and surprise them. Travellers who look for quality rather than quantity, demanding authentic experiences throughout their trip – from accommodation to gastronomy and excursions – have been addressed with an additional aspect: the one of wellbeing and health-related travel”, explained Simone Zagrodnik, EHTTA Executive Director.

 

The Thermal Travels Campaign of the European Route of Historic Thermal Towns was also supported by the Great Spa Towns of Europe, a UNESCO world heritage site since 2021. All eleven towns united in this prestigious group are also members of the European Route of Historic Thermal Towns. 

 

– ENDS –

 

Download the full press release in English here.

For further information please contact:
Simone Zagrodnik, EHTTA Executive Director:                     simone.zagrodnik@ehtta.eu
Catherine Lloyd, Communications, Projects, Support         communications@ehtta.eu
 

Download the full press release in English here. 

EHTTA signs Memorandum of Understanding with UNWTO in Madrid 

The 5^th September was a significant day for the future development of thermal tourism, as EHTTA President, José Manuel Baltar Blanco met with representatives of the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) in Madrid, to sign an official Memorandum of Understanding between the two organisations.

 

The European Historic Thermal Towns Association is an Affiliate Member of UNWTO, and significantly, is the only Cultural Route of the Council of Europe to be associated with UNWTO.

 

The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been developed to enhance cooperation between UNWTO and EHTTA. The MoU means that EHTTA and UNWTO will cooperate closely and consult one another on matters of mutual interest in order to achieve their common objectives, which include:

 

*  The promotion of strategies and mechanisms to further develop the contribution of wellness and thermal tourism to the whole sector.

 

*  The exchange of knowledge and good practices aimed to raise awareness on the importance of the spa industry.

 

*  The development of a partnerships between the public and private sectors to exchange experiences at the European level and contribute to the recovery of the tourism sector.

 

EHTTA is delighted to be working with the UNWTO as part of its work package in 2022, developing and running the International Congress on Thermal Tourism, which will take place in Ourense at the end of September.  The Congress, hosted by the Province of Ourense, of which Mr Baltar is also the President, and will attract over 300 delegates, to hear speakers who are joining the Congress from around the globe.

 

 

Speaking in Madrid, Mr Baltar said:

               “The signing of this Memorandum of Understanding between UNWTO and the European Historic Thermal Towns Association is a huge step forward for the whole thermal sector, not just for our own historic thermal spa towns but for thermal destinations in general, and the whole
ecosystem of heath, wellness and thermal tourism.  EHTTA brings an extra dimension too, with its member towns and regions, which not only developed because of the existence thermal and mineral water springs, but which have been in existence for hundreds and even thousands of years, welcoming visitors who came to take the waters and providing them with healing for body, mind and spirit – a tradition which continues to this day.  Our towns are cultural and heritage destinations as well as health and wellness resorts, and I firmly believe that they deserve to be valued and understood more widely, especially as we recover from the pandemic. 

 

As President of EHTTA, I am very pleased to be working with the UNWTO towards a future mutual understanding and benefit, exchanging experiences and best practices, and making this incredible thermal tourism sector in Europe better known on the world stage.  This is a huge honour for EHTTA, and I am happy to sign the Memorandum of understanding on behalf of thermal towns and regions in our Association.”

 

Mr Baltar was accompanied to Madrid by the President of the Xunta di Galicia, Mr Alfonso Rueda.  Galicia is not only an important thermal
region, but also one of the most famous pilgrimage destinations in the world.  The Way of St James, the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela was the first Cultural Route to be certified by the Council of Europe in 1987, and, with the European Route of Historic Thermal Towns and other Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe has a long pedigree in welcoming tourists who travel for their wellbeing and health, be that of body or spirit.

The opportunity was taken to link the Memorandum of Understanding to the International Congress on Thermal Tourism in September, organised with the Participation of the UNWTO, as not only is the host a thermal province, based in a thermal town, but the wider region, Galicia is famous for being a thermal province, with many small spa towns and destinations, and a region where Cultural Routes cross in a rich tapestry of heritage and culture.

 

For his part, the President of the Xunta, Alfonso Rueda, stressed that Galicia “is the first thermal power in Spain and the second in Europe, with authentic destinations such as Ourense”. He also pointed out that this remarkable thermal town is one of the main assets of the quality tourist offer of the autonomous community, which this year is breaking all visitor records thanks to “the indisputable pull of the double Xacobeo”.

 

 

More details about the International Thermal Congress, taking place in Ourense from 27^th to 29^th September 2022, can be found at https://thethermalcongress.com. It will be linked to the 20^th TERMATALIA Fair of Thermal Tourism, Health and Wellness. 

 

– ENDS –

 

Download the full press release in English here.

 

For further information please contact:

Simone Zagrodnik, EHTTA Executive Director:                     simone.zagrodnik@ehtta.eu

Catherine Lloyd, Communications, Projects, Support         communications@ehtta.eu

 

Notes to Editors:

1.     EHTTA is a membership organisation representing nearly 50 members in 17
countries. 

2.     EHTTA was certified as a Cultural Route of the Council of Europe in 2010 and is one of 48 Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe which provide a wealth of leisure and educational activities for all citizens across Europe and beyond and are key resources for responsible tourism and sustainable development. The certification “Cultural Route of the Council of Europe” is a guarantee of excellence.  

