PIRT

The PIRT (Promoting Innovative Rural Tourism) project is directed to supporting regional cooperation and cross border partnerships for economic and social development in four Black Sea Basin countries (Armenia, Bulgaria, Turkey, Georgia) based on combined resources through creation of rural tourism networks in order to promote joint tourism development initiatives and traditional products.

The project achieves stronger regional partnerships and cooperation through integrated utilization of physical and human resources and exchange of best practice aimed at enhancing the standards of touristic product and service delivery. All this will contribute to economic and social development in the Black Sea Basin region.

PIRT builds effective and replicable networks of capable local service providers in rural tourism, as well as sophisticated travel agencies to co- develop, market, and will sell a new unique touristic product that will encourage inter-flows of visitors intra-regionally and contribute to unprecedented cooperation between national authorities in the region and intra-country, aimed ultimately to sustaining the cross- border impacts of rural tourism.

The project consists of 3 components:

• Establishment of networks of service providers and provision of knowledge and means to them to engage and run a hospitality business in rural areas,
• Development of a brand new, boldly innovative touristic product (Single Cross-border Visitor package) and its marketing targeted to the right agents for it in the marketplace,
• Facilitation of contacts at an inter-governmental level, thus making the contacts between country-specific authorities mutually beneficial. The project began in November 2013 and its duration is 18 months.