A practical guide for service providers regarding business development in the branch of green tourism, an informative brochure on green tourism in the Cahul-Galați-Reni cross-border region, as well as a map with three tourist routes located in the Danube sector of the Black Sea basin, have been launched to promote green tourism. The products were developed within the cross-border project “Development and promotion of green tourism in the Danube sector of the Black Sea basin (Cahul district, Republic of Moldova; Galați county, Romania and Reni territorial community, Ukraine)”.

The practical guide for service providers on business development in green tourism, which appeared in Romanian and Ukrainian, is a theoretical and practical support for service providers who own a business in the field of sustainable tourism, but it can become an inspiration for those who want to start a green tourism business. The 100 pages present theoretical information about the principles of green tourism, the ethics of tourism and the role of communication at all stages of consumption of the tourist product, and financial management. The theoretical content is complemented by the practical part, with an emphasis on recommendations during the six consumption stages of a tourist stay; the role of accommodation service providers in meeting the expectations of tourists to provide those experiences and emotions for which a tourist chooses a green tourist destination; how do we calculate the business budget which is based on the income and expenditure budget? At the same time, methods are presented for making economic forecasts to reduce the risk of making mistakes in business and to develop strategies for a successful business. Examples of good practices and successes in the field of green tourism were highlighted through the detailed description of successful models already implemented in the three administrative-territorial units (Cahul, Galați, and Reni). Additionally, for service providers, ideas were also presented regarding the development and promotion of green tourism businesses, which can serve as a benchmark for expanding/starting a business in the field.

The informative tourist brochure “Green Tourism in the cross-border region Cahul – Galați – Reni”, published in the languages: Romanian, English, and Ukrainian, represents a synthesis of the tourist potential from the perspective of the development of green tourism in the three cross-border regions Cahul, Galaţi, and Reni. The brochure describes 32 tourist attractions with the potential to support the development of green tourism in the Danube sector of the Black Sea basin. Each attraction is presented with a description of it, a photo showing the attraction itself, the location, the contact data (phone number, e-mail), and also the web pages if they exist. On the last page of the brochure is presented the Map of tourist routes in the Danube sector of the Black Sea basin, on a small scale, as well as the QR codes to the three thematic tourist routes included on the map.

The map of tourist routes in the Danube sector of the Black Sea basin, published in three languages: Romanian, English, and Ukrainian, includes the actual map of the three thematic tourist routes – the ecotourism route “On the waves of the Blue Danube”, the historical-cultural route “On the tracks ancient civilization” and the ethnographic – gastronomic route “Authentic gastronomy of the Danube Delta”, the legend of the map, including those of 25 tourist attractions included in each route, some images showing the tourist attractions part of the tourist routes. On the reverse side of the map is presented a brief description of the three thematic tourist routes in three languages: Romanian, English, and Ukrainian. Accommodation and food establishments in Cahul, Galați, and Reni are also mentioned – name of the accommodation/food establishment, location, phone number, e-mail, web page, if any.

“All three published materials – the Guide, the Brochure, and the Map – present various aspects of the development of green tourism in the Danube sector of the Black Sea basin, namely, Cahul district, Galați county, and the Reni territorial community. The three products were developed with the contribution of the project implementation team from IDIS “Viitorul”, tourism experts from the Cahul District Council (R. Moldova), the Reni Territorial Community (Ukraine), and from the University “Dănărea de Jos” “from Galati (Romania)”, said Lucia Căpățînă, one of the authors of the three tourist products.

“The documents developed by IDIS “Viitorul”, in the framework of this project, come to supplement the knowledge and develop skills for those who want to initiate and later launch a business in the field of green tourism. The best experts from the Republic of Moldova, Romania, and Ukraine were involved in the development process, taking as a basis the materials presented at seminars and trainings, their own experience as well as the topics about which the tourist operators showed interest. In our opinion, the presented works are sufficient to initiate and develop, at the first stage, a business in the field of green tourism. The interested reader can find out many things necessary to develop a noble and efficient family business, thus contributing to the process of Europeanization of the country”, believes Liubomir Chiriac, executive director of IDIS “Viitorul”.

As part of the BSB-817 project, launched in December 2020, six training sessions and round tables were organized in Cahul, Galți, and Reni, to strengthen the capacities of tourism service providers in the three Danube regions. At the same time, there were three study visits, one to Galati and two to Cahul, for the providers of tourist services in the three areas, to learn about the opportunities for promoting green tourism. A festival was organized in Cahul, but also Galați, on June 8, 2023, regarding the promotion of local traditions and customs.

The cross-border tourist cluster “Danubius” was created, in the Danube region of the Black Sea basin, between Cahul district, Galați county, and the Reni territorial community, whose activity will aim to promote and develop green tourism in the Danube region of the Black Sea basin. The creation of the cluster also included the development of a joint program for the development of cross-border tourism in Cahul, Reni, and Galați, for which three meetings were held, in Cahul, in the Reni territorial community and in Galați, where it was discussed how the cluster should work. The sustainability of the cluster will also be ensured through the Danube-ecotravel.com website, which is already being created to promote green tourism in the cross-border region.

Also, 23 podcasts were produced on green tourism in the region. A study on good neighborliness along the Danube sector was also developed, and the project website was also created. A film is also made about the potential of green tourism in the Danube sector of the Black Sea basin.

The cross-border project “Development and promotion of green tourism in the Danube sector of the Black Sea basin (Cahul district, Republic of Moldova; Reni territorial community, Ukraine and Galați county, Romania)”, BSB-817, is implemented by IDIS “Viitorul”, in partnership with the Cahul District Council (Moldova), the Executive Committee of the Local Council of the city. Reni (Ukraine) and “Dunarea de Jos” University from Galati (Romania).

The project is part of the Black Sea Basin Joint Operational Program 2014-2020 and is co-financed by the European Union through the European Neighborhood Instrument and by the participating countries: Armenia, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, the Republic of Moldova, Romania, Turkey and Ukraine.

This press release was produced with the financial support of the European Union. Its content is the exclusive responsibility of the cross-border project BSB 817, and can not be, in any way, considered to reflect the views of the European Union. To find out more details about the project, you can contact us at idis.crossborderproject@gmail.com.