Development of new sustainable tourism products for cross-border visitors

Programme 2021 - 2027 Interreg VI-A Latvia-Lithuania

Date of latest update: 2026-05-06

Description

Description (LV):

Akmene un Dobele atrodas netālu no lielākām pilsētām, tādām kā Rīga un Šauļi un bieži tiek apmeklētas vienas dienas izbraucienos. Rezultātā tūristi atgriežas lielākās pilsētās, atstājot šos lauku apvidus mazāk apmeklētus un neaizsargātākus. Galvenais izaicinājums abiem partneriem ir digitālu, interaktīvu pārrobežu tūrisma produktu trūkums, kas piedāvātu unikālu, pielāgotu pieredzi. Projekta mērķis ir palielināt kultūras un dabas mantojuma lomu tūrisma attīstībā, veidojot jaunus tūrisma objektus un pilnveidojot esošos. Tas palielinās apgabala pievilcību pārrobežu apmeklētājiem un veicinās to ilgāku uzturēšanos, tādējādi sniedzot ieguldījumu vietējā ekonomikā. Galvenie projekta rezultāti ir vēsturisko mēbeļu un dārza karkasa iegāde Dabikines muižai, Dobeles pils teritorijas labiekārtošana - pils dārza rekonstrukcija. Interaktīva mobilā aplikācija Dobeles pils ārstniecības augu dārzam sniegs vēsturisku ieskatu, digitālā ekskursija pa otro stāvu un terasi uzlabos vietas pieejamību. Tiks izveidots un nacionālajos tūrisma portālos publicēts kopīgs pārrobežu tūrisma maršruts un autospēles maršruts “No Dobeles līdz Akmenei”, kurā būs aptuveni 50 apskates objekti. Apmeklētājus piesaistīs arī interaktīva Dabikines muižas projekcija un āra virtuālās realitātes pieredze. Ieviešot jaunus tūrisma produktus un atbalstot maza mēroga operatorus un kopienas, projekts radīs garākus, daudzveidīgākus maršrutus un veicinās nakšņošanu. Tas stiprinās pārrobežu tūrismu, palielinās reģionālo ekonomisko potenciālu un sniegs ilgtspējīgas priekšrocības vietējām kopienām.

Description (LT):

Akmenės ir Dobelės rajonus, esančius netoli didesnių Rygos ir Šiaulių miestų, turistai paprastai aplanko tik vienadieniams vizitams, o nakvynei renkasi didesnius miestus, tad mažesniems regionams sunkiau pritraukti lankytojus. Partneriai susiduria su tokiu bendru iššūkiu, kaip skaitmeninių ir interaktyvių turizmo produktų, suteikiančių unikalių patirčių, stoka. Projektu siekiama stiprinti kultūros paveldo ir gamtos objektų reikšmę turizme, kurti naujus turizmo objektus, tobulinti esamus. Šios veiklos padidins vietovių patrauklumą turistams bei skatins juos likti projekto teritorijoje ilgesniam laikui, o tai prisidės prie vietos ekonomikos augimo. Įgyvendinant projektą numatoma įsigyti baldus ir augalinę sienelę Dabikinės dvarui, atnaujinti Dobelės pilies teritoriją kartu sutvarkant pilies sodą. Dobelės pilies lankytojams žinių apie pilies vaistinių augalų sodą suteiks interaktyvi mobilioji aplikacija, o skaitmeninis antrojo aukšto ir terasos turas pagerins objekto prieinamumą. Kuriamas bendras turizmo maršrutas ir interaktyvus žaidimas – automobilių maršrutas „Iš Dobelės į Akmenę“, į kurį bus įtraukta apie 50 lankytinų vietų. Dabikinės dvaro lankytojus sudomins interaktyvi projekcija ir lauko virtualiosios realybės patirtis. Sukūrus naujus turizmo produktus atsiras įvairesni turizmo maršrutai, skatinantys turistus likti šiuose rajonuose ilgiau nei vienai dienai. Taip bus stiprinamas tarptautinis turizmas, didinamas regionų ekonominis potencialas ir sukuriama ilgalaikė nauda vietos bendruomenei.

