Good practices from Central Baltic projects DefenceArch, LightsOn! and St. Olav Waterway DefenceArch, LightsOn! and St. Olav Waterway, are three of the 97 projects currently founded by the Central Baltic programme and they all belong to specific objective 2.1 — natural resources developed into...
P2 Sustainable use of common resources
2.1. Natural and cultural resources developed into sustainable tourist attractions
Archipelago and Islands
01.09.2016 - 31.03.2020
€1 503 194
€1 127 395
Project Summary:
ENDED. The aim of this project is to create a pilgrim route, "St Olav Waterway", from Turku Finland to Åland Islands and Hudiksvall city in Sweden via the Archipelago. The route will be incorporated with other St Olav routes in Sweden and Norway. This itinerary is unique as it is the only pilgrim route that also include water pathways. The scope of the project is to increase the attractiveness of the region, especially off-season. Because the popularity of other parts of this route in Norway and Sweden is steadily increasing, it is expected that new services, jobs and an earning capacity for local entrepreneurs will increase as well.
To support the concept of sustainable tourism, paper brochure and signs/posters will be replaced by Digital solutions as often as possible. Discussions about applying for inclusion into the network "European Cultural Route of St Olavs Ways" have already started.
Because at the same time other organisations are implementing projects to recreate the St Olav Way from Turku to the east it seems possible that within some years the ”Route of Saint Olav Ways" will be expanded. Hopefully one day there will be a St Olav route all the way from Novgorod to Nidaros and Trondheim as there was 1000 years ago.
Lead Partner
Åbo Akademi
Country: FI
Partner budget: 297.897 EUR
Amount of ERDF funding: 223.423 EUR ERDF
Project Partners
Pargas stad
Country: FI
Partner budget: 284.417 EUR
Amount of ERDF funding: 213.313 EUR ERDF
Yrkeshögskolan Novia
Country: FI
Partner budget: 158.351 EUR
Amount of ERDF funding: 118.763 EUR ERDF
Föreningen Franciscus
Country: FI
Partner budget: 107.000 EUR
Amount of ERDF funding: 80.250 EUR ERDF
Pilgrimstid Sverige
Country: SE
Partner budget: 89.228 EUR
Amount of ERDF funding: 66.921 EUR ERDF
Sottunga kommun
Country: FI
Partner budget: 106.147 EUR
Amount of ERDF funding: 79.610 EUR ERDF
Östhammar kommun
Country: SE
Partner budget: 190.452 EUR
Amount of ERDF funding: 142.839 EUR ERDF
Söderhamns kommun
Country: SE
Partner budget: 269.702 EUR
Amount of ERDF funding: 202.277 EUR ERDF
Associated Partners
Nordiska skärgårdssamarbetet
Country: FI
Gävle kommun
Country: SE
Hudiksvalls kommun
Country: SE
Jomala församling
Country: FI
Expected results
The main result is a new certified route "St Olav Waterway" and more visitors off-season giving new job opportunities and new services in the area. Entrepreneurs in the whole region will after the project have much more international contacts and are offered new networks in the Nordic countries and in Europe.
Along the route there will be created some entirely new tourist attractions conserning the time 1000 years ago and the medieval period. But many attractions are there already, and this project make them more visible (ancient monuments, medieval churches, stories, visual art). Also in english, which is important for the visitors from abroad.
One result is that the project will strengthen the sustainable tourism in the region.
Along the route there will be created some entirely new tourist attractions conserning the time 1000 years ago and the medieval period. But many attractions are there already, and this project make them more visible (ancient monuments, medieval churches, stories, visual art). Also in english, which is important for the visitors from abroad.
One result is that the project will strengthen the sustainable tourism in the region.
Internet presence
"The Premiere Walk 2019 from Turku, Finland, to Trondheim, Norway - 1200 km" (in Swedish)
Other media visibility
Scandinavian Outdoor DEVELOPMENT AWARD, 2020, St. Olav Waterway - A Nordic pilgrimage, Finland
Fem svenska pilgrimsleder att vandra, 2019
Ester deltog i premiärvandringen av St. Olav Waterway, 2019
Olavinreitti seuraa viikinkikuninkaan jalanjälkiä ja on pohoismainen pyhiinvaellusreitti, 2019
Ny vandringsled kan ge liten förening stort lyft, 2019
Åländsk galeas inviger pilgrimsled – besökte Söderhamn, 2019
På pilgrimsvandring i Svenskfinland, Podd 2019
Ålands första kulturrutt invigdes, 2019
Portugisisk pilgrim på Helgonleden genom Hälsingland, 2019
"En helt ny turistattraktion har skapats", 2019
Vandra från Åbo till Trondheim – anmälningstiden har börjat, 2019
Turku saa oman pyhiinvaellusreitin – Pyhän Olavin merireitti merkitään, keväällä vaellus, 2018
St Olav Waterway är nu officiell pilgrimsled, 2018
Olofs pilgrimsväg testvandrad, 2018
Skärgården vårt nya Lappland, 2018