26 August 2013
Newsletter 4

In this issue:

• The Project
• Final conference in Norway
• Project results
• Project deliverables
• Kick-off Meeting
• Challenges for the near future

The Project

The project - co-financed in 2012 by the European Commission, Enterprise and Industry Directorate-General - has intended to contribute to the lack of a common and coordinated European communication and marketing strategy for cultural tourism initiatives.
The project has enabled a more integrated promotion and visibility strategy shared by the 3 transnational routes  Francigena-Santiago-Olav (FSO) recognized by the Council of Europe.

Main objectives of the project are:

• Innovative marketing
• Assured quality and wider involvement of enterprises
• Increased visibility of the three Routes

Final conference in Norway

On 29 and 30 July 2013 the final event of the project took place in Trondheim with the presentation of cooperation outcomes and products. The event was held in the headquarters of the Norwegian partner at Nidaros Pilgrim Centre, attended by CERTO partners, local Authorities and the Deputy Mayor of Santiago de Compostela, Reyes Ley.

The event, which was part of the celebrations of the St. Olav Festival, was organized by Nidaros Pilgrim Centre.

At the end of of the event, during which the project results were described by the Coordinator, Giovanni Pattoneri, and his colleagues Berit Lanke, Cathrine Ronca, Jonas Solstad Sonnesyn, Sorina Capp, Silvia Lecci and Flavia Ramil, a tasting of typical foods took place; "flag food products", also described in an ad-hoc publication realised as part of the project, are meant to represent the three routes involved in the project: the Camino de Santiago, Via Francigena Way of St. Olav.

Results of CERTO project

• Prototype of a Tour Box assembled and presented to the public in 3 major events
• Enterprise certification process enacted in 3 partner areas
• Attendance of n° 3 international fairs (Madrid, Berlin, Milan)
• 3- Route flag product documentation
• Special section devoted to CERTO project in partner web-sites
• Educational Tour in Spain to promote school tourism and cooperation among tour operators of the 3 Routes

Deliverables of CERTO project

• nº59 certified enterprises in Italy, Norway and Spain
• nº1 Publication in 4 languages on flag products (n. 1.000 printed copies disseminated plus n.1 electronic version on internet)
• nº4 Newsletters
• nº1 Web area in LP portal & other partners' web sites
• nº30 press release and press articles
• nº1 Tour Box (prototype offering packaged tours)
• nº3 stand presence/seminar at European fairs

Challenges for the Near Future

Dissemination of project results to other cultural routes:

• To share a more permanent wealth of experiences among the routes
• To promote innovative projects among public bodies, enterprises, school institutions etc. for each route
• Widen and foster the network of enterprises certified as per route quality system
• Enlarge the Tour Box offer contents and distribution modalities