COASTOUR OPEN CALL FOR APPLICATIONS: Grants Scheme for Tourism Businesses

Call II for the selection of third parties

Application and instructions:

Fill in and submit your application online via https://da.surveymonkey.com/r/MRHPK6M

(If you want to see the questions, before you submit your application, you can download them in WORD format here)

No other means of application are permitted.

The application form must be submitted online with the following required supporting documents as attachments (PDF Format):

1. Budget Form
2. Declaration of Legal Representative of the tourism SME signed and dated by Legal Representative
3. Copy of official Company Registration Certificate, or other suitable official document proving the operation of an enterprise. This certification can be submitted in original national language of one of the eligible countries ( Denmark, Italy, Slovenia, Portugal, Lithuania), if not available in English.

Read COASTOUR OPEN CALL FOR APPLICATION: Grant Scheme for Tourism Businesses: Call I for the selection of third parties document for more info on the call and eligibility rules via link here

Find the Grant Agreement here

Supplier Catalogue

If you want to be considered as a potential supplier for toursim SME's recieving grants under the call, please register here

FAQs

View the list of frequently asked questions here (last updated February 8th 2024)

Contact your local helpdesk for questions!

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

To be eligible,the applicant must:

• be a Micro, Small or Medium-sized Enterprise (MSME)
• have VAT registration number;
• have economic activity within the following tourism sector:
• I5510 — Hotels and similar accommodation
• I5520 — Holiday and other short-stay accommodation
• I5530 — Camping grounds, recreational vehicle parks, and trailer parks
• I5610 — Restaurants and mobile food service activities
• I5630 — Beverage serving activities
• N7710 – Renting and leasing of motor vehicles
• R93 – Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities
• R91 - Libraries, archives, museums and other cultural activities
• R90 - Creative, arts and entertainment activities
• NACE division N79 — Travel agency, tour operator reservation service, and related activities
• H5010 — Sea and coastal passenger water transport
• H5030 — Inland passenger water transport

Applications from tourism SMEs operating in predominantly rural or significantly rural/intermediate regions and/or coastal zones will be prioritized compared to the applications from SMEs operating in predominantly urban regions and areas located more than 50 km from the coast in a straight line. If 2 applications receive the same score and only 1 of them could receive the grant, an application from a tourism SME operating in coastal zones and/or predominantly rural or significantly rural/intermediate regions will receive the grant. However, applications from tourism SMEs located in areas more than 50 km from the coast in a straight line and operating in predominantly urban regions are still eligible to apply.

Applications from tourism SMEs established and operating in Denmark, Italy, and Slovenia having economic activity within the following sectors:

• N7710 – Renting and leasing of motor vehicles
• H5010 — Sea and coastal passenger water transport
• H5030 — Inland passenger water transport

will be prioritized compared to the other eligible applications. If 2 applications receive the same score and only 1 of them could receive the grant, an application from a tourism SME having economic activity within the above-mentioned sectors will receive the grant.

Eligible Activities and Costs for Financial Grant Support

Only activities that have been confirmed based on the application and implemented after the information letter on the grant and within the agreed implementation period are eligible. These activities include:

• Preparation and audit fees for sustainability certification schemes(such as EU Ecolabel, EMAS, etc). External expert training and capacity building of tourism SMEs on a broad range of topics within the green and digital transition, such as energy efficiency, resources consumption, circular solutions, waste management, water management, eco-design, green procurement, mobility and transport, social innovation;
• Costs of travel expenses to tourism-relevant brokerage/matchmaking/pitching/investor events focusing on sustainable and digital tourism solutions and technology providers addressing organizational challenges identified;
• External expert support for the preparation process of patent applications, feasibility studies, prototyping, pilot testing, demonstrations and pitch preparation support, FTA documents, and IT systems.
• Purchase, installment, and use of sustainability impact monitoring IT equipment, such as water consumption meters, smart waste scales, tablets, and other smart communication tools to encourage guests to sustainable behavior. (Limit of maximum 20% of total grant amount).

Eligible costs are only those necessary for the realization of previously stated eligible activities and supported by proof of evidence as follows:

• Costs for services provided by Sustainability Experts / Consultants (proof of evidence in the form of invoices, receipts, bank transfer of payment, report on activities and measures carried out, studies/strategies developed, deliverables proving activities were carried out).
• Costs for preparation and audit fees for sustainability certification with a third-party audited certification body (valid within the co-financing period, proof of evidence in the form of invoices, receipts, bank transfer of payment, copy of Certificate issued by Certification body, document proving application to acquire certification within the co-financing period, deliverables proving activities were carried out).
• Costs for acquiring tools and/or software/technology solutions (proof of evidence in the form of photos, invoices, receipts, bank transfer payments, deliverables proving activities were carried out, maximum limit of 20% of total grant amount).
• Costs for participation in training and capacity-building activities related to improvement of sustainability performance, including costs for travel, accommodation, and/or participation fees (Agendas, boarding passes, accommodation invoice & and receipt, invoices & and receipts from training provider, bank transfer payments, copy of Certificate of attendance issued by training provider) deliverables proving activities were carried out)

NOTE: applicants can apply for more than one of the above-listed activities, and a mix of activities is encouraged. Any costs above €9000 will however need to be met by the applicant, since the grant amount cannot exceed €9000.

About the project:

Number: 101085863

Total project budget: 1 215 002,12 Eur

Duration: 36 months (2023-2026)

The main aim of the project is to develop a sustainability monitoring framework and open access self-assessment tool to monitor the sustainability performance of at least 80 SMEs in the tourism sector across 5 countries, whilst boosting their awareness, development and capacity in the area of sustainable innovations.

COASTOUR project’s focus is on sustainable and resilient transformation of the rural coastal tourism industry. Consortium partners, hereby 2 Destination Management organisations,1 University and 4 BSO organisations represent coastal rural areas in 5 countries: Denmark, Lithuania, Italy, Portugal and Slovenia.

Project objectives

• Increasing the competitiveness, resilience and sustainability of European rural coastal tourism SMEs;
• Transnational capacity building;
• Strengthening of sustainability advisory support ecosystem synergies with already existent European sustainability frameworks and tools;
• Improve efficiency and effectiveness of the existing EU sustainability frameworks and schemes.

Partners:

1. North Denmark EU-Office (DK) - Coordinator
2. Danish Coastal and Nature Tourism Fund (DK)
3. Promos Italia (IT)
4. The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Ponta Delgada (PT)
5. University of Primorska, Center for Development and Knowledge Transfer (SI)
6. Klaipeda Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Crafts (LT)
7. Azores Destination Management Organization (PT)