Smart Tourism: The joint future of Pannonian region

Programme 2021 - 2027 Interreg VI-A IPA Hungary Serbia

Date of latest update: 2026-01-21

Description

Description (EN):

As a global industry, tourism is highly competitive and continuously developing in supply and demand sides alike. New proposals emerge constantly to attract the attention of tourists, who have more information and tools with which to select the most attractive destinations and proposals. Digital advances are transforming how the world connects and impacts how data is shared between ecosystems, affecting behavioral patterns, and encouraging innovation and sustainable, responsible growth strategies. Societies are becoming increasingly connected and interdependent with digital technology, changing how we interact with people and places. Information and communication technologies (ICTs) have completely modified the dynamics of all industries – including tourism – in terms of processes, products and adaptation to clients’ new demands. Accelerating digital transformation in the tourism sector is a priority for destination management, especially with reference to natural resource management, heritage and culture preservation. The creation of smart tourism is a key to building the “tourism of the future”: a new sense of tourism that is sustainable and safe, inclusive and resilient, celebrates local cultures and identities, provides economic and social benefits, helps preserve the environment and uses ICTs and artificial intelligence. The tourism development strategies in both Serbia and Hungary state that the key is to decentralize governance and make other stakeholders and SMEs play an active role in developing digital solutions to improve the guest experience thus answering to the modern demand; promote sustainability and accessibility as a strategic objective, channeled through sector-based interests to involve actors across all sectors. Education and training remain a core theme. This project is in line with the mentioned above and it thrives to give its contribution to the fulfilment of the goals. A Smart Tourism Platform will be created based on a cutting-edge technological infrastructure, which guarantees sustainable development of the cross-border Pannonian region, promotes accessibility for all, increases the quality of the experience in the destination and improves the quality of life of residents. Key features of a Smart Tourism Platform development include the following five pillars: good governance, innovation, technology, sustainability and universal accessibility. Besides that, the SMART HUB will be established with an aim to be the place for training and education purposes, place of gathering of Digital Tourism Community members; place for meeting of the public and private stakeholders; place for preparation of the new touristic products, digital routes and exhibitions available for the disabled ones via VR equipment and mapped 360 tours; place for brainstorming about the implementation of the modern digital trends. This project will join both countries into developing unique touristic product based on digital technology.

Expected Achievements (EN):

The main outputs of this project are: - The Joint Smart Tourism Framework created; - The Smart HUB for tourism development established; - The Smart Tourism tools developed Educated private and public stakeholders; The results of activities conducted during implementation of the project are: - Mapped state and potential in both countries for smart tourism development - The digital signage equipment positioned; - The training for public and private stakeholders conducted and - The experts and promotional events organized - The tool using artificial intelligence to provide unique tourist offers according to the personal preferences developed; - the Digital Tourism Community / membership platform created - the 360 virtual tours developed. The Smart Tourism methodology helps reduce the digital gap and inequality through the adoption of technology in the territory. Finally, it also promotes the consolidation of public-private collaborative schemes based on innovation and enables sustainable development of the destination in its environmental, economic, and socio-cultural aspects; The results will be measured by chosen indicators in 24 months period. This project could be seen as a pilot in terms of building the “tourism of the future”. The outputs will enable long term sustainability of the Pannonian region as a touristic destination, thus becoming example of good practice with an ability to be multiplied to many other destinations as well. Capitalization of the results will be evidenced through the increased number of visitors, through the digital networks, but also through the larger influence of tourism in the economic development of cross-border region.

Website: https://hungary-serbia.eu/

Thematic information

ICT and digital society Tourism Community integration and common identity

Type of intervention: 165 Protection, development and promotion of public tourism assets and tourism services

Partners (3)

Lead Partner: Pokrajinski sekretarijat za privredu i turizam

Partner’s ID if not PIC: 100230

Address: Bulevar Mihajla Pupina 16, 21101 Novi Sad, Serbia

Legal status: public

Organisation type: Local public authority

Website (not verified): http://spriv.vojvodina.gov.rs/rs/

Total budget: EUR 458 133.00

Partner’s programme co-financing: EUR 389 413.05

Partner’s programme co-financing rate: 85.00%

Partner contribution: EUR 68 719.95

Contractors:

Name: Branislav Filipović PR Agencija za poslovne delatnosti Benedetto Cotrugli Subotica
VAT registration or tax identification number: 100716328

Univerzitet u Novom Sadu, Ekonomski fakultet u Subotici

Name: Univerzitet u Novom Sadu, Ekonomski fakultet u Subotici

Partner’s ID if not PIC: 100254

Address: Segedinski put 9-11, 24000 Subotica, Serbia

Legal status: public

Organisation type: Higher education and research organisations

Website: https://www.ef.uns.ac.rs/

Total budget: EUR 454 340.00

Partner’s programme co-financing: EUR 386 189.00

Partner’s programme co-financing rate: 85.00%

Partner contribution: EUR 68 151.00

Contractors:

Name: FIFTH SCREEN DOO NOVI SAD
VAT registration or tax identification number: 108501719

DKMT Duna-Körös-Maros-Tisza Eurorégiós Fejlesztési Ügynökség Nonprofit Közhasznú Kft.

