As summer kicks into full gear, one begins to search for destinations that are both easily reachable and rich in outdoor, artistic, and natural experiences. Yet, such places are not always easy to find. On one hand, mass tourism continues to dominate, often overshadowing lesser-known routes; on the other hand, the priority given to economic gain, frequently leads to less investments in security, accessibility and environmental sustainability.
So how can we turn this around and enhance the way we experience travel? One solution stands out—training, training, training. Training touristic operators to opt for sustainable practices, training cultural and creative industries to broaden their vision and diversify itineraries; and more importantly ensuring destinations are open to all, regardless of physical ability or background.
The ADRION-funded project CREATURES (2014-2020) has embodied this transformative approach. With a focus on quality, accessibility, and sustainability, it has tried to elevate tourism standards across its cooperation area—and beyond. The project didn’t just inspire change; it generated new knowledge and services especially for imroving outdoor tourism offers towards disabled people. The results are now been used for building new project ideas through other EU funding schemes, like Horizon and the EUI (European Urban Initiative).
Marino Cavallo, project leader, explains that CREATURES “allowed the Metropolitan City of Bologna (Lead partner) to transfer the tools developed for enhancing accessibility in tourism offers and promoting tourism more inclusively to the Horizon project Amigos. This project, led by the City of Hamburg, promotes safe and sustainable mobility through a partnership with key cities like Istanbul, Reykjavik, and Nazareth. “A great success“, continues Mr Cavallo, “demonstrating not only the high quality of the products developed during the project, but also revealing a genuine need within our territories. Disability is too often overlooked in tourism offerings, especially when outdoor activities are involved.”
The impact of the project did not stop there. It led the City of Hamburg – through the EUI project CUSTOM—to invite the Metropolitan city of Bologna to further develop these good practices through dedicated funds to be devoted to the accessibility of disabled persons for outdoor tourism.
Synergies across funding schemes
The 2021-2027 programming period highlights closer coordination between Interreg and mainstream programs as well as EU direct funding schemes, broadening the scope for coordinated actions. According to a recent study “While convergence and general performance in R&I are noted to have significantly progressed across Europe over the years, regional disparities persist (European Commission, 2024j). Inequalities in terms of research infrastructure, innovation capabilities, and access to funding reveal marked R&I divides in Europe, both at MS and regional levels“.
To this end, Interreg may play a relevant role in helping spreading innovative solutions and advocating for improved policies across sectors. The CREATURES project successfully forged synergies thanks to a robust dissemination strategy, high-quality outputs, and the courage to address a sensitive and impactful topic—tourism for people with disabilities. Moreover, the transfer of results to a broader spectrum of organizations was further facilitated by the Programme’s clustering methodology embedded in its capitalisation strategy. As an example, the thematic sub-cluster on Cultural and Creative Industries brought together several projects with the aim of organising stakeholders events and promote exchange of practices.
In conclusion, Interreg continues to be a catalyst for inclusive regional development by encouraging transnational collaboration and innovation sharing. Projects like CREATURES demonstrate the great potential of cultural and creative initiatives when supported by stakeholder engagement which has proved to amplify the reach and relevance of regional solutions.
