The trail network for active tourism (hiking and cycling) was extended by another 320 km of newly-marked section. Thus, at present, the region benefits from a network of approximately 600 km of marked trails, being the main strength in terms of the ecotourism infrastructure of the Transylvanian Highlands. Tourists are informed through 75 panels, placed in villages and at important locations along the trails and that contain both the map of the trail network, as well as other important information about the possible hiking opportunities from the respective location. The trail network is promoted through a dedicated bilingual brochure (Romanian – English), presenting the attractions and services that this network interlinks and through 10 ecotourism packages, that highlight the cultural discovery through nature and outdoor activities. Research and education activities for local communities have been completed with great success. All 20 schools have declared their intention to continue such initiatives, thus a modular program of activities, that can be offered to children in the Săptămâna Altfel 2018 programme, was developed. In total, more than 900 children participated in educational activities. Children have identified over 230 toponyms, all attached to stories collected from family members, neighbors or other villagers. Of these, 188 toponyms are either new or different from those already existing on maps, so these were updated in the geoportal. Also, through this project, we have set up 3 new bicycle rental centers, and the choice of location has taken into account several factors, such as the positioning of tourist flows, the availability of other services (accommodation, recreational activities, etc.) or the interest of locals expressed in this sense. Moreover, we bought 14 bicycles, along with helmets and related repair kits, which we handed over to the 3 local entrepreneurs. The online platform of the trail network has been finalized and is available at trasee.colinele-transilvaniei.ro, and in the near future it will be integrated as a module to the site of the Transylvanian Highlands: www.colineletransilvaniei.ro.
Executive AgencyMIORITICS AssociationPartnersN/AContract NumberCSM 16ComponentEnvironmentCountyConstanțaImplementation areaRegionalThematic areaSustainable rural developmentImplementation period15.01.2016-14.01.2018Budget of the project (CHF)83,696Swiss Contribution (CHF)74,976Project websitetrasee.colinele-transilvaniei.roExecutive Agency websitemioritics.ro