ROOTS Tourism - Erasmus+ Project

15/08/2026

Foster Competencies on Roots Tourism in VET Schools to Promote Sustainable Tourism and Destinations in Europe
Erasmus+ KA2 2025-1-HU01-KA220-VET-000354851
2nd Poster in English, Hungarian, Polish and Greek
https://tudasalapitvany.hu/roots/

01/08/2026

Roots Tourism and the Panigyria of Ikaria, Greece

A beautiful island, mutual aid, local feasts and roots tourism - how do they combine?

Ikaria can be called the Greeks' favourite alternative Greek island. Named after the legendary Icarus who famously flew too close to the sun, it is unique in many ways: a Blue Zone regarding the longevity of its inhabitants, a Red Zone regarding their political preferences, and a Fun Zone regarding its famous feasts, the "Panigyria" of Ikaria, built on a traditional culture of Mutual Aid!

The Ikarian Panigyria (plural, the single is "panigyri") are among the most famous and distinctive traditional festivals in Greece, only matched in fame by those in Arcadia, Peloponnese. While deeply rooted in history, the modern iteration of the Panigyria - characterized by massive crowds, collective financing, and all-night revelry - emerged amid post-WWII poverty as a solidarity mechanism. Today, they are deeply intertwined with the concept of Roots Tourism for the Ikarian diaspora. Read more:

Ikaria can be called the Greeks' favourite alternative Greek island. Named after the legendary Icarus who famously flew too close to the sun, it is unique in many ways: a Blue Zone regarding the longevity of its inhabitants, a Red Zone regarding their political preferences, and a Fun Zone regarding....

01/08/2026

https://www.provincia.campobasso.it/flex/cm/pages/ServeBLOB.php/L/IT/IDPagina/3485

PROGETTO ERASMUS PLUS SUL TURISMO DELLE RADICI - ROOTS OF TOURISM

01/08/2026

Foster Competencies on Roots Tourism in VET Schools to Promote Sustainable Tourism and Destinations in Europe
Erasmus+ KA2 2025-1-HU01-KA220-VET-000354851

2nd meeting: 21-22nd July, 2026 (Rome. Italy)
https://tudasalapitvany.hu/roots/

25/07/2026

Roots tourism begins with places that matter!

In Central and Eastern Europe, many family stories are linked with migration, changing borders, multicultural communities and places remembered by previous generations. This makes roots tourism an important topic not only for tourism development, but also for education.

A roots tourism experience may begin with a family photograph, a cemetery, an old school, a local archive, a former workplace or a story told by a resident. These places may not always be famous tourist attractions, but they can carry deep personal meaning.
Through the Roots Tourism project, we want to show how such stories and places can become part of responsible heritage tourism education and vocational training.



Funded by the European Union.

24/07/2026

From family memory to professional skills...

How can roots tourism become part of tourism education?
How roots tourism can be introduced into tourism schools and vocational education in a practical and responsible way?
Roots tourism is not only about travelling to ancestral places. It is also about learning how to work with family memory, local heritage, archives, oral histories, communities and digital storytelling.
For future tourism professionals, this means developing skills such as communication, ethical storytelling, cultural sensitivity, cooperation with local stakeholders and responsible interpretation of heritage.

Read more on the project website: https://roots-tourism.eu/

Funded by the European Union.

07/07/2026

https://www.euronews.com/travel/2025/12/14/arriving-in-my-ancestral-town-offered-me-closure-inside-the-rise-of-roots-tourism-in-italy

Americans are tracing their Italian ancestry with the help of genealogy experts, DNA testing, and a rise in roots tourism.

02/07/2026

https://www.ambrosetti.eu/en/news/roots-tourism-can-generate-up-to-141-billion-in-italy/

A study on the economic impact of people of Italian descent visiting Italy, made by TEHA Group and NIAF