Cult-CreaTe and Vidzeme Tourism Association is attending the first creative tourism mission "radi!" at Līgatne, Vidzeme region, initiated by Latvian Investment and Development Agency, Tourism department and Ministry of Culture in order to boost creative tourism in small regional towns. During the mission there were useful presentations how to use design approach developing tourism destination by expert from Latvian Design Center, examples how to use street art and creatively use empty buildings by expert from organization FreeRiga, discussions on tourism development tendencies and possibilities. Delegates visited former Ligatnes Paper Factory which is impressive industrial heritage and now empty in order to generate ideas of its further usage combining cultural creative industries and tourism, also trying to find the place identity which is actual today and not based on past sentiment.
Tourism missions "radi!" is a new regional development programme of Latvian Investment and Development Agency. The idea of the mission is to show the existing and possible synergies between CCI and CCT. It is happening within the annual Creative Week and take place in 5 regional towns across Latvia which are chosen as a result of competition.
The five towns after the visit of mission will have to do their homework together with their mentors until August. Then they have to present their creative and innovative tourism offers.
This kind of initiative is happening first time in Latvian tourism development activities, therefore it will be interesting to see the results in order to judge if this is a case study for moving forward.
