The European Culture Route Fortified Monuments opens a new tourist experience world of exiting Fortified Heritage

The European culture tourism is subtly getting a new attraction – the European culture route FORTE CULTURA. Fortified monuments across Europe are full of life with enthusiastic events, festivals, concerts and performances, interesting museums and exhibitions, offers for children and families, reproduction of historical reencounters as well as commemoration of human fates.

New world of travel

The new European cultural route FORTE CULTURA leads to particular architectural points of protection for life and goods, shows the composition of bulwarks and cannons with romantic castles and palaces as well as sacral buildings. The soldiers’ hard everyday life in draughty casemates will be tangible. But first of all, FORTE CULTURA is a sign of the establishing and comprehensive experience of fascinating fortification monuments. So far the experience of fortification monuments is not mainstreamed in tourism, at best a side issue. Travelers and explorers, avoiding touristy mainstream and taking time for special things, have fun to unravel well-known things. The new European culture route is the result of a transnational co-operation between thirteen project partners from eight Central European countries, co-funded by the European Union.

Europe, we are coming!

Culture Route generates economic effects of Fortress maintenance

Fortified monuments all over Europe have a joint tourism brand for the first time: FORTE CULTURA®.

The European Culture Route FORTE CULTURA® draws the tourism market’s attention to eventful fortified monuments. It offers a platform for international marketing of fortresses and strengthens their economic power.

The first ones to sign a cooperation agreement with the Culture Route FORTE CULTURA were 5 fortified monuments of the Franconian region (g) (left picture). The fortified cities Kronach, Kulmbach, Coburg, Weissenburg and Lichtenau belong to the sub-brand “Franconian Fortress Archtitecture”.

More than 1.500 monuments of “architectura militaris” in Central Europe have an enormous potential for cultural and active tourism. Besides big citadels and tremendous mountain fortresses, the cities, castles and fortresses with a special fortress architecture attract the tourists. Also fortified cathedrals, churches and monasteries are very exciting. In many bunkers and on former borders (Iron Curtain) memorials remind of disastrous wars.

FORTE CULTURA provides an insight into those spectacular, often secret, mysterious sites and appeals therefore to visitors.

FORTE CULTURA forms a new central platform for international marketing of fortified monuments via the tourism portal www.forte-cultura.eu.

Travel programs, an event calendar, a media library, fortress portraits or a property platform offer the members new possibilities of international presentation.

Culture Route Development in transnational Cooperation

Over two and a half years, seven fortifications and six experienced institutions from eight
Central European countries supported the development of the new tourist culture route
fortified monuments FORTE CULTURA. The culture route development follows a systematic working programme with 34 specific tasks. It includes 11 transnational meetings and conferences, coordinated by the European Cooperation Centre of Fortified Heritage – ECCOFORT.

Important support and experiences gave the European Institute of Cultural Routes in Luxembourg, in person Mrs Capp, which certified more than 25 European cultural routes. FORTE CULTURA aims to fulfil the quality conditions of certification in the future.

In 2014, more than 45 travel recommendations between the Baltic and Adriatic Sea were elaborated. Therein 94 fortified monuments are present. ECCOFORT executes the tasks of the culture route agency (office@eccofort.eu).

FORTE CULTURA – It goes on in trans-national
cooperation!

Network foundation conference in Kostrzyn nad Odra (PL)

The further culture route coordination will be organised by the new founded European Fortress Tourism and Fortress Marketing Network e.V., Berlin.

“FORTS-2-MARKET” – under this slogan the legal association operates. It guarantees to continue networking, marketing and tourism development in FORTE CULTURA in a wider range. With the adoption of a statute and membership fees, there is now also the possibility to invite fortified monuments, cities, organisation and experts to participate in the transnational cooperation for a strong network.

The first managing committee of the association was elected, consisting of five representatives from Germany, Hungary and Poland.

Branding Concept of FORTE CULTURA

FORTE CULTURA® is a registered trademark. The label is designed as a “Leading Brand”, as umbrella for different sub-labels.

It becomes possible to add the designations for single fortification, regional groups of fortified monuments, fortification of historical empires etc. to the main logo. This way allows to brand sub-labels at the tourism markets in a corporate
design.

Each Fortress or fortress group should be visible.

Main tourism segments and types of journeys

Main tourism segments and types of journeys FORTE CULTURA focuses on two main tourism seg-ments, which are furthermore increasing:

Culture tourism:
including City Tourism, Sightseeing Tourism, Heritage Tourism, History Tourism, Event Tourism, Landscape Tourism, Wellness / recreation, Culinary Tourism etc.

Active tourism:
including Cycling, Hiking, Boating, Sports, Adrenalin sport, Caravanning, Biking, Nature Tour etc.

The fortified monuments are places for enormous offers in these segments. A wide variety of target groups will be addressed, such as the children and families, youth, sportsmen, health conscious people, experts, adventure oriented people or culture oriented seniors, as well as groups like pupils and students.

