With a rich natural and cultural heritage, the cross-border region of Osijek-Baranja County in Croatia and the West Bačka District in Serbia already had the potential to draw visitors from near and far. However, its tourism offering was not adapted to those with special needs. The VISITUS project, thanks to funding from the European Regional Development Fund and Instrument for Pre-Acession Assistance II, and Instrument for Pre-Acession Assistance II, focused on welcoming blind and visually impaired visitors and has improved the attractiveness of the area for all tourists.
VISITUS: Helping blind and visually impaired tourists enjoy the Croatia-Serbia border region
- 17 January 2020
Through this project, we raised awareness among the general public of the importance of giving everyone in our community – including the blind and visually impaired – the same conditions when it comes to completing everyday tasks, as simple as they may seem. As a city proud of its great cultural and tourism heritage, we needed to make it accessible to everyone.
In collaboration with local associations for the visually impaired, a wide range of activities and technology-enabled tools were developed, including: new cultural and gastronomic tourism routes spanning the region; information stands with tactile maps and multilingual interactive boards in palaces like museums, tourist centres and attractive landmarks; a free mobile app available in Serbian, Croatian, English and Hungarian; and braille tourist guides.To support the initiative, over 50 local tourism professionals received training in helping visually impaired visitors.
Cross-border collaboration
The three project partners – the Serbian city of Sombor, the Croatian municipality of Erdut, and the Serbian Institute of Economic Sciences – worked together to develop a comprehensive plan. Their goal was to strengthen and diversify the cross-border tourism offering, while ensuring it was adapted to the needs of visually impaired visitors.
This was achieved through collaboration with local associations for the blind and visually impaired. Representatives of these associations were involved in mapping the new tourism routes and in testing the information stands, interactive boards, app and tourist guide. They played a role in the overnight tours that were organised for the promotion of the project.
Inclusive tourism bringing wider benefits
‘Social’ or ‘inclusive’ tourism represents a relatively new and unfamiliar concept in tourist theory and practice. The VISITUS project serves as a concrete example of how marginalised groups can and should be catered to, and how this can revitalise a region’s tourism offering.
As well as providing new, more accessible amenities and tourist information, the project created valuable synergies between the tourism industry, the local community and associations for the blind and visually impaired that have contributed to changing mindsets.
For example, as part of the project, specialised training courses were organised for tourism industry workers, including guides, hotel managers, receptionists and waiters. Not only does this ensure that blind and visually impaired visitors have the best possible experience, and feel that their needs are understood, but it also offers valuable transferrable skills to workers. Over 50 local tourism professionals followed the training.
A media campaign was created to convey the importance of ‘inclusive’ tourism, and promote the project’s achievements. This, combined with active promotion by local tourist boards, tourist agencies, and Serbian and Croatian associations for the blind and visually impaired, put this border region firmly on the map as a particularly welcoming place for all visitors.
Total investment and EU funding
Total investment for the project “VISITUS / Enriching Tourism Offer for Persons with Visual Impairment and Blindness” is EUR 353 048, with the EU’s European Regional Development Fund contributing EUR 300 090 through the Interreg IPA Cross-border Cooperation Programme Croatia – Serbia 2014-2020. The investment falls under the priority “Contributing to the development of tourism and preserving cultural and natural heritage”.