Guided by the fact that the authenticity of the destination, the sustainability of the tourism product, the personalized experience and the integration of technology in tourism, are trends that will shape the tourism industry in the coming years - especially in the new markets in which Cyprus is now focused - promoted improving the competitiveness of businesses in the mountains and the countryside. This is done through specific sponsorship projects of the Ministry of Tourism, which raise their funding through the Recovery Fund, a total amount of 33 million euros. Last week, the sponsorship plan for the upgrade of traditional restaurants or the sale of traditional food products, amounting to 8 million euros, was officially announced. It was one of four projects to be funded through the EU Recovery Fund that would upgrade rural and mountain productivity while boosting health and wellness tourism. The total European funding amounts to EUR 33 million and the aim is to improve competitiveness by upgrading services in hotels and tourist accommodation with a focus on the digitization of services provided and the upgrading of existing infrastructure. The rest of the plans are expected to be announced by the autumn of 2022. As the Deputy Minister of Tourism Savvas Perdios reports to "K", in the medium-term action plan of the Ministry 2023-2025 the issue of education and the strengthening of culture will be first on the list of priorities. Cypriot hospitality with special emphasis on rural areas. "We now include in tourism many companies that in the past did not consider themselves as a tourism product - farmers, artisans, authentic experience, traditional products", - said the Undersecretary, setting the stage for the actions and policies to be followed in the context and of the National Tourism Strategy.
In restaurants
Last Wednesday, the Sponsorship plan for upgrading Traditional Catering or Sale of Traditional Food Products was announced. The plan, which was approved by the Council of Ministers at its last meeting, also allows companies to join the Taste Cyprus pact. It is noted that the total costs of the project amount to around 8 million euros (7,6 million) while the maximum amount of funding per beneficiary will amount to € 200.000. However, the amount of the grant varies depending on the area in which the beneficiary is active. Thus, in mountainous and remote areas, the amount of the grant amounts to 75% of the total cost of eligible interventions (excluding VAT), while in rural areas the amount of the grant amounts to 65% of the total cost. In the other areas the grant amounts to 50% of the cost. The first aspect of the plan will concern the years 2022-2023 and will amount to 4 million euros. The plan concerns upgrades to existing licensed leisure centers, category of either restaurant or tavern. These can be either inside or outside of tourist accommodation and hotels. It concerns exclusively leisure centers which offer dishes based on Cypriot gastronomy. The second aspect of the grant is given for the upgrade or creation of shops selling traditional Cypriot products. Eligible costs include building upgrades, the supply of new equipment and upgrading the business website, as well as the integration of more languages into customer service. Among other things, it is emphasized that new equipment in chairs and tables is forbidden to be plastic, advertising umbrellas, ice cream coolers, wineries, water coolers will be replaced with new ones, while eligible costs include website design, translation into five languages (Greek, English, German, Russian and French), and translation into Braille. Also included is price list printing and an electronic code entry / QR code entry system. Applications for this project will be accepted until November 2022.
Authentic experiences
An amount of 5 million euros will be absorbed by the Recovery Fund for the upgrade of the places where the authentic experiences will take place and will be included in the Authentic Routes. The plan is expected to be submitted to the Council of Ministers in the near future and then its subsidy will begin. The ultimate goal is for rural professions to be considered as a unique and experiential tourist experience. It is recalled that a number of "authentic experiences" are already available through the Authentic Route program. The project will strengthen efforts to upgrade venues within communities that can provide authentic experiences. As Mr. Perdios points out, if a community has an unexploited house, then it will be able to receive sponsorship, to shape it properly and to be able to use it for workshops in the future as well. It is noted that this plan is different from the plan for visitable laboratories amounting to one million euros (for 4 thousand laboratories) which is funded by the budget of the Ministry of Tourism.
Two designs in the fall
The other two plans will be announced shortly after the summer and concern the upgrades to hotels and tourist accommodation in the mountains, the countryside and the outlying areas and the promotion of wellness tourism and medical tourism. As for the hotel upgrade plan, it will absorb a budget of 10m euros through the Recovery Fund. Eligible costs are expected to include upgrades that will enhance the guest experience, such as the modernization of hotels, the aesthetics of their interiors, the provision of wi-fi in all rooms, the implementation of digital check-in and check-out systems. , the use of digital technology for promotion in social media management etc. The plan will not focus on building extensions and increase beds but will focus on the visitor experience, a point where the majority of rural and remote hotels are left behind. .
Wellness tourism
It is a fact that recently the interest of tourist accommodation for integration of health and wellness services has increased. This trend is expected to be strengthened with the announcement of the fourth project of EUR 10 million. The project targets hotels across the country and provides incentives to add or improve health / wellness services, services for the elderly and the promotion of medical tourism. Health-wellness services such as physiotherapy, hydrotherapy, phototherapy or post-surgery recovery will also be enriched. If the action is approved, then it is expected that there will be a relevant consultation with the Medical Tourism Association in order to select the services that can be combined with staying in a hotel and make the appropriate conversions into units that will show interest to benefit from incentives. The announcement of the plan is expected in the fall of 2022.
kathimerini.com.cy