New GPS Nature Trail

New GPS Nature Trail
// The opening ceremony was supported with several presentations of the unique environment in Ossendorf //

In the frame of the project “Erlesene Natur” in the Höxter district, Germany, a new GPS Nature Trail has been inaugurated. With twelve interactive points of interest the trail is providing information about the natural and cultural environment of the calcareous low-nutrient meadows in the village of Ossendorf and around the “Heinberg”. Smartphone applications are available for iOS and Android. A HTML5 web application is completing the range of visitor services. The trail has been implemented by INTEWO and is also part of the GPS Adventure Park in the Nature Park Teutoburger Wald / Eggegebirge.

The app was not found in the store. :-(
The app was not found in the store. :-(

Corvey Castle ties with Oman

Corvey Castle ties with Oman

Tourism students from Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) visited the Corvey Abbey and Castle in the Höxter District, Germany.

In the context of their summer training in Germany, students from the Tourism Department at SQU, Oman, visited the Corvey Abbey and Castle in Höxter. The Castle of Corvey, lying on the River Weser, was founded in the 9th century as a Benedictine monastery. Currently a regional initiative is working towards listing Corvey as a Cultural World Heritage Site with UNESCO.

To follow up with the field visit to the castle, the SQU students, which undergo a six weeks tourism and sustainable development training in the Nature Park Teutoburger Wald / Eggegebirge, has to work out a proposal for the potential twinning of the Corvey Castle with the Bahla Fort, a World Heritage Site in Oman.

Twinning of World Heritage Sites in Germany and Oman is one of the activities of a formal cooperation between governmental and non-governmental organizations in Germany and Oman. The cooperation is entitled “Tourism and education for sustainable development” and was officially inaugurated in 2010, in the UN Year for the Rapprochement of Cultures.

SQU tourism students gather experience in Germany

SQU tourism students gather experience in Germany

Five students from the Tourism Department of the College of Arts and Social Sciences at Sultan Qaboos University are currently undergoing summer training with INTEWO in the Teutoburger Forest Nature Park, Germany.

In the frame of an official cooperation between Oman and German governmental and non-governmental organizations, the summer training has been offered for the fourth year in a row.

The training in one of Germany’s most beautiful Nature Parks will last for six weeks. Next to a language course at the University of Paderborn, focusing on tourism related issues; the students will be trained in environmentally friendly tourism practices, destination management, nature conservation and the promotion and concept of UNESCO World Heritage. To undergo training in Germany, a key source of tourists visiting Oman, is a precious experience for the student’s professional future in the tourism sector.

The training program receives financial support from SQU, as well as intellectual, financial and logistic support from INTEWO (Germany), Gulf Jewels Tours (Oman) and the Nature Park Administration. The cooperation between Oman and Germany is a vital contribution towards the rapprochement of cultures and the exchange of knowledge. Henning Schwarze, Managing Partner INTEWO, and Khalid Al Tobi, CEO Gulf Jewels Tours, takes the lead with this important international program.

Along with the tasks of the training, the five students from Oman will also participate in cultural events. E.g. they received an invitation from INTEWO to attend a football match with the Bundesliga team SC Paderborn 07.

INTEWO | World Habitat Society GmbH, headquarted in Germany, has operations in Oman and Ethiopia providing environmental services and sustainable tourism solutions. Gulf Jewels Tours is an Omani destination management company, specialized in Geotourism.