Toledo’s sister cities

Toledo has 11 town twinning agreements  with cities all over the world.  We can find evidence of this on the streets, squares and in  parks of Toledo.

Destino Toledo invites you to learn more about our sister cities.

*What is town twinning?*

Town twinning arose after World War II with the goal of creating ties and common projects among similar cities in different countries.  At present, Spanish cities have more than 300 foreign “sisters.”

Toledo (Ohio) in the USA:

Toledo, Ohio is possibly Toledo’s best known sister city, and in addition to being the first to be given this title (1931), it was the first twinning with a US city.

Parallel to the Calle Comercio we find the street dedicated to this sister city.  It was previously called Calle Belén, and used to be starting point for our guided tours in Toledo.

Nara, Japan:

The Japanese city of Nara has been a sister city with Toledo since 1972. The Spanish city has a primary school called City of Nara in its honor. There is also a public park with the same name in the Buenavista neighborhood, with details of Japanese culture.

Furthermore, in commemoration of the 40 years of relations between the two cities, a Cherry Tree Garden has been created in Toledo where Japanese visitors can plant a cherry tree.

The Japanese city also has schools and streets named for Toledo.

Parque de Nara, Toledo

Parque de Nara, Japón

Agen, France

This district of France has been twinned with Toledo since 1973. A street with its name, near the Avenida de Europa, reminds us of this twinning, in addition to temporary exhibits of paintings by artists from the city of Agen as well as cultural exchanges with students from the French city.

Guanajuato, Mexico

Setting aside the not too friendly past, the two cities have been twinned since 1978, and in 2008 the mayors of both cities ratified this twinning.  The International Cervantes Festival held there is very important and was declared Heritage of Humanity in 1988.

Guanajuato is also twinned with other Spanish cities: Avila, Alcalá de Henares, Seville and Segovia among others.

Monumento a Cervantes, Guanajuato, México

Safed, Israel

The City of the Three Cultures was a must for twinning with the Israeli city of Safed, where a large part of the population are descendents of Sephardic Jews.  The uniting of the two cities took place in 1981.

VelikoTarnovo, Bulgaria

VelikoTarnovo is the cultural center of northern Bulgaria, and it twinned with Toledo in 1983.

Aquisgrán, Germany

Toledo and Aquisgrán, the city where the Emperor Charles I of Spain and V of Germany was crowned, sealed their twinning in 1984, and since then many cultural, economic, sport and touristic exchanges have united them.  We can also find a square and park named for this German city.

Last year a ceremony was held in Toledo to commemorate the 30 fruitful years of sisterhood with this German city.

Parque de Aquisgrán, Toledo

Corpus Christi, United States

This city in the state of Texas twinned with Toledo in 1989. There is also a street in Toledo in its honor near the Avenida de Europa.

Damascus, Syria

Damascus, also known as the City of Jasmine, is the capital of Syria and one of the oldest populated cities in the world, with more than 4,000 years of history.  It is also an important cultural and religious center, quite in common with its sister city, Toledo, with whom the tie was made in 1994.

Old Havanna, Cuba

Old Havanna is the oldest part of the Cuban capital city and one of the most touristic.  It reflects the mix of different eras: from a Spanish crown colony passing to the English and French crowns, even becoming a U.S. territory.  Declared Heritage of Humanity by the UNESCO, it has been twinned with Toledo since 2005.

Some other of Toledo’s twinned cities in Spain are Córdoba, Castelldefels, Torrelavega, San Cristóbal de la Laguna and Vivero (Lugo).

 

Heraklion, Greece

Last but not least among cities twinned with Toledo is the birthplace of El Greco, a figure so important for our city.  So last year an agreement was reached expressing the desire of both cities to strengthen their mutual relationship and cooperation in the fields of art, social activities, and sports.

To learn more about this artist who settled in Toledo, what could be better than our Guided Tour “Toledo of the Three Cultures and El Greco”  http://www.destinotoledo.net/rutas-por-toledo/ )

Heraklion, Grecia

¿Do you want to know more about the City of the Three Cultures?

Visit our  website  www.destinotoledo.net and discover the best Guided Routes in Toledo led by official guides.