Arrabona EGTC

On 10 April, the Cross-Border Tourism Forum organised by Arrabona EGTC took place in Győr. Tourism professionals, local government leaders, tourism service providers and representatives of regional and national organisations involved in regional and tourism development attended the event to discuss the current situation and future prospects of the region.

The aim of the forum was to present the work of the Arrabona EGTC Border Tourism Professional Committee over the past two years and to familiarise participants with the #waves projects submitted under the Interreg programme, which aims to develop the Szigetköz-Csallóköz-Pannonhalma region as a unified, coherent tourist region. The programme included discussions on the development of accommodation and gastronomic offerings, regional visitor management, cycling and water tourism opportunities, and related marketing and product development strategies.

Ferenc Ivanics, Vice-President of the Győr-Moson-Sopron County Council, was the first to give a welcoming speech at the forum. He emphasised that numerous developments had taken place in recent years to encourage tourists travelling between Vienna and Budapest to stop off and visit the Szigetköz and Csallóköz regions. József Berényi, Vice-President of the Trnava County Council, congratulated Arrabona EGTC on its work in the region. He said that there are many Hungarian-related attractions in Trnava County and that it is important to make them known to as many visitors from the mother country as possible. At the same time, he emphasised that the main destination for Hungarians living in the Upper Lands continues to be Hungary and that the development of bilateral relations is in the common interest.

Next, Péter Boncsarovszky, deputy leader of the Fidesz faction in Győr, shared his welcoming thoughts. On behalf of the city of Győr, Deputy Mayor Roland Kósa welcomed the participants. Péter Kiss-Parciu, Deputy State Secretary for Regional and Cross-Border Economic Development at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, emphasised the importance of supporting cross-border cooperation. He said that it was the responsibility of the government and the ministry to create the tools and opportunities to strengthen links between actors in border areas. He also highlighted that the construction of the pedestrian and cycle bridge between Dunakiliti and Doborgaz had gained new momentum, which could play a key role in the development of active tourism in the region.

The welcoming speeches were followed by professional presentations. Tamás Zoltán Németh spoke about the work and achievements of the Arrabona EGTC Border Tourism Professional Committee.  After several successful collaborations, their latest achievement is the submission of a proposal entitled #waves within the framework of the Slovak-Hungarian Interreg programme. One of the key strategy documents of the complex proposal, the completed territorial action plan, was presented by Dr. Zoltán Herke, development manager of Arrabona EGTC.

The projects planned to be implemented within the framework of the application were presented by Gábor Somogyi (director of ThermalPark DS, president of the Csallóközi Regional Tourism Association), Dr. Zsolt Virág (Magyar Kastélyprogram Kft – managing director), Zoltán Jankó (Vodnetury.sk – owner), András Nyikos (Hungarian Kayak-Canoe Federation – head of development) and Dr. Éva Happ (Széchenyi István University, associate professor, Department of Tourism and Hospitality) spoke about the projects planned to be implemented within the framework of the tender.

At the event, Mirkó Petényi, managing director of the Active and Ecotourism Development Centre, shared valuable insights on how an active tourism project can serve as a model.

The source of the news can be found at this link.