Description (EN):

Akmenė and Dobele, located near larger cities like Riga and Šiauliai, are often visited for short, one-day trips. As a result, many tourists return to the larger cities, leaving these rural areas less visited and more vulnerable. A key challenge for both partners is the lack of digital, interactive cross-border tourism products offering unique, tailored experiences. The project aims to enhance the role of cultural heritage and nature in tourism development by creating new tourism objects and improving existing ones. This will increase the area’s attractiveness for cross-border visitors, encouraging longer stays and boosting the local economy. The main outputs of the project include acquisition of historical furniture and garden frame for Dabikinė Manor, improvements to Dobele Castle site, including reconstructing the Castle garden. An interactive mobile application for Dobele castle medicinal plant garden will provide historical insights, while digital tour of the second floor and terrace will improve site accessibility. A joint cross-border tourism route and road game car route “From Dobele to Akmenė”, featuring about 50 points of interest, will be created and published on national tourism portals. Additionally, an interactive projection of Dabikinė Manor and outdoor virtual reality experience will also engage visitors. By introducing new tourism products and supporting small-scale operators and communities, the project will create longer, more diverse routes and encourage overnight stays. This will strengthen cross-border tourism, increase regional economic potential, and provide sustainable benefits for local communities.

Expected Achievements (EN):

Develop and create attracting cultural tourism sites to increase the number of cross-border visitors and increase the length of their stay To create a digital and qualitative promotional material of the tourism offer on the Latvian-Lithuanian border for achieving 15% increase in number of tourists one year after the completion of the project.

Project outputs: Cooperating partners(EN)
Supported tourism sites(EN)

Thematic information

ICT and digital society Cultural heritage and arts Tourism

Priority: (VI-A_Lv-Lt_4) Priority 4 Economic potential of tourism and heritage

Priority specific objective: RSO4.6. Enhancing the role of culture and sustainable tourism in economic development, social inclusion and social innovation

Priority policy objective (Interreg specific objective): PO4 A more social and inclusive Europe implementing the European Pillar of Social Rights

Type of intervention: 166 Protection, development and promotion of cultural heritage and cultural services

Partners (2)

Lead Partner: Dobeles novada pašvaldība

Partner’s ID if not PIC: 90009115092

Department: Dobele County municipality

Address: Brīvības, LV-3701 Dobele, Latvia

Department address: Brivibas, LV-3701 Dobele, Latvia

Legal status: public

Organisation type: N.a.

Website: http://www.dobele.lv

Total budget: EUR 217 642.82

Partner’s programme co-financing: EUR 174 114.25

Partner’s programme co-financing rate: 80.00%

Partner contribution: EUR 43 528.57

Contractors:

Name: Legāts
VAT registration or tax identification number: 40003814669

Akmenės rajono savivaldybės administracija

Name: Akmenės rajono savivaldybės administracija

Department: Administration of Akmene District Municipality

Partner’s ID if not PIC: 188719391

Address: L.Petravičiaus a., LT-85132 Naujoji Akmenė, Lithuania

Department address: L.Petravičiaus a., LT-85132 Naujoji Akmenė, Lithuania

Legal status: public

Organisation type: Local public authority

Website: http://www.akmene.lt

Total budget: EUR 169 542.27

Partner’s programme co-financing: EUR 135 633.81

Partner’s programme co-financing rate: 80.00%

Partner contribution: EUR 33 908.46

Partners map

Partners and Projects info

Akmenė District Municipality Administration

Development of new sustainable tourism products for cross-border visitors

Partners and Projects info

Dobele County Municipality

Development of new sustainable tourism products for cross-border visitors

Lead partner

Project partner

Summary

Project name (EN): Development of new sustainable tourism products for cross-border visitors

