The first cross-border kayak promotional tour of the "Bella Dvina" project starts on May 25 in Polotsk

May 13, Vitebsk / Diana Kurilo - BELTA /. The first cross-border kayak promo tour will start in Polotsk on May 25. Its organization became possible thanks to the EU project "Bella Dvina - Crossing Borders, Discovering Culture, Enjoying Nature of the Western Dvina/Daugava Region," as reported to BELTA correspondent by the Department of Physical Culture, Sports and Tourism of the Polotsk City Executive Committee. The tour aims to attract tourists from Belarus and neighboring countries to the water routes in the cross-border tourist region "Bella Dvina," which includes the Vitebsk region and Latgale (Latvia). The total length of the planned route is about 150 km. Belarusian and Latvian project experts, representatives of the European Commission delegation in Belarus, and journalists will participate in the tour. From the starting point of the route, the city of Polotsk, tourists on kayaks will travel to Novopolotsk on the first day, and by the evening of the next day, they will be expected in the smallest city in Belarus, Disna. The third day of the tour will end in the village of Yustianovo, and on the fourth day, the team will visit Verkhnedvinsk, the village of Leonpol, cross the Belarusian-Latvian border at the simplified checkpoint "Druya," and stop in Piedruja. Over the next two days, tour participants will visit Gandeli and Kraslava. The promo tour will conclude on May 30 in the village of Slutishki, where the international folk arts festival "Augšdaugava 2010" will be held on the territory of the Daugava Loop Nature Park. As noted by the department specialists, the section from Verkhnedvinsk to Slutishki is part of the cross-border water route "From the Lake Labyrinth to the Beautiful Dvina," which was developed this year within the framework of the "Bella Dvina" project. The route is designed so that tourists traveling by kayak can also explore the attractions of the Vitebsk region and Latgale. During their journey, the promo tour participants have planned meetings with local residents and representatives of travel agencies to share their travel experiences in real-time and talk about the "Bella Dvina" project itself. Meetings will be held in Polotsk, Disna, Verkhnedvinsk, and Kraslava. The project "Bella Dvina - Crossing Borders, Discovering Culture, Enjoying Nature of the Western Dvina/Daugava Region" is implemented under the EU program "Baltic Sea Region INTERREG III B - Neighbourhood Programme - INTERREG IIIA - Latvia-Lithuania-Belarus Priority (South)." The program is aimed at supporting cross-border cooperation between the border regions of Belarus, Latvia, and Lithuania. The main goal of the project and the primary task of the partners is to create a unified tourist space between Daugavpils, Polotsk, and Vitebsk, as well as to inform the public about the opportunities of this region. -0-