<< Background >>ContextCultural Tourism (CT) is an integral part of today’s economy, even if seriously hit after the pandemic. Although it accounted for more than 37% of the tourism sector until 2019, there was a massive blow of 80% with the COVID-19 (TexTOUR Project, 2021). As the European Commission is committed to safeguard cultural heritage focusing on sustainability and innovation, advanced technologies together with hybrid skills required in businesses’ digital transformation are providing endless possibilities in the field of CT (European Framework for Action on Cultural Heritage, 2018). In fact, technologies such as 360o photo, 3D printing, Augmented/Virtual Reality and serious games have been recently introduced in tourism for enriching tourists’ experiences through cultural heritage. An example is depicted in the Tourism 4.0 Heritage+ approach which aims at bridging the gap between the needs of local communities for promoting heritage values and sustainable development (Arctur d.o.o, 2019). Another example is EU UNESCO 4ALL TOUR, a project that has made art accessible to visually impaired people by combining tactile exploration with audio data (www.unesco4all-tour.eu). Those examples imply that cultural tourism is increasingly moving towards digitization, with accessible tourism being a game changer for destinations (UNWTO, 2020).Nonetheless, the pandemic was a huge shock for the tourism-related cultural sector, bringing into the forefront both the challenges endured by people working in the sector and the ways of how cultural life is weakened by the lockdown (Compendium of Cultural Policies & Trends, 2020). With almost 70 million fewer travelers, the pandemic jeopardizes the most important parts of cultural tourism (UNESCO, 2020). With more than 13% of museums being at risk of never re-opening, more than 80% of UNESCO World Heritage properties being locked, 75 million jobs in tourism being under immediate threat and most people working in the field of cultural tourism being currently unemployed, the need to turn into sustainable smart solutions becomes even more urgent. As digital jobs become more vital than ever, new skills are needed among the professional profiles of tourism. It is thus rational for digitally low-skilled adults pursuing job opportunities in the sector to be more equipped with digital competences so as to form a stronger workforce (UNWTO, 2020). Therefore, as there is an increasing need for digital designers with a deep understanding in usability, accessibility, interaction, narrativity and dramatic composition for exhibitions, digital jobs are constantly being developed with the view to make cultural tourism accessible (Compendium of Cultural Policies & Trends, 2020).Needs / ProblemWith the COVID-19 onslaught having forced cultural life to retreat implying a massive impact on the sector, the pandemic and economic crisis can be also regarded as a cultural one (A & Al-Said, 2020). In fact, the pandemic has revealed the true power of culture as an expression of humanity towards establishing sustainable development (Ottone, 2020). On the other hand, beyond its control, travel and tourism industry, as a vital resource for the cultural sector, has been significantly affected as well, with 75 million jobs in the industry being under immediate threat in 2020 (World Travel & Tourism Council, 2020). However, as there is an urgent need for digital designers with a deep understanding in usability, accessibility, interaction, narrativity and dramatic composition for exhibitions, digital jobs opportunities are constantly being developed under the prism of making heritage accessible (Compendium of Cultural Policies & Trends, 2020).<< Objectives >>The current project addresses innovative up-skilling practices based on experiential learning in order to equip low-skilled adult with the creativity and digital skills required in the cultural tourism sector within the context of a digital post-crisis world. The purpose is to enable them to create their own digital cultural tourist guide, while promoting local culture towards sustainable tourism.More specifically, the project aims at empowering low-skilled adults especially from rural areas to promote Cultural Tourism (CT) resources by developing their skills in Digital Design & Digital Thinking towards the digital transformation of CT. As the new era in cultural tourism integrates the concept of digital cultural tourist into cultural life, adult job seekers should be up-skilled with competences that allow them to become competitive among the close and yet vying industry of CT.Upon project completion, participants will have a deep understanding in digital design principles and be able not only to map out digital content that promotes local culture values but also to manage the tones of resources available in cultural life (museum exhibits, local products/food, places to visit, etc.) in an entreating manner.This will be facilitated by the creation of a practical interactive online course for adults already working, willing to work or left jobless in the field of CT due to the crisis. The course will be complemented by a cloud-based tool that will allow them to create their own digital cultural tourist guide, based on a pre-defined scientific methodology.Specific objectives:- To create a series of handbooks for adults' up-skilling including practical examples of how Digital Thinking & Digital Design is applied in Cultural Tourism- To develop a virtual assistant that will guide and support the participants in creating their own project, namely their ownl Digital Tourist Guide- To build an online European Network serving as a community of practice and giving the opportunity to the project network to work towards affecting European policies for cultural heritage tourism.Target groups:-Direct:o Low-skilled adults from rural areas that already have working experience in heritage tourism or are interested in promoting heritage tourismo Low-skilled adults that are interested in improving their digital competences-Indirect:oAdult trainers/educatorsoAdult training organizationsoTourism organizationsoOrganizations related to the creative/cultural industryoNGOs or other organizations/authorities taking initiatives towards sustainable developmentoDigital designers / Digital design / e-Learning companiesoPolicy makers<< Implementation >>In alignment with the aforementioned objectives, specific activities based on Agile methodology are going to be implemented:-A needs validation report serving as the basis of the white paper stating the current situation in partner countries regarding the post-COVID heritage tourism activities and the skills required to overcome tourism unemployment-The development of practical handbooks for low-skilled adults with useful guidelines and examples of Digital Design principles in Cultural Tourism Promotion-The configuration of a virtual tool that will foster the hybrid skills of participants towards empowering them to promote their own Digital Cultural Tourist Guide-The establishment of a strong network inside and outside the partnership towards the creation of CulTour Design synergies of practice through a digital community especially developed for the project enthusiasts-Project, Quality, Sharing & Promotion, Piloting and Exploitation plans supporting all the horizontal activities that will establish the impact of the project through top quality results-Development of an Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) agreement to be signed among all partners ensuring the exploitation of the project and including succession schemes and revenue models<< Results >>The intangible results that will insure the project impact after its completion are:-Raising awareness about the current situation and actions taken in-response to COVID-19 as well as the impact on cultural tourism.-Implementation of novel ICT-enabled training methods for skills development helping rural citizens and tourism professionals to acquire digital skills while safeguarding the cultural sector.-Enhancement of smart solutions and e-learning strategies in E&T within the context of cultural and creative sectors turning to online solutions due to the crisis confinement.-Incorporation of open educational resources (OERs) and open software in the learning process complemented by motivating online learning activities-Development of a wide network of stakeholders providing the opportunity to open a dialogue among cultural tourism communities-Affecting policies related to cultural tourism initiatives across the EUThe main tangible project results to be available upon its completion are:1.A series of inclusive handbooks especially developed for adults seeking job opportunities in the cultural tourism sector. The handbooks aim at enhancing the digital skills of low-skilled adults with a focus on those from rural areas, focusing on the main aspects of Digital Design and Digital Thinking for efficient Cultural Tourism Promotion.2.A cloud-based assistant that provides pathways to users allowing them to put their newly acquired digital skills into practice while enhancing their hybrid skills (technical and non technical). Through this tool, low-skilled adults will be able to create their own cultural tours, utilizing digital thinking principles to design virtual products that promote their local culture and safeguard tourism sustainability.3.The CulTour Digital European Community that constitutes a dedicated online space serving as a single point of information and communication for the project practitioners and interested parties under the scope of increasing the project network and thus impact among European creative/cultural industries and policy making authorities.