The transformation into a lifesized Smurf Village changed the lives of the residents of this quiet town of just 240 residents. Previously the place only had one bar, but after its success there are now six restaurants.
We have to accept that without the fame we gained from drawing, no one would visit us. Previously there was accommodation in Júzcar for a maximum of 25 people, now we have space for 100 tourists
Alicia Guerrero, shopkeeper from Júzcar
In addition to Smurfprinted Tshirts waiting for a customer, Alicia also offers painting the children's nails blue and the opportunity to customize the dolls' famous white hat on weekends for three euros (about R$16). Cartoon. “We have to reinvent ourselves in order to continue to grow,” he says.
For more than a decade, Júzcar was known as the “first Smurf town in the world,” but due to a recent dispute with the film producer, this year they had to remove large puppets that stood at the town's entrance and change the tourist spot's name to Blue Village.
Some facades and walls painted with the dolls can still be seen along the streets, but these will also have to be removed, according to the city's tourism manager.