The “Umgebindeland” is a cross-border region between Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic. The area includes: large parts of Upper Lusatia, the European City of Görlitz/Zgorcelec, the Nature park Zittau Mountains, Northern Bohemia and parts of the Polish Voivodeship of Lower Silesia around Bogatynia. The name of the region comes from the “Umgebinde” houses, historic half-timbered houses typical of the area. This cultural landscape, developed in the late Middle Ages and characterized by modern industrialization, spans the regions and offers a strong yet underused potential for cultural tourism. The “Umgebindeland” is part of the EUROREGION “Neiße- Nisa-Nysa” for cross border cooperation. Regional development concepts for tourism in the “Umgebindelandschaft” have been developed for the German, Polish and Czech areas, and it also includes Sorbian and Roma minorities. Despite the variety of options and tourist offers, there is still no uniform and coordinated tourism concept.
Within TExTOUR, Umgebindeland aims at:
- Stimulating the local economy and tourism through the production and marketing of regional high-quality products (local textile industries)
- Giving inclusive economic perspectives for minorities
- Preserving the “Umgebindehäuser” and the natural and cultural landscape
- Raising people’s awareness on the potential of the cultural landscape
- Establishing an effective tri-national management system