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The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the relevance of developing literary tourism in Coimbra.

This exploratory qualitative research identifies existent resources and development potential of literary tourism. The instruments of data collection were bibliographic research, questionnaires, interviews and participant observation.

There are few literary tourism products in Coimbra, which contrasts with the number of literary places identified, namely, on the left bank of the River Mondego. Tourism development stakeholders in Coimbra have not paid enough attention to the emergence of literary tourism and the opportunities for the development of new sustainable cultural products related with it.

This study is limited by the size and continual renewal of the corpus, which implies a constant updating of data regarding authors and texts.

This study will lead to the production of a database of Coimbra’s literary resources and a digital literary map, allowing any citizen or entity to design and implement literary tourism products.

To the best of authors’ knowledge, this is the first study reviewing the potential of Coimbra as a literary tourism destination. Moreover, it discusses literary heritage as a source of products and experiences to foster more balanced tourist flows throughout the city.

A World Heritage Site (WHS) since 2013, Coimbra, in the centre of Portugal, is already struggling with excess of tourists and with difficult management challenges. A possible solution for this overtourism problem can be the creation of alternative differentiated tourism products in neighbouring, peripheral small towns capable of diverting tourists and visitors from the sites in overload. Cultural routes inspired by landscapes and historical places and personalities can contribute to the affirmation of a collective memory, combining natural and cultural heritage and adding value to existent heritage resources while providing intercultural dialogues and interaction with the visited community and its distinctive values. This research in cultural tourism and education is about a proposal of a walking route for cultural interpretation intended for young visitors. The theoretical framework draws on the importance of designing tourism products that will engage families in quality time and that heritage interpretation products for young visitors can also create an awareness of the importance of cultural heritage and its conservation. Literature review regarding issues of interpretation in tourism as well as on family and educational tourism preceded an inventory which covers natural and cultural resources used as materials in the route manual and activity guide. An important piece of information was collected through a survey aimed at understanding the socio-economical, cultural and attitudinal impacts that were caused by the UNESCO listing of the University of Coimbra, Alta and Sofia as a WHS. The route project demonstrates how cultural tourism can be a driver of local development through adequately designed non-formal educational tourist programmes to foster an in-depth knowledge of destinations. The results point to the importance of destination managers and marketers to focus on providing informal educational activities which can increase the tourist offer and satisfaction of young and family tourism and thereby strengthen a destination competitiveness and value creation. The tourist route challenges young visitors and their families to know the most relevant cultural aspects of the region, allowing them to effectively contribute to local development, as it invites visitors' interaction with the local community.

This chapter focuses on the territory of Schist Villages Network, located in Central Portugal, which has become the target of sustainable development projects. These projects aim at conservation of natural and cultural landscapes, the valorization of heritage, boosting of socioeconomic parameters, and promotion of excellence in tourism with emphasis on hospitality. Empirical research applied different questionnaires to four stakeholders: local population, local decisionmakers, economic agents, and tourists and visitors. The data obtained were used to analyze stakeholders’ perceptions of cultural heritage and traditional roots, seen as essential elements of the territory’s authenticity, both from the point of view of tourism motivation and satisfaction with lived experiences, as well as to evaluate their loyalty to and image of the network as a destination.