We can look at a city as a simple repository of buildings, monuments, streets, restaurants, shops, squares, and green spaces devoid of life but with a glorious past. As tourists though, it’d be nice if a city map could reveal something more, such as places and cultural initiatives creatively shaped by the local community.

Remapping the City: A Map of Madrid and Its Community Initiatives – Illustration by Los Madriles

An alternative mapping project like that of Los Madriles in Madrid, Spain can then become a new way of looking at the urban territory and fully understand its great diversity. All major cities should have one, don’t you agree?

If 2017 was the Year of Sustainable Tourism, 2018, at least in Europe, will be that of Cultural Heritage. Well, the tourism project that probably best represents this transition bears the signature of home rental giant Airbnb, in collaboration with the Italian Ministry of Culture and the National Association of Municipalities.

Italian Villages Project: Sharing Rural Italy – Illustration by Airbnb

Italian Villages, this is the name of the interesting joint project, supports and promotes internationally twenty small rural communities, from north to south of the country. We like it for at least three good reasons:

• Offers an alternative to the usual tourist routes;
• Can guarantee the survival of villages otherwise destined to disappear;
• In the country with the largest number of World Heritage sites (53), it shows that there can be life beyond World Heritage sites.

The “Italian Villages” project is part of a wider national initiative, which involves 1,000 towns throughout Italy, and provides a rich and varied calendar of events.