It all takes place within the framework of the EU project “Active Tourism meets Advanced technology in Cross-border area – AT @AT. CB’’, whose total value is EUR 1,545,287.06, with 85% co-financed from the European Regional Development Fund, i.e., from the INTERREG V-A Cross-border Cooperation Programme Hungary-Croatia 2014-2020. Partners from Croatia are Varaždin County as the leading partner and the Tourist Board of Varaždin County, while Hungarian partners are the City of Csurgó and the University of Pannonia, Nagykanisza campus.

- All works in the Palace were carried out under the archaeological and conservation supervision of the Varaždin City Museum and the Conservation Department in Varaždin. The work was really demanding, and we remind you that several new rooms have been discovered. We are pleased to say that they will also be placed in the function of the visitor Centre. Some parts of the remains of the earlier structure were also preserved, and they were presented in the basement floor itself. In view of all this, an extension of the project by five months was also approved – said Deputy Zagorec.

As far as the establishment of the Centre is concerned, its management will be taken over by the Tourist Board of Varaždin County, which will be the contact point for future visitors. It should be noted that the visitor Centre is also established in the Hungarian Csurgó. This is also an additional value of this project within the Interreg V-A programme, whose slogan is “Where Rivers join”. It is precisely connecting people in the border area and developing community and cooperation that is one of the goals of our EU project. It is equally important that future visitors and tourists will be acquainted not only with urban, but also with rural parts of Varaždin County and Hungarian Csurgó and its surroundings. Visitor centres will serve as a starting point, which is additional to the tourist offer – said Silvija Zagorec.

During the implementation of the EU project, a few activities were realised, said Darko Majhen, Head of the Department of Economy and European Affairs.
- As part of the project, we have acquired high-tech equipment consisting of multimedia presentation equipment, such as laser projectors, computers and audio system, 3D of art sculptures, and we will have holographic projection and video surveillance system. It should be pointed out that we have developed a database of owners and managers of cultural and natural heritage in the project area, held training cycles for tourism stakeholders and owners of facilities intended for tourists, organized an international conference in Varaždin with a large number of visitors, and the most important thing is that we are in the final phase of establishing visitor centres in Varaždin and Csurgó. The centres will be virtually networked, connected by a “window” that will allow visitors in both centres to see each other – said Head Majhen.

In the visitor centre in the County Palace, the emphasis will be on visual effects that will allow future visitors a lot of experience.
- The space will be divided into several different thematic units, from, for example, the origins of the world and the Big Bang, volcanoes and caves, Neanderthals, through the arrival of Romans, Avars, Huns and Croats, to mythological characters. And the first hereditary County Prefect od Varaždin, Tomo II Erdödy himself, will send a greeting and welcome to the visitors, of course through a holographic projection. There will also be an interactive board that will further emphasize the promotion of rural areas of our county through sound, image, maps and video. There will be able to play interactive games and a quiz of knowledge, which we believe will be interesting for everyone – announced the director of the Tourist Board of the County of Varaždin, Goran Mališ.

As part of the project, Hungarian partners developed a mobile application that, in addition to tourist information, contains five games.
– Games are based on 3D models and are based on the so-called augmented reality. Tourists will visit five locations from the Andrija Tower in Kneginec via Grebengrad, the fortified town of Bela and the church of Sv. Martin in Varaždinske Toplice, to Pranger – pillar of shame in Vinica, enable playing games in front of the real background. As for the tour of our Centre, it will be organized in guided groups of tourists. Interested parties will have to register with us at the Tourist Board, and the details about the reservation system will be available on our website. We are proud of the completion of construction and crafts works, we are happy with these new facilities, and it is important that we encourage future visitors to travel through our county themselves and explore all its beauties – concluded Mališ.