Tavira is Algarve town with highest number of churches
Thousands of tourists, mostly Spanish, head every year in Holy Week to Tavira, the town with the most churches in the Algarve, to visit the various places of worship located on the banks of the river Gilão.
In all, Tavira has 21 churches, a number that is explained by the various religious orders that have been installed there, 14 of which are the responsibility of the Parish of Tavira, with others belonging to the Santa Casa da Misericórdia, the municipality and also to brotherhoods and others, writes Lusa.
In the small Church of Misericórdia, known by its tile panels, tourists have been telling the State news agency how impressed they are with the faith of the people from the south of Europe, as well as the scale of religious celebrations here.
Diogo Sousa, Heritage technician of Artgilão, a company created by the churches of Tavira to recover, safeguard and boost religious heritage, says the main visitors every year are the Spanish, followed by Brits, the French, Italians, Germans and even some Canadians.
To promote visits to the town’s iconic churches, Artgilão has created the Tavira churches card which allows visitors to visit five churches.
According to Lusa, it is now being modernized with the provision of a QR code that directs visitors to a ‘site’ where they can finds all the information on each place of worship, in several languages.
“The cards of the churches of Tavira are an asset to our churches because they are a draw for people to come and visit them, not only tourists and foreigners, but also locals, who do not pay but can acquire the card and gain access to churches,” said Diogo Sousa.
Source: LUSA