Name: DKMT Duna-Körös-Maros-Tisza Eurorégiós Fejlesztési Ügynökség Nonprofit Közhasznú Kft.

Partner’s ID if not PIC: 100153

Address: Tábor utca 7/b, 6722 Szeged, Hungary

Department address: Tábor u. 7, 6722 Hungary

Legal status: private

Organisation type: Interest groups including NGOs

Website: http://www.dkmt.net

Total budget: EUR 410 568.00

Partner’s programme co-financing: EUR 348 982.80

Partner’s programme co-financing rate: 85.00%

Partner contribution: EUR 61 585.20

Partners map

Partners and Projects info

University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Economics in Subotica

Smart Tourism: The joint future of Pannonian region

Partners and Projects info

DKMT Duna-Körös-Maros-Tisza Eurorégiós Fejlesztési Ügynökség Nonprofit Közhasznú Kft.

Smart Tourism: The joint future of Pannonian region

Partners and Projects info

Provincial Secretariat for Economy and Tourism

Smart Tourism: The joint future of Pannonian region

Lead partner

Project partner

Summary

Project name (EN): Smart Tourism: The joint future of Pannonian region

Project acronym: SMARTour

Project ID: HUSRB/23R/22/004

Project start date: 2024-08-01

Project end date: 2026-07-31

Project status: ongoing

Total budget/expenditure: EUR 1 323 041.00

Total EU funding (amount): EUR 1 124 584.85

Total EU funding (co-financing rate): 85.00%

Co-financing sources:

IPA/IPA II/IPA III: Amount, EUR 1 124 584.85. Co-financing rate, 85.00%.

Investments, deliverables, policy contributions

(bullets are inserted automatically and may be incorrectly placed)

Contribution to wider strategies and policies:

The Multi-annual EU Work Plan of the European Agenda for Tourism 2030 cover key topics: digitalisation of tourism by effective use of digital tools within SMEs and microenterprises for resource management, internal work processes, service provision, marketing, communication with clients and supply chains and new service development; support pilots that develop the innovative and sustainable use of digital tools and practices in tourism.
Smart Tourism is an EU initiative implemented by the EC, which promotes principals of sustainability, accessibility, digitalisation as well as cultural heritage in smart tourism development thus chosing European Capital of Smart Tourism each year.
EUSDR among other sectors (under PA 3) promotes culture and tourism thus encouraging sustainable tourism; investing in innovative forms and infrastructure; fostering skills and education.
On national level, in tourism strategy of the Republic of Serbia 2016-2025 defined activities cover: Coordination of activities and capacity building, Use of new technologies and ICT applications (the most advanced ICT and software solutions in order to enhance the promotion and capacity utilisation of local and national tourism products and Establish a centre for ICT promotion of the tourism sector of the RS; Establish a permanent centre for training in tourism destination management.
In 2021, Hungary developed a revised Tourism 2.0 Strategy -the key is to decentralize governance and make other stakeholders and SMEs play an active role in developing digital solutions to improve the guest experience and answer to the modern demand; promote sustainability and accessibility as a strategic objective, channelled through sector-based interests to involve actors across all sectors. Education and training remain a core theme.
This project is in line with the mentioned above and it thrives to give its contribution to the fulfilment of the goals.

Programme Common Output Indicator:

RCO 001 - Enterprises supported (of which: micro, small, medium, large), Measurement unit:
RCO 077 - Number of cultural and tourism sites supported, Measurement unit:
RCO 087 - Organisations cooperating across borders, Measurement unit:
RCO 115 - Public events across borders jointly organised, 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: EUSDR

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

Financing programme

2021 - 2027 Interreg VI-A IPA Hungary Serbia

Latest month of project-partner-call data publication

2026-01

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

59 / 59 (100%)

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

154 / 154 (100%)

Notes on the data

Languages

Contact Form

Smart Tourism: The joint future of Pannonian region

Description

Thematic information

Partners (3)

Partners map

Summary

Investments, deliverables, policy contributions

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

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