History, culture, tourism, arts and ancient crafts in the european adriatic territory

The project promotes the utilization of existing cultural values and tourist potential of target territories creating local identities having as references both promotion and tourism management based on the appeal factor of historical villages, walled cities, castles and cultural sites comprised in the these territories. These factors contribute to the development of the economic potentials of the local economy assuring the highest employment rates and improved living conditions for the population of the target territories.The project supports both the preservation of these areas and the use of historical and cultural determinants in order to promote sustainable tourism as an essential factor in developing urban areas together with their surrounding rural areas.The envisaged activities include: The promotion of the historical villages, fortified cities, cultural sites and cultural itineraries in the target territories; The sensitization of the target area stakeholders and local policymakers/operators to the economic and social advantages that can be derived from creating a network of common experience and by the affiliation to the to-be constituted network of cross-border centres with a high tourist appeal; The management of pilot projects regarding particular territories and itineraries; The development of a institutional training and promotion shared network among cross-border centres with a high tourist appeal; The creation of a series of promotional and educational activities together with media representatives and tour operators. The main goal is to strengthen the bond of common origin among Adriatic cities through territoria cooperation, the aim being to create and to put into practice a common cross-border strategy emphasizing local history and heritage, cultural tourism and other factors essential for the economic rebirth of historical centers. Specific objectives:- development of a shared network of cross-border tourist centers of high level tourism appeal, creating an institutional multilateral database of maps/itineraries/sites geared to culture and tourism - creation of a website permanently updated with all pertinent new information and of a common marketing strategy - realization of pilot projects for the promotion of sites and itineraries of special interest - involvement of policymakers to better plan and administer the territory as well as promote it to advantage; - combined and coordinate use of the new information technology (IT) to better promote the territory, making accessibility easy for all;- promotion of marketing activities by creating advertising material and developing communication by means of the national and international press, and opinion makers - cooperation between public and private sectors in the development of sustainable tourism in the territory - definition of common strategic-administrative approaches geared to the development of local economy, integrated and compatible with the historic/cultural heritage - increase in the employment rate in sectors such as tourism,services,culture,food farming, craftsmanship - definition of the methods to create a well-articulated offer of hospitality that reflects the territory and promotes the quality and variety of the tourism services; - involvement of other sectors (craftsmanship, services) - cultural centres and promotion of local high quality products and traditional crafts - improvement in the promotion of new products of culture, wine and food and handicrafts to assist development of a sustainable cultural tourism; - development and promotion of the territory through the realization of combined marketing actions aimed at the prolongation of the tourist season - fostering of tourist appeal in these areas through specific promotion methods, tourist advertising and merchandising (educational, brochures, adverts, etc.)