Valmiera gets ready for tourism innovation hackathon

The goal of the event is to find creative solutions to the problems faced by Latvia’s tourism industry

Europe’s tourism industry has been put under enormous strain over the past few months. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused insurmountable damage to the economies of many countries and all are currently struggling to get them back on their feet.

Some have tried to quickly reopen borders, embarking on massive advertising campaigns that push the message that their countries are safe and are taking every precaution possible in order to ensure the health of visitors. That, however, can only get you so far.

Embracing future creative solutions

In order to find new pathways to aid the country’s struggling tourism sector, the Latvian city of Valmiera will be hosting a tourism innovations hackathon on 27 and 28 June. The local government will be bringing together professionals from all facets of life – designers, IT experts and of course marketing and tourism pros in order to find the best approaches to rebooting the industry.

"People still want to travel, but travel habits have changed, so many industries need to reorient. We want to help and through the hackathon, we will find innovative, fast, convenient and cost-effective solutions with a positive impact in the long term, " stated Valmiera City Council Chairman Jānis Baiks.

Participants in the hackathon will work together with other industry professionals in order to hone their skills and further improve their solutions and ideas. Each team of participants will also be eligible for prizes, depending on their contributions and the potential of their ideas. The prize fund set up by local authorities boasts 5000 euros with the first-place prize being fixed at 3000 euros.

Runner-ups will also be entitled to other kinds of rewards including free visits to municipal venues and participation in events and activities. Registration of the tourism innovation hackathon is open to all until 23:59 on 25 June.