Western Black Sea Underwater Cultural Touristic Routes

Scientific underwater research in the Western Black Sea area has been performed only occasionally. The project aimed to promote the development of SMEs by supporting initiatives in the underwater tourism sector.

“Western Black Sea Underwater Cultural Tourist Routes” sought to select, classify and to join the most attractive tourist transnational targets (wrecks, archaeological sites, artefacts, marine protected areas, submerged landscape and inland found exposed artefacts) in a new transnational tourist package. Its general objective was: "Promoting tourism competitiveness on the West side of the Black Sea and diversification of the touristic offer by introducing a new touristic package".

To attain it, the project partners formulated three specific objectives:

1. Encouraging the diversification of cultural European sustainable touristic products and services, by developing a trans-national touristic product out of the underwater cultural patrimony of the Black Sea.

2. Improving, preserving and promoting the underwater cultural patrimony on the West side of the Black Sea.

3. Promoting the trans-national cooperation between different stakeholders in the field of the underwater cultural patrimony.

The project results are:

• The new touristic product ”Western Black Sea Underwater Cultural Touristic Routes”;
• A comparative trans-national Study-Analysis of the service quality and touristic offer for cultural underwater tourism;
• Turning the tourism services into professional services provided by the underwater tourism for the Black Sea;
• Improving knowledge with regard to the underwater cultural patrimony on the tourism market in the Western part of the Black Sea;
• Creating a strong cooperation providing the sustainability of the project after the financing period.

project partners

• National Institute for Research and Development of Marine Geology and Geoecology (GeoEcomar) (RO);
• Museum of national history and archaeology Constanta (RO);
• Active Training Srl (BG);
• DDD Ltd (BG);
• Institute of Oceanology – Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (BG).