Project acronym: Cross Tour

Project ID: LL-00276

Project start date: 2025-03-03

Project end date: 2027-03-02

Project status: ongoing

Relevant linked projects:

Important preservation and development of the cultural and historical heritage for the improvement of the cultural tourism offer in the Zemgale region, ERDF, No.5.5.1.0/17/I/002 (EN) | The goal of the project was to preserve, protect and develop a significant cultural and historical heritage Zemgale, restoring cultural monuments of national importance both in Dobele and in Jelgava and Bauska, creating in them new, mutually complementary tourism services.
During the project the chapel of Dobele Castle was built, making it a center of cultural heritage and interactive culture, education, crafts and tourism, providing and offering new services: a multifunctional hall, interactive education and entertainment for visitors. This Project further develops historical and cultural heritage of Dobele Castle into interactive tourism destination. (EN), Following Livonia for the order's crusade in "West Zemgale" in the footsteps of the Crusader/INTERREG V-A Latvia-Lithuania Programme
2014-2020, LLI-453 (EN) | During the Project new thematic cross-border cultural tourism route was created - a niche product presenting the "Traces of Livonian Crusades to Semigallia". The travel route stretches from Dobele (LV), through Tervete and Žagarė till Joniškis (LT). Cultural tourism route is based on the research materials and historical overview prepared by a team of Lithuanian and Latvian history experts. The aim of such historical overview was to show the ordinary reader the diversity of cultures, present evidence and knowledge in the light of newest archeological research available.
The current Project intends to expand the results of this project by reconstructing Dobele Castle garden for organization of events during summer, by acquiring furniture and environmental object "Garden frame" for newly reconstructed Dabikine Manor to fulfill tourists needs for new destinations.
Currently, there is information on Dobele Castle in latvia.travel https://www.latvia.travel/lv/apskates-vieta/dobeles-pils, however, development of QR codes for Dobele Castle garden plants, developing digital tours for both tourism sites and creating joined tourism route as well as newly developed Roadgame "From Dobele to Akmene" will add value to previously implemented project and its results. (EN), Regeneration, Development and Maintenance of Public Territories with Environmental Problems, (Land CLEAN), No. LLI-408 (EN) | The overall objective of the project was to regenerate public areas with environmental problems and develop them into recreational areas for inhabitants in Birzai (LT) and Dobele (LV).
The site in Dobele, which was developed during the project, is close to Dobele Castle and now is very attractive for visitors and supplement existing objects. In Dobele 3,46 ha of contaminated area was converted into recreational area with lighting, benches, fountain.
During this Project recreational area will be expanded with having possibility to include in ones walking paths Dobele Castle garden with detailed information on plants in it. Also, points of interest in recreational area developed in this project might be included into Roadgame "From Dobele to Akmene". (EN)

Total budget/expenditure: EUR 387 185.09

Total EU funding (amount): EUR 309 748.06

Total EU funding (co-financing rate): 80.00%

Co-financing sources:

ERDF: Amount, EUR 309 748.06. Co-financing rate, 80.00%.

Investments, deliverables, policy contributions

(bullets are inserted automatically and may be incorrectly placed)

Infrastructure investments:

I1.1 - Improvement of the garden of Dobele Castle - EUR 147 943.33 - country: Latvija (LV), town: Dobele, street: Brivības , 2C, postal_code: LV-3701, Latvija (LV00), Zemgale (LV009)

Deliverables:

Creation and update of project profile on www.latlit.eu
Publishing of Project information on official websites and social media accounts of partners
Publishing joined tourism route in latvia.travel and lithuania.travel
Durable plaques or billboards to mark physical investments (5 years after final payment)
Displaying the Programme logo or EU flag at events
Information in local or regional press
Customer satisfaction survey
Informative poster at premises
Making of equipment or other investments with stickers
Furniture for Dabikine Manor
Garden frame installed
Improved area of the garden of Dobele Castle
Interactive mobile application "Plants of Castle garden" (QR codes)
Workshop in Dobele
Workshop in Akmene
Digital tour of Dobele Castle second floor and terrace
Digital tour of Dabikine Manor
Joint cross-border tourism route
Roadgames route "From Dobele to Akmene"
Classical Music festival in Dabikine Manor
Dobele Castle festival in Dobele
Interactive projection for Dabikine Manor
Outdoor virtual reality experience set

