Three European cities you’ve probably never heard of will soon be in the spotlight globally as Europe’s latest Capitals of Culture.
Tartu in Estonia, Bad Ischl in Austria and Bodø in Norway will offer a year of cultural events, showcasing their history and varied traditions to visitors from all over Europe and the world.
Launched in 1985, the European Capitals of Culture are an EU initiative designed to showcase Europe’s multifaceted cultural heritage. Every year, certain cities obtain this prestigious title, which gives them the opportunity not only to showcase their art and culture, but also to regenerate certain neighborhoods and tourism.
The selected cities spend years organizing special events, festivals, exhibitions, and exhibitions for the year. More than 60 cities have been selected for the title, including the Greek city of Eleusis, the Hungarian city of Veszprém and Timișoara in Romania recently enjoying their year. in the spotlight.
Tartu, Estonia’s second-largest city after the capital Tallinn, is hailed as the country’s intellectual center. As home to Estonia’s oldest and most renowned university, the University of Tartu, the city has long functioned as a center of educational thought, innovation, and cultural development.
From neoclassical buildings and libraries to the iconic “kissing students” fountain, the educational influence is hard to ignore. Beyond academia, the city’s intellectual reputation has also been built on its good fortune in producing luminaries of Estonian literature, art and theatre. .
As such, the art theme of Tartu 2024 is “The Arts of Survival”. According to the program team, the 4 arts of survival (uniqueness, sustainability, awareness, and co-creation) are “the knowledge, skills, and values that we will live a smart life in the future. “
The full program will consist of 4 parts: Tartu with Earth, Tartu with Humanity, Tartu with Europa, and Tartu with the Universe.
Under the component of humanity, intellectual aptitude will be revered with a touch of comedy. Across southern Estonia, the initiative will host brainpower cafes, amateur improv teams, and stand-up shows so that professionals and locals can share their stories of brainpower.
Austria’s Salzkammergut region is famous for its amazing Alpine mountains, 70 lakes, and its royal history.
Emperor Franz Joseph spent his summer holidays here for nearly seven decades. His mother, Princess Sophie of Bavaria, believed that the mineral baths of Salzkammergut might just be a fertility announcement, which led to the birth of her four children. The seaside resort of the city of Bad En Ischl still resonates with the presence of the emperor and his wife Elisabeth (“Sissi”), as evidenced by local portraits, statues and the names of the establishments.
Whereas it used to take several days by boat and carriage to travel the 270 kilometres from Vienna to Bad Ischl, it now takes only a few hours by train. Although Bad Ischl and the Salzkammergut region will be the first rural Alpine towns to be named European Capital of Culture, it will not be difficult to achieve this.
The year’s programme is divided into 4 lines: Power and Tradition, Culture in Motion, Sharing the Salzkammergut and “GlobalLokal”, all themes of salt and water.
The Austrian seaside resort of Bad Ischl has only 15,000 inhabitants.
The first weekend of January 20 and 21 promises to be a big party, as exhibitions on the theme “The total city is a stage” will be presented in Bad Ischl.
In some years, cities in countries linked to the EU may hold the title. This is the case in 2024 for Bodø in Norway (EFTA country).
Many foreign travelers know Bodø as one of the longest spots on Hurtigruten’s famous coastal journey, or as a stopover point to Nor’s famous Lofoten Islands. However, the city is also one of the largest urban spaces in northern Nor, and one that is rapidly developing.
As the first European Capital of Culture located north of the Arctic Circle, Bodø 2024 will focus on the coastal culture of the Nordland region of northern Norway.
One of the key elements of Bodø’s programme is the inclusion of a large component of Sámi culture. The Sámi, an indigenous people of northern Scandinavia, have their own parliaments in Norway, Sweden and Finland. Important resources are faithful to the preservation of the Sámi languages and classical culture. This year, in the European focus, it will be a great boost.
The European Capitals of Culture initiative continues to celebrate the continent’s multifaceted heritage. As 2024 approaches, Tartu, Bad Ischl and Bodø are in their year on the cultural scene.
For cultural travellers who like to get ahead of the curve, the European Capitals of Culture have already been chosen in the long term. In 2025, Chemnitz (Germany) and Nova Gorica (Slovenia) will hold the title, while in 2026 it will be the turn of Oulu (Finland). ) and Trenčín (Slovakia).
A community. Lots of voices. Create a free account to share your thoughts.
Our network aims to connect other people through open and thoughtful conversations. We need our readers to share their perspectives and exchange ideas and facts in one space.
To do so, please comply with the posting regulations in our site’s terms of use. We’ve summarized some of those key regulations below. Simply put, civilian.
Your message will be rejected if we notice that it appears to contain:
User accounts will be blocked if we become aware that users are participating in:
So how can you become a user?
Thank you for reading our Community Standards. Read the full list of publishing regulations discovered in our site’s terms of use.