Period: 9.8.2023 - 31.1.2027

Content: The off season period; fall, winter and spring in the northern Baltic Sea Region is dark and cold, and often without snow because of proximity to and humidity from the sea. This causes challenges for tourism and the problem is especially profound in rural and coastal areas in the northern Baltic Sea Region. The modern travelers are called nature explorers, natural wonder hunters, nature tribe tourists. They are looking to avoid crowds by travelling off season. They expect customized experiences, efficient service, they value nature and are willing to extend their stay. The project (1) responds to this need, and (2) supports the ability to respond to the Baltic Sea Region's common need to prolong the tourism season by developing a transnational northern Baltic archipelago concept for nature-based tourism. We create a fall-winter-spring package consisting of three product experience packages under the concept Light in the Dark for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises and Destination Management Organisations in tourism to attract travelers during off season. Transnational collaboration between universities, SMEs and Business Support Organizations promote coherent and synergistic implementation of the solution and add value by connecting all relevant stakeholders and businesses from different countries. The concept helps tourism sector to better respond to and adapt their businesses to off seasons, building resilience among businesses operating in the archipelago and coastal areas.

Focus area: Affärsutveckling

Campus: Henriksgatan

Financers: Interreg - Baltic Sea Region

Project manager: James Simpson

Partners: Åland University of Applied Scineces, Cursor Oy, Klaipeda University, Kurzeme Planning region, Visit Aland, Hiiumaa Dvelopment Center, Estonian University of Life Sciences, Estonian Rural Tourism, Nida Culture and Tourism Information Centre "Agila", Stockholm Business Region AB

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