Princess Leonor and Infanta Sofía led the Spanish Royal Family in celebrating the parishes of Arroes, Pion and Candana, which have been awarded the Princess of Asturias Exemplary Town Award this year.

Together, Arroes, Pion and Candana make up Villaviciosa. They jointly received the award this year due to “having managed to preserve a diversified economy based on local resources and that, at the same time, has allowed a recovery of the social base in recent years thanks to the growth and rejuvenation of its population,” according to the citation for the prize.

During their visit, Princess Leonor and Infanta Sofía, along with King Felipe and Queen Letizia, met local officials and dignitaries from the three parishes before touring each and visiting spots and people that helped contribute to the win.

In a short speech in Arroes, Princess Leonor told the crowd: “In the three parishes you have known how to share values, concerns and cultural and family ties to continue building a more favorable environment and a better future. Thank you for your effort! And congratulations on this award.”

The Exemplary Town of Asturias Award is presented annually to a living space or group of people that have stood out either in matters of conservation of nature, cultural or artistic heritage; or have worked on social or economical promotions to show unity within the town.

The Award also comes with a €25,000 prize endowment to the winning town.

The Princess of Asturias Awards were handed out by Princess Leonor in Oviedo.