The Santiago de Compostela Pilgrim Routes was the first certified cultural route in 1987. Since then, the Council of Europe’s Cultural Routes program has identified 38 thematic routes with thousands of cultural sites and events in 60 countries, across Europe and beyond.

These routes offer a multitude of opportunities for today’s travellers seeking to discover authentic heritage sites and the lifestyles that accompany them, with a view to reducing their ecological footprint and promoting tourism that supports the sustainable development of local communities.

An invitation to travel and learn

The publication Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe 2020 presents all the routes from the oldest ones, including Santiago de Compostela, the Hansa or the Phoenician Route – to the most recent ones including the Iron Curtain Trail, the Liberation Route Europe or the Routes of Reformation. They are divided into five thematic poles: history and civilizations, arts and architecture, religious heritage, landscapes and crafts as well as industrial and scientific heritage.

The publication «Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe – Brochure for travellers (2020)» is an invitation to travel, learn and get involved in many programmes offered by the Cultural Routes.

On October 8th the European Route of Historic Gardens (ERHG) will defend its candidacy to become a Cultural Route of the Council of Europe. This certification is a guarantee of excellence, and the ERHG aims to get this mention as a mean to recognize the historic, artistic, social and natural value of historic gardens.