The inland areas of the province of Castellón harbour a significant number of pilgrimage routes and mountain sanctuaries dating back to medieval times. Each year, these manifestations of intangible heritage and popular religiosity welcome a growing number of participants, drawn by nature, their heritage elements, and sport. These routes have given rise to new ones, and athletic events have appeared, some of them enjoying international fame, illustrating the strong relationship between cultural heritage, nature and sport, to such an extent that it has become a significant problem, as the high levels of outside participation can undercut the original nature of these practices.

Rural areas in Spain are currently suffering from a serious problem known as depopulation. One of the strategies to reverse the depopulation process is the rise of sports tourism. The main objective of this research is to analyse the offer of hiking accommodation in order to be able to propose sports products and services adapted to the clients. We intend to text whether the accommodation offer meets the needs and expectations of hikers and, therefore, whether the area is attractive and generates a tourist product with added value. A qualitative methodology was used through interviews. The profiles interviewed are made up of the different interest groups that revolve around sports tourism in both the private and public spheres. A total of 16 semi-structured interviews were carried out, lasting between 40 and 70 min. The results indicate that the different hiking lodgings have been adapting their offer to make it more competitive, as indicated by previous research on attraction factors. However, it could be interesting to combine the efforts of the different accommodations in order to improve the destination. The implications of this study are various: they describe the current situation in terms of sports tourism in the inland area of Castellón, laying the foundations for setting possible short and medium-term objectives. On the other hand, they provide a larger corpus of information on the idiosyncrasy of the area studied, which translates into a transfer of knowledge that can be used by public administrations and by private companies.

From time immemorial, transhumant livestock farmers have continued to work in the countryside, living an intense and symbolic form of social distancing. Their work consists of moving around with their herd or flock, mainly sheep, so they can provide their animals with the best pastures. This research study, using ethnographic techniques, located and interviewed a group of livestock farmers to understand how the use of smartphones has changed their professional and social habits. Even now in modern times, this group still lives in isolation, working alone in the mountains. However, they have also been undergoing profound change due to the development of virtual social networks and information channels, mainly through groups in online applications. This enables them to keep fully up to date with all the topics they are interested in. This new connectivity has allowed them to make better-informed financial decisions based on more and better information. It has also meant they can produce proposals for joint action when faced with problems that affect them as a group. Lastly, the widespread use of mobile phones has increased their ability to communicate with friends and family, breaking previously held social taboos and barriers.

Purpose: In this article, the authors analyse a complex social process affecting historic public paths in rural areas in southern Spain. Despite the fact that urban populations are demanding the enhancement of this type of natural heritage for tourism, sports and recreational use, some parts of the network have been abandoned or usurped.Design/methodology/approach: The study is multidisciplinary, comprising three interlinked studies. The cartographic study comprises an inventory of public paths in rural areas based on administrative sources. The legal study analyses local, regional and national regulations governing agricultural, environmental, heritage, sports and tourism uses of the infrastructure. The sociological study analyses social discourses on the uses of public paths, and identifies conflicts between farmers, landowners, environmentalists, sportspeople and tourists.Findings: The preliminary results identified an important public paths network in Andalusia, approximately 160,000 km. The legal study found that there are laws regulating use, although local authorities do not monitor compliance or provide solutions to enhance management. The sociological study determined the attribution of environmental, cultural and economic value to public paths, but also the existence of conflicts between rural and urban populations.Research limitations/implications: Given that this is ongoing research, only state of the art and some preliminary albeit sufficiently consistent results are presented.Practical implications: The results could help to guide public policy and governance of public paths.Social implications: Public paths promote rural development and a green/sustainable economy.Originality/value: The research results and conclusions are original.