Contribution to wider strategies and policies:

EUStrategyBalticSeaRegion Policy Area "Tourism" aims to reinforce the macro-region's cohesiveness through tourism.
Actions include facilitating networking and clustering of tourism stakeholders, strengthening their tourism-related project initiatives and activities. It also aims to mobilize the full potential for sustainable tourism in the Baltic Sea region by facilitating coordination with stakeholders through joint actions, workshops and communication.
Regarding the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region, PA Tourism contributes to the following objectives, sub-objectives and indicators:
The Project contributes to the sub-objectives "Connecting people in the region" and "Fostering the digital transformation of tourism" of objective "Connecting the region" by developing joined tourism routes and new Roadgame "From Dobele to Akmene".
Other National development plan of Latvia for 2021-2027
Direction: Balanced regional development
The business structure of economically weaker regions needs reorientation towards technology-intensive manufacturing and service sectors that create greater added value. Simultaneously, development of small businesses, including in the cultural and creative industries and tourism is to be encouraged. The Project clearly contributes to the goal by developing sustainable tourism destinations and cross-border routes in BSR.
Other Latvia 2030
Objective "Spatial Development Perspective"
Development centres of regional significance are towns which are important culture and/or production centres of the region with developed social infrastructure and varied services – Kuldīga, Talsi, Tukums, Saldus, Dobele, Bauska, Ogre, Aizkraukle, Sigulda, Cēsis, Limbaži, Smiltene, Alūksne, Gulbene, Balvi, Preiļi, Līvāni, Ludza, Krāslava, and Madona. The potential of these cities is considerably exceeding the potential of the rest of small towns. In the future development centres of regional significance should continue specialisation, developing mutually supplementing co-operation, thus achieving the attraction of human resources and economic activity equal to development centres of national significance.
The Project contributes to the objective by developing tourism destination as a part of cross-border tourism route.
Other Lithuania 2030
The project goes in line with the key initiative for change in respect to strategic goal of Smart Economy - to build corporate and institutional capacities to make use of the opportunities provided by global
information networks.
Other National Progress Program of Lithuania 2021-2030
The Project contributes to the "Goal 12: Ensure sustainable and balanced development of regions" by developing tourism destination as a part of cross-border tourism and Roadgames route.

Programme Common Output Indicator:

RCO 077 - Number of cultural and tourism sites supported, Measurement unit:
RCO 087 - Organisations cooperating across borders, Measurement unit:

Programme Common Result Indicator:

RCR 077 - Visitors of cultural and tourism sites supported, Measurement unit:
RCR 084 - Organisations cooperating across borders after project completion, Measurement unit:

Project part of European Union Macro-Regional or Sea Basin Strategy: EUSBSR

EUSBSR Priority (Policy) area / Horizontal action:

EUSBSR Degree of compliance:

Information regarding the data in keep.eu on the programme financing this project

Financing programme

2021 - 2027 Interreg VI-A Latvia-Lithuania

Latest month of project-partner-call data publication

2026-05

No. of projects in keep.eu / Total no. of projects (% of projects in keep.eu)

67 / 67 (100%)

No. of project partnerships in keep.eu / Total no. of project partnerships (% of project partnerships in keep.eu)

230 / 235 (97.87%)

Notes on the data

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Development of new sustainable tourism products for cross-border visitors

Description

Thematic information

Partners (2)

Partners map

Summary

Investments, deliverables, policy contributions

Information regarding the data in keep.eu on the programme financing this project

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