Los libros de viajes de la ilustración. Una fuente documental para la didáctica de las ciencias sociales

Travel books were a tool used to impart and disseminate knowledge. Unfortunately, their educational value has been lost over time and, today, they have been almost entirely sidelined. However, as has been demonstrated, they can be used in the classroom for teaching purposes, as they offer great potential for exploring historical content, particularly at secondary and sixth-form level. They constitute a documentary source providing information on various subjects (eyewitness accounts, descriptions, engravings, etc.), presented in a wide variety of forms and styles. Whilst it is accepted that the information provided by travellers may contain exaggerations or subjectivity, these are inherent to any source and do not detract from the value of the material, provided it is cross-checked with other types of documentation.