The Destination Viking Association (DVA) is delighted to announce that the Viking Cultural Route has received reaccreditation as an official Cultural Route of the Council of Europe, and that the DVA is formally recognised as the Manager of this Route. The decision was taken at the meeting of the Council of Europe's Steering Committee on Culture, Heritage and Landscape in May.
The Association has been working for over three years on this initiative. It has been a tough and complex process since it coincided with new rules being introduced under the Enlarged Partial Agreement. Reaccreditation of the Route is tremendous news, and having the DVA recognised and authorised as the appropriate body to manage it, is a great honour. The Association has a wide geographical spread throughout the Viking world and collectively represent significant Viking expertise.
The Viking Cultural Route itself is a far-reaching and significant cross border collection of sites, stories and heritage relating to the shared Viking legacy of Europe and beyond. The Viking age dates from around AD800-1050, during which Vikings achieved unrivalled boat building, navigational and seamanship skills allowing them to travel widely through Northern and Western Europe, the North Atlantic, into the Mediterranean and deep into the rivers of Russia and the Ukraine. Indeed, the Vikings could be described as the first Global Tourists, since they were the first people to visit four continents of the World.
Shetland Amenity Trust General Manager and Chairman of the Destination Viking Association, Jimmy Moncrieff, warmly welcomed the news of the certification of the Route and said “Borderless Tourism and Shared Cultural Values within the wider Europe are key objectives of both the Council of Europe and the Viking Cultural Route. Now the real hard work begins to develop the Route in terms of coverage and quality and the Association is looking forward this. It will mean that the real Viking story can be appreciated and enjoyed by generations to come.”