The “Huerta” is opened up to the world from thanks to La Contraparada Visitor Centre. Located between the districts of Javalí Nuevo and Javalí Viejo, La Contraparada Visitor Centre is open to the public on weekends from 9.30 am to 2 pm.

It is equipped with the latest innovations and offers information on the evolution of the Murcia’s “Huerta” and the Segura River, its history and traditions, crops, etc., as well as on the heritage wealth of La Contraparada, recognised as a Cultural Interest Site and area of special ecological value.

Guided visits and attention to groups

The Visitor Centre will open to the public on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays from 9.30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and is monitored by two informants who, in addition to meeting the demands of the visitors, carry out guided tours during opening days to all groups that so request and that are made up of at least five people.

La Contraparada Visitor Centre also has hours of attention to reserved groups that prebook visits and will take place on Thursdays and Fridays at the most appropriate time for the requesting groups. Reservations for these activities can be made at the email address info@ecopatrimonio.es and by calling Ecopatrimonio 968 21 25 18, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

In order for it to be visited by as many people as possible, the Visitor Centre carries out a Programme of Popular Visits for municipal associations, Women's Centres, Senior Centres and other groups. In addition to the visit, there will be an outdoor tour, following the route of the new signposted local trail.

The Visitor Centre, that has been adapted and set up with provisions with a 340,000 euro investment, houses an interactive museum of the “Huerta”spread over two floors, to which different resources have been incorporated that take advantage of the potential of new technologies (video-mapping, room self-recording, touch screens,QR codes, multimedia guides for the trail, etc.). Several of the audiovisual resources are also translated into sign language.

Murcia Río Park

"La Huerta is the historical, cultural and ecological legacy of all Murcian citizens that we, the current generation of Murcia, must preserve," said Mayor José Ballesta, who added that "the Centre begins its journey in one of the most emblematic enclaves of Murcia’s“Huerta”, next to the Contraparada Dam or Azud Mayor, which was built between the 9th and 10th centuries and continues to distribute the Segura River’s water throughout the Huerta”.

Precisely in this environment, the City Council plans to create a park, within the second phase of the transformation project 'Murcia Río' ”, said José Ballesta, who added that“from Murcia City Council, in collaboration with the Association of Naturalistas del Sureste (ANSE), we have already planted more than 2,800 trees of autochthonous species, which has meant the removal of more than 2,000 tons of CO2 from the atmosphere ”.

Ground floor: ‘Riverand Huerta. Origin and evolution'
The ground floor is used as a reception area for visitors, where they can learn about all aspects of the centre, pick up a multimedia guide or download QR programmes for mobile devices to help them complete the contents of the visit.

In addition, it has an audiovisual presentation (called 'The river that gives life') and a large multipurpose room. A large videowall has been installed on the access stairway to the first floor that projects images of the river in motion.

Upper floor: Identity of the Huerta
The upper floor has been designed as a large space with a unitary and pleasant atmosphere in which the contents are displayed in four main thematic areas.

The first area reflects the origin, history and evolution of the Segura River, the “Huerta” and the Contraparada, a second area about crops and uses in Murcia’s Huerta, focusing on traditional agricultural techniques, local varieties, biodiversity in the crops, the main produce and the local gastronomy. A third area is dedicated to Huerta identity and culture, and a final one is dedicated to the interpretation of the main ecological and environmental values of the Contraparada and the Segura River.

Self-recording room: ‘I’m Huerta too’
In an annexed space, visitors will find the “I’m Huerta too" Self-Recording Room, a place where they can recount their personal experiences related to the Huerta. A selection of these recordings can be viewed both on the website and in the Visitor Centre itself, through an interactive application. This resource seeks, on one hand, to further familiarise visitors with Centre’s content and, on the other, to provide a fun immersive experience.

Multimedia technology

The museum project includes the use of QR codes to download videos and PDF documents, the generation of 360º content for viewing on VR devices and a multimedia guide for the the Contraparada interactive trail. These elementscomplementthe information contained in the panels. It is worth highlighting that the multimedia guide and the audiovisual ‘The River that gives life’ are available in sign language, thus facilitating access with hearing disabilities.

An interpretive walk in the outdoor area
An outdoor itinerary has been set up, at almost 2 km long and adapted for all visitors, which allows an interpretive walk through the area and provides historical and environmental information. The itinerary, which has a circular route, has directional and interpretive signage, which reveals information on plant species of riverside forests,the main species of birds that we can observe along the route, where they are born the two major irrigation channels in Murcia, or what architectural elements shaped one of the most important hydraulic engineering works on the Segura River, among other contents.