The application area of the “Virtual Reality Contents for Cultural Tourism” project, coordinated by Prof. Dr. Volkan Altıntaş, a faculty member of the İzmir Katip Çelebi University Tourism Faculty, became Bergama. Mayor Hakan Koştu expressed his satisfaction with the selection of Bergama as the application area of the project.

Prof. Dr. Volkan Altıntaş, who announced together with Mayor Koştu that Bergama was chosen as the cultural tourism dimension of the project, which is conducted in partnership between Germany, Spain, Italy, and Turkey, stated that Bergama is one of the most appropriate centers for the implementation part of the project in terms of hosting festivals, archeology, cultural heritage, and different cultures. Prof. Dr. Altıntaş indicated that new technological applications will be put into practice through virtual reality and that the aim is to give the selected cultural elements of Bergama more international visibility with the involvement of tourism stakeholders.

Mayor Koştu, who expressed in the meeting that they attach great importance to the selection of Bergama as the application area of the project and will provide all kinds of support, drew attention to the importance of being present on the international platform in terms of promotion, education, and local stakeholders by using virtual reality that will highlight the cultural characteristics of Bergama tourism. Mayor Koştu said, “With this EU project that will be implemented in our ancient city of Bergama, which is accepted as a common Heritage Site of the whole world, we see that the actions of our new period Area Management Plan covering the years 2023-2028 are harmonious with each other. I believe that this project will contribute to the development of our city and country tourism by ensuring that our ancient city of Bergama is recognized more on international platforms.”

Dr. Emre Ataberk, the UNESCO World Heritage Bergama Area Director, who attended the meeting, pointed out the importance of Bergama’s being on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Dr. Ataberk said, “One of our goals as the Area Directorate is to maintain the balance between protection and use and to consider the carrying capacity of tourism within the responsible tourism approach. It is undoubtedly clear that digitalization and new technologies will be a guiding light for all our stakeholders in ensuring that Bergama receives the value and share it deserves from cultural tourism. We are happy to be one of the local project partners. We expect Bergama to host more EU projects.”

Source: (BYZHA) Beyaz Haber Ajansı