Via Regia

A symbol for European unification

Via Regia

The VIA REGIA is the oldest and longest road link between the East and the West of Europe. It connects 8 countries, from Russia and Ukraine in the East to the Atlantic coast of Spain in the West. In 2006 the road was recognised as a “Cultural Route of the Council of Europe”. Launched by the Council of Europe in 1987, the Cultural Routes demonstrate, by means of a journey through space and time, how the heritage of the different countries and cultures of Europe contributes to a shared and living cultural heritage.

In the VIA REGIA site, the TExTOUR project focuses on smaller and less-known cultural heritage areas, specifically the Rivnenska region of Ukraine and its connection with Belarus. The most developed tourist areas of the route will act as role models to be replicated in the less developed areas. The project will seek to strengthen transnational, regional and local cooperation to promote cultural tourism in the less developed areas. The overall purpose is to foster a sense of belonging to Europe.

 

Within TExTOUR, VIA REGIA aims at:

  • Upgrading poor public infrastructure
  • Enhancing and creating new tourism services
  • Training tourism professionals in the area

Pilots

Eight diverse and complementary “cultural tourism” areas will allow us to test a wide range of scenarios: inland and coastal, rural and urban, and remote.