- Development of Touristic Marketing Study for the Mehedinti-Vidin CBC area
The development of a touristic marketing study is the basis of all project activities. It is the starting point in the touristic and awareness campaign. Its aim is to capitalize the natural and cultural heritage and promoting it for a sustainable economic use. This study identifies common elements of the 2 regions in order to conserve, develop and promote common natural and cultural values in a unified way. The study gives solutions for a complete valorification of the tourism potential in order to attract a large number of tourists. The study identify the most representative tourist attractions, especially cultural, historical artefacts, natural values; common folklore elements. Also the study propose a number of minim 6 tourist attractions that will become souvenir designs based on the same criterion of promoting the regional identity.
- Developing a travel guide and a touristic map of the Mehedinti – Vidin area
Making a travel guide and a touristic map of the area is required for an efficient promotion of the most representative attractions and the 6 touristic routes identified in the Touristic marketing study. The purpose of making these materials is to promote Mehedinti–Vidin area as an integrated tourist product, as a common destination. The touristic guide has useful information for tourists to easily plan their visits and effectively in the CBC region. The informations are complemented by a photo an album of landmarks that can be visited in the area. Also, the 6 touristic routes are found in a touristic map.
- Information seminars
This activity is needed to conduct the awareness campaign. Its scope is to raise awareness among the people about the opportunities offered by the tourism potential of the area in connection with the promotion and preservation of cultural and natural values and its sustainable economic use. Each seminar include the following topics:
- presentation of the Touristic marketing study conclusions
- presentation the 6 touristic attactions
- presentation of the opportunities for development of a sustainable tourism in accordance with environmental policies
- presention of the opportunities for development of a sustainable tourism by making traditional crafts
During the seminars,the project team identify at least 60 romanian and 60 bulgarian,with manufacturing skills (embroidery/crochet, painting, wood, natural materials – souvenirs) as target group the following activity.
- Organizing 3 handicraft workshops in Romania
The activity is part of the campaign design for community awareness, for promoting the natural and cultural heritage for its sustainable economic use. Tourist souvenirs are an efficient way to promote tourism, an opportunity to start a small business. During this activity 60 people will learn to make souvenirs using environmental friendly techniques, having as a model the 6 tourist attractions. 3 workshops will be organized with 20 people (10 RO and 10 BG)/workshop. Based on the project team research regarding the specificity of craft traditions in the area, will be organized handicraft workshops in pottery, painting and wood carving.
- Organizing 3 handicraft workshops in Bulgaria
The activity is part of the campaign design for community awareness, for promoting the natural and cultural heritage for its sustainable economic use. Tourist souvenirs are an efficient way to promote tourism, an opportunity to start a small business. During this activity 60 people will learn to make souvenirs using environmental friendly techniques, having as a model the 6 tourist attractions. 3 workshops will be organized, with 20 people (10 RO and 10 BG)/workshop. Based on the project team research regarding the specificity of craft traditions in the area, will be organized handicraft workshops on sewing/embroidery, tapestry/weaving and collage topics.
- Creation festival
This activity is part of the campaign design for community awareness. Its aim is to support conservation and promoting of the immaterial heritage. The event promotes the traditions, folk music and crafts of the Meheditni – Vidin area. Basically it is the place where the 2 traditions and cultures meet. The event gathers the 120 handicraft workshops participants, Romanian and Bulgarian. The Creation Festival will be held in Vidin municipality to better promote the event, in a central location to ensure optimal conditions (sufficient space and high population flux) and it is scheduled to last 3 days. All the artisans participants in the workshops and other artisans will be invited to make souvenirs in the open air under special tents. It will be a good opportunity to share their experience, to initiate collaborations, to establish cooperation and communication methods, to raise awareness of the local community on the opportunities created by the cross-border tourism cooperation and on the importance of manufacturing souvenirs made of environmental friendly material.
- Making of 6 films
The aim of this activity is to promote Mehedinti – Vidin area as an integrated tourist product, as a common destination and will give this area’s reputation. The 6 films constitute in a visual dynamic presentation of cultural heritage objectives identified in the Marketing study: historical, religious, natural, ethnographical attractions. This activity is absolutely necessary to the project since it represents a modern, efficient and valuable promotion instrument. Not only will it advocate de touristic importance of the Mehedinti – Vidin area, but it will also endorse the partnership created in the project, the cooperation between Romania and Bulgaria in a common initiative to tackle real issues. Each film has a maximum of 15 minutes and it is independent of the others. Yet, all films can (and will at times) be screened as a whole. The concept of the films has been developed as a reiteration of the project: everything can be regarded from an individual perspective, but in reality all these parts belong to a whole. Created as a complex tourist product, the short films provide information meant to stimulate the tourists’ interest to visit the Romanian-Bulgarian area. They provide information about the culture and the traditions of the 2 nations, describe the natural riches of the 2 regions aiming at promoting cultural and natural diversity, the common elements linking the 2 countries.
- Creating a website
Making a website is necessary for promotion of tourism in the Mehedinti – Vidin area online, for the dissemination of tourism information structured in the project The Internet has become the nerve center for the global economy. More than 80% of prospective tourism customers start their research on the internet. A well designed and maintained website is a very important tool for any tourism enterprise to attract these potential customers and generate high quality leads. This website in not only a promotion tool for the Mehedinti – Vidin area, but also for the project, for the partnership created and for the financer. All projects relevant results are available for free download.
- Participation in 6 national tourism fairs
Participation in the national tourism fairs is needed to promote at national levels the Mehedinti – Vidin area as a tourist destination. The aim of this activity is to increase in expected number of visits to supported sites of cultural and natural heritage and attraction. During the fairs is a special event organize – the traditional common RO-BG manifestation called “evening sitting”, an old custom found in the rural areas. The project team will organize such “evening sitting” during tradeshows: 3 Romanian and 3 Bulgarian artisans that participated at the handicraft workshops will be the main protagonist putting “in stage” the afore described tradition. Pro Mehedinti Associationl participate to in 3 national tourism fairs trade-shows in Romania and RPSD Vidin participate to in 3 national fairs trade-shows in Bulgaria.
- Romanian – Bulgarian Conference
The aim of the conference is to present the results of the project and establish a joint tourism promotion and economic development mechanism based on the principles of the Marketing Study developed within the project. The participants are Romanian and Bulgarian from the Mehedinti – Vidin area, representatives of local authorities, tour operators, institutions in charge of organizing events and promoting local and regional area, owners of pensions and artisans, lecturers, namely 45 participants. This event set the promoting directions for the joint tourism offer in the region, the development of tourism products and offer in regional tourism cooperation, strengthening partnerships between all tourism service providers, between those who produce souvenirs and those who sell them, reciprocal promotion of the two areas considering the fact that tourists are attracted mainly by programs that include circuits (as complex terms of the offer, content, themes). Conference Program:
- 1st day
- Presentation of Marketing Study – conclusions
- Presentation of joint nature and culture heritage of the Mehedinti – Vidin area
- Presentation of the existing tourism offer in the Mehedinti – Vidin area
- 2nd day
- Presentation of the Mehedinti-Vidin tourist potential and its exploitation in terms of economical potential
- Business opportunities, namely the development of tourist services in the tourism and crafts sector.