As Types of Journeys sightseeing journeys, weekend trips, study tours for experts, bicycle tours, hiking tours or boat trips are provided In the future it is planned to cooperate with tour operators for bookable tours.

Culture Route Development in Transnational Cooperation

Agreed Development Strategy in 2015 / 2016

Until the end of 2014 the culture route FORTE CULTURA suggested travel programmes in 12 European regions and landscapes. Such as the Baltic Sea coast line, the river landscape of Elbe, the culture landscape of Silesia, Franconian landscape, classic holiday regions like Hungary, Slovenia and North Italy.

Principle aims of culture route implementation

In the further development of FORTE CULTURA the biggest challenge is the implementation into the tourist markets. At the same time a step by step expansion is intended. The participating fortifications agreed the following tasks:

• expansion into neighboring regions and states
• establishing the culture route management
• establishing of the culture route marketing
• increasing the quality and diversity of tourist offers
• completion of the travel programs in Central Europe

Such an ambitious culture route project with Europe-wide dimension needs a further support from European funding programmes. The management board is mandated to negotiate with European, national and regional bodies for future sponsorship.

Catalogue of FORTE CULTURA travel recommendation

As an important step in the culture route development, the first catalogue with 45 travel recommendations in 12 European regions and landscapes are developed. Nearly 100 fortified monuments are included.

Some tour operators and incoming agencies are interested in a cooperation with the culture route FORTE CULTURA as a new brand on the tourist market in culture tourism and active tourism. Selected travel ad-vices are visible on the website www.forte-cultura.eu.

The fortified monuments are invited to participate in the common development of attractive tourist programmes under the label FORTE CULTURA.

Example of a FORTE CULTURA travel advice

As an example, a bicycle tour along the unique Danube river landscape invites to visit fortified monuments, like the Austrian fortress barrier against the Ottomans in Komarom and Komarno, the wonderful fortified Basilica in Esztergom and the UNESCO world cultural heritage protected fortified City in Budapest.

European Fortress Tourism and Fortress Marketing Network e.V.

FORTS-2-MARKET = Cooperation for Success

The European Fortress Tourism and Fortress Marketing Network is an association of fortified monuments and experienced institutions, founded in 2014 from bodies of 5 European countries. The network manages the European culture route fortified monuments – FORTE CULTURA.

As a non-government organization the association wants to increase the European fortress tourism and the quality of the fortress marketing. Tourism shall generate new income in order to preserve and use the cultural heritage fortified monuments.
European Fortress Tourism and Fortress Marketing Network e.V.

Our network connects a touristic quality product under the leading Brand FORTE CULTURA with qualified fortress marketing.

European culture route FORTE CULTURA – an efficient tourism product

With the European cultural route FORTE CULTURA an international brand of fortress tourism and a competitive touristic product was made, which will be further developed by a transnational cooperation. The cultural route offers every fortified monument the chance to connect and develop new joint tourism products.

“FORTS-2-MARKET”- a strategy for international fortress marketing

The network offers a broad range of modern marketing instruments and targeted marketing activities, specifically geared to the needs of fortified monuments. The participating monuments will acquire a broad presence on international tourism markets.

The fortified monuments of Europe are very welcome to use the cultural route FORTE CULTURA and the activities of FORTS2-MARKETS in a profitable way.

The network is a registered association under the German law of associations and a non-government organization. It is open to corporations (fortress organizations, communes and experts), which want to support the fortress tourism and fortress marketing.

Founding members are among others representatives of the Fortress City Kostrzyn nad Odra (PL), the European Cooperation Centre of Fortified Heritage e.V -ECCOFORT- Berlin (DE), the Fortress City Kronach (DE), representatives of the Fortress Region Lviv (UA), and the Fortified Ideal City Josefov (CZ), the fortress organization Fort Monostor Komarom (HU), experts of the Humboldt-University at Berlin (DE) and the Thuringian Institute for Advanced Studies and Education (DE).

More information on that can be found on:

• www.central2013.eu
• www.forte-cultura-project.eu Website of the CENTRAL EUROPEAN PROGRAMME

Management Board of the European Network

• Mr Dr. Frank Riesbeck, Humboldt-University Berlin (DE) Chairperson of the board
• Mr Hartmut Röder, ECCOFORT reg.ass, Berlin (DE) 1. Deputy Chairperson
• Mrs Erika Farkas, Fort Monostor Komarom (HU) 2. Deputy Chairperson
• Mr Dirk Röder, ECCOFORT reg.ass, Berlin (DE) Treasurer
• Mrs Agnieszka Zurawska-Tatala, City Kostrzyn nad Odra (PL) Secretary
• Honorary president of the network is the mayor of the city
  Kostrzyn nad Odra (PL), Mr Dr. Andrzej Kunt.