Portugal Historic Villages Smart Land Project

Knowing the importance of digitalisation as a factor in attracting investment, retaining and attracting talent, maintaining current residents and attracting others, in 2020 the Network of Historic Villages of Portugal began to benefit from fibre-optic infrastructure and wireless connectivity, with a wireless network access monitoring system, app and beacon system, a project that mobilised private initiative and public agents and which is presented as the 1st stage of the digital transition process recommended for the Network. This reality allowed the Association in articulation with its public and private partners to develop new projects.

Project Summary:

Installation of wi-fi (wireless) and Bluetooth (beacon network) networks, in the historic centres and public spaces with the largest influx of tourists in the twelve Historic Villages of Portugal.

The wi-fi networks are made up of access points, managed by centralised software based on wireless controllers. The beacon networks (bluetooth) consist of beacons installed outside or inside the tourist or cultural resources, which interact with an electronic application (apps), and web platform, to obtain information based on the proximity of users. In this way, conditions are ensured for the access of tourists, and also of the population, to information content in a faster and simpler way.

The solution is composed of a mobile application, integrated with a content management backoffice, which works as an information aggregator element.

This operation aimed at the following objectives

Provide the historical centres and areas with the highest tourist influx with quality wireless technologies;
Provide electronic applications (apps) to personalise the relationship with tourists and interact with beacons.
Provide multimedia content (text, photo, video and audio);
Provide analytical information and reporting based on access to wireless technologies;
Enhance the tourist experience;
Insert the project in "smartlands" dynamics.