3.      EHTTA was founded in 2009 with six Founding Members: Acqui Terme (Italy), Bath (UK), Ourense (Spain), Salsomaggiore Terme (Italy), Spa (Belgium) and Vichy (France).

Download the full press release in English here.

Téléchargez le communiqué de presse complet en français ici.

THE Thermal Congress: Tourism, Heritage, Experience  

The European Historic Thermal Towns Association (EHTTA) is organising an “International Congress on Thermal Tourism” with the participation of the UNWTO (United Nations
World Tourism Organization).  The Congress, hosted by the Province of Ourense (Deputación de Ourense) and Ourense Council, with the support of the Galicia Region (Xunta de
Galicia) will run from 27^th to 29^th September 2022 in Ourense.

 

EHTTA, which is also a Cultural Route of the Council of Europe was delighted to be included in the UNWTO’s work programme for 2022, and with this prestigious Congress, will be reaching a global audience to examine the phenomenon of “thermal tourism”.  Three major themes will run through the Congress:  Tourism, Heritage, and Experience.

 

EHTTA is delighted to announce that Her Majesty Queen Sofía of Spain is the Patron of the Congress Honorary Committee, where all supporting institutions and associations
are represented (see detailed list below). There will also be a very special guest to start the proceedings on the first morning – Andriy Kulchynsky, Mayor of Truskawez (also known as Truskavets), a famous spa resort in Ukraine, close to the Polish border, which dates back to the 15^th century. 

 

Opening with a special event on UNWTO World Tourism Day (27^th September) and connecting to Termatalia (the bi-annual thermal fair in Ourense), the Congress is designed to be a celebration of thermalism and tourism and the combination of the two.

 

The President of the Province of Ourense, and EHTTA President, Manuel Baltar said: 

“The experience and enthusiasm of EHTTA members in this area (Galicia Region, Province of Ourense, and Ourense Council) and the fact that there has not been a “thermal tourism” congress for a few years was part of the inspiration and impetus behind the application to the UNWTO Affiliate Members Department for their support in developing THE Thermal Congress.  As President of Ourense Government and the President of EHTTA I am delighted to be able to welcome delegates to Ourense in September, truly the “main thermal province” of Spain, and Europe during this time!

 

I am also excited about the timing of the Congress, in the 200^th Anniversary year of the Province of Ourense and the Holy Year of the “Camino de
Santiago”, Xacobeo 2021-2022.  This has given us the inspiration to invite delegates to take part in a “thermal camino” – a combination of thermal tourism and pilgrimage, which delegates can experience for the benefit of body, mind and spirit, for a few days before or after the congress.

We also have a new connection to Madrid with the High Speed AVE train, dramatically cutting journey times, and with sustainability in mind, I hope that delegates will consider arriving by train as well as by air.”

 

European Historic Thermal Towns’ members present best practices

One particular highlight within the congress programme will be a “thermal evening event” at the Outariz Spa, on the outskirts of Ourense. That evening the so-called “Bathrobe Addicts” (originally “Les Across du Peignoir” in their native France) will be seen for the first time in Ourense.  EHTTA Member “La Route des Villes d’Eaux du Massif Central”, where this movement originated, successfully launched this promotional brand and movement five years ago, and it was also adopted by the Belgian thermal town of Spa two years later. Now, in 2022, the Bathrobe Addicts “go international” and will be introduced and presented in Ourense.

 

Workshops and discussions with key partners
On the second day of the Congress, delegates have the opportunity to join workshops featuring important partners of Historic Thermal Towns: the network of the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe and the European Travel Commission. A third workshop is dedicated to European funding for tourism. The afternoon will also include the opportunity to learn more about the implementation of certain projects and strategies from around
the world.

For more information and to register for the Congress, go to www.thethermalcongress.com.

– ENDS –

 

Download the full press release in English here.

Téléchargez le communiqué de presse complet en français ici.

For further information please contact:

Simone Zagrodnik, EHTTA Executive Director:                     simone.zagrodnik@ehtta.eu

Catherine Lloyd, Communications, Projects, Support         communications@ehtta.eu

 

Organizer and Host
European Historic Thermal Towns Association (EHTTA)
Deputación de Ourense (Ourense Province)

Supporting Institutions and Associations

UNWTO United Nations World Tourism Organisation, Affiliate Members Department
Galicia Region (Xunta de Galicia)
Ourense Municipality
TERMATALIA International Fair of Thermal Tourism, Health and Wellness
Great Spa Towns of Europe Association
Enlarged Partial Agreement on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe
European Spa Association (ESPA)
International Society of Medical Hydrology and Climatology (ISMH)

 

Notes to Editors:

1.     EHTTA is a membership organisation representing nearly 50 members in 17
countries. 

2.     EHTTA was certified as a Cultural Route of the Council of Europe in 2010 and is one of 48 Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe which provide a wealth of leisure and educational activities for all citizens across Europe and beyond and are key resources for responsible tourism and sustainable development. The certification “Cultural Route of the Council of Europe” is a guarantee of excellence.  

3.      EHTTA was founded in 2009 with six Founding Members: Acqui Terme (Italy), Bath (UK), Ourense (Spain), Salsomaggiore Terme (Italy), Spa (Belgium) and Vichy (France).