HERITAGE

Summary of the project

The European Commission has suspended the cooperation with the Russian Federation within this Programme and participation of Russian beneficiaries in project implementation is suspended as well.

Fortresses, castles and manors are essentials of Latvian and Russian common heritage. However, their potential to foster economic and social development in the cross-border regions is underused. Cooperation among partners will encourage effective and sustainable involvement of these objects in the regional development by promoting tourism products and services, supporting local entrepreneurship and attracting of tourists and investors.

Project “Preservation and promotion of the cultural and historical heritage in Latvia and Russia” covers Latgale, Vidzeme and Pskov regions that have great prospects for development of tourist products to embrace common heritage. The project turns to capacities of Daugavpils Fortress (Powder Magazine), Cesvaine Castle and Bekleshev’s Manor House in Pskov (Town Culture Centre) that will be renovated to get a fresh start as regional tourism and recreation focal points.

At the same time, the project will address people engaged in cultural and tourist sectors, including local entrepreneurs, who require knowledge and experience to develop and market tourist products and to use cutting-edge techniques to make their homeland more attractive for locals and visitors.

Project soft activities include development of cross-border tourist route supplemented by four thematic brochures, one training session on tourist marketing for stakeholders and three cross-border events in support of renovated objects.

Implementation of the project will result in improvement of heritage tourism sector and buildup of common tourist identity in the cross-border area. It aims to increase domestic and international tourist flow by 19 thousand people in 2023 and to contribute to SME-friendly environment for local entrepreneurs.