Project acronym: In cultura veritas (852.819,44 ERDF)
Lead Partner: Zagrebačka županija
Project Partners: Udruga hrvatskih putničkih agencija, Muzejski dokumentacijski centar, Razvojna agencija Sotla, OBČINA ŠMARJE PRI JELŠAH, Kmetijsko gozdarska zbornica Slovenije – Kmetijsko gozdarski zavod Maribor
The main project goal is to increase attractiveness, number of visitors and protection of cultural heritage as well as to boost economic activity of local producers through development of sustainable cross-border touristic destination, capacity building of local stakeholders and promotion. Zagreb County and Obsotelje and Kozjansko are regions rich in cultural heritage, oenological tradition and wine routes. However, heritage sites and wine routes have little visitors and do not generate enough income which leads to decrease in economic activity, loss of local identity and deterioration of valuable cultural heritage. Reason for that is lack of offer and cooperation, which will be dealt with in this project. Identified challenges will be tackled primarily through development and promotion of innovative touristic destination which will connect the cultural heritage with wine roads by connecting services and offers from both sectors and their integration (exwine exhibits at museums, tastings in cultural heritage facilities). The new destination will be developed through consultations with stakeholders in the area to obtain realistic and applicable solutions, and ensure sustainability. In order to fully develop the destination partners will invest in attractive, modern technology based visitor infrastructure on selected heritage sites, develop visitors monitoring system and educate stakeholders, in order to strengthen their capacities for active participation thus ensuring a bottom-up approach in the presentation and sales of the offer and its sustainability. Finally, by digitizing the entire product and its overall promotion they will ensure good visibility and attract many visitors. The synergy of project results will ensure an attractive offer for visitors, an increased number of visitors on cultural heritage sites, as well as wine roads, which will lead to increase of revenues for all stakeholders, economic growth of the region and preservation of heritage.
