Co-TOUR: Cooperation and Development of Tourism Business between SME´s, Barents (KO428)
Funded by Kolarctic ENPI 2007-2013

Objective of the project

The project’s overall objective is to contribute to economic and social development of the participating regions. The project contributes to making the whole project area more visible, competitive and attractive internationally as a tourism destination. This is pursued by putting together the effort of three countries and developing a higher profile for small and medium-sized travel destinations, tourist attractions and hotels. One more objective is to expand possibilities for tourism business to create synergy effects together with the adjacent business areas, as well as stimulate more sustainable and environmentally friendly tourism. For the participating 15 regions the specific objectives are: • To gain more knowledge about each other’s travel markets and get better understanding of the demands; • To adjust and improve existing products, develop and offer new jointly packaged products and services; • To produce explicit and accessible information about destinations and to reach out to tour operators, tourist information offices and travelers as well as to exploit joint packaging and marketing opportunities with the bigger and well-known destinations.

Main activities

The project has and worked increasing and sharing knowledge among the participating companies. This means e.g. knowledge about Russian and resp. Finnish/Swedish customers and their needs. The project has assisted with adapting or creating new products that could be packaged or easier promoted and sold on the Russian/resp. Swedish/Finnish tourist market. The project has involved hotel professionals to assist local hotels in improving and adapting the service level for the Russian, Swedish/Finnish customers. The project has facilitated cooperation between the DMCs (Destination Management Companies) and the tourist companies in the region, and possibilities for the small ones to be packaged together with the big ones. The project has also worked marketing the project region and its companies. Translations of the materials have been made, marketing campaigns have been carried out for the region in the operators’ magazines. Some tour operators and journalists’ visits to the region have been arranged. There have been networking meetings among the local companies and networking visits of the local companies to Russia to promote their products and get better understanding of the Russian market.

Achievements

Co-Tour has improved knowledge among the companies about the Russian tourist market and the needs and requests of Russian tourists. Participants have established personal business contacts with the main tour operators from Murmansk, St. Petersburg and Moscow. The local companies have acquired knowledge and got a possibility to adapt their existing products for the Russian market The Russian companies have acquired knowledge to do the same in Russia for the Nordic tourists and companies. Direct business links have been established also between the Swedish, Finnish and Russian companies. The project has helped to improve the quality of services, due to experience exchange, job shadowing activities and other contacts among the professionals.