Herceg Novi is a city of culture, art, sun, stairs, international festivals, flowers, classical music, films, books, classical exhibitions, theaters, sports. Located on the seashore, in the heart of Mediterranean, it has always attracted tourists and many great legends who wrote, created and painted their thoughts on paper. It is a city that captivates with its beauty and it leaves an indelible mark on everyone. Which proves the admission of this city to EFFORTS as the 90th member, which we are very proud of, because Europe has recognized the potential of Herceg Novi. What Herceg Novi represents today, we can thank various civilizations that have conquered the city for centuries and thus left their mark on it, creating an eternal conflict between East and West and leaving us a rich historical heritage that new generations are learning about. City suffered all the great wars, economic crises, also changed the ethnic structure with the arrival of new conquerors, but never lost its integrity – being proud and worth of conquest. 

Founded by Tvrtko Kotromanic, Herceg Novi was under Bosnian rule for 100 years, then for 200 years under Ottoman Empire, then under Venetian, Austro-Hungarian and Spanish rule. These cultures left the most significant mark on the city, marking it by building the symbols - beautiful fortresses that still proudly preserve the city being a proof of the strength of the city itself. Strategically arranged, the fortresses resisted time and gladly are receiving tourists which are showing great interest in history and all the events that are happening over the past years. 

Forte Mare or a Sea Fortress is a potential UNESCO candidate. It was built by Bosnians, reconstructed by the Turks, and given its final appearance by the Venetians. The fortress is located at the entrance of Bay of Kotor, in the southern part of the Old Town, being ready to face any danger coming from the sea. Today it gladly receives visitors and is giving them a small part of the history hidden within its walls. During the summer months its used as the open sky cinema. After the 1979 earthquake, it was rebuilt and restored in Venetian dimensions, but from then until today, due to lack of funds, does not give its full capacity to provide citizens and visitors with full comfort and experience of the past.

Kanli Kula Fortress or "Bloody Tower" located at the northernmost point of the Old Town in the city of Herceg Novi, was built in the 16th century under the Ottoman Empire and from the very beginning served as the last stronghold of defense. And apart from its defensive role, it is also shrouded in the veil of secrecy about the events that place hides, since it was used as a prison (what the name itself describes). Among its magnificent walls, the remains of a prison, a cannon with a pedestal, fragments of iron armor, money, drawings of prisoners showing everything that meant the most in their life, were found. Part of this legacy is kept in the Homeland Museum in Herceg Novi, while another part of this history is shown by the augmented reality technology which can bring visitors closer through history, our habits, food, fashion, beliefs and help them understand where we came from. The achievement is for people to realize how important is to preserve cultural heritage because it plays very important role in our life and it keeps our integrity as people – keeps as attached to our religion, tradition and beliefs. Interior part of the fortress was restored into an open air amphitheater after the earthquake back in 1979 and since then is one of the most beautiful summer stages, not only on the Montenegrin coast, but also on the entire Adriatic. It seats over 1,500 visitors, and has hosted many cultural event and festivals. Beside all this, the fortress itself is a tourist attraction where in addition to a theatrical piece, you can see the most beautiful view of the city.  

Fortress Spanjola - built by the Turks, not the Spaniards, as many believe, is located in the Upper Town and offers a magnificent view of the Bay of Kotor. It has an exceptional strategic position, surrounded by massive walls with four protruding circular bastions at the corners. The main entrance on the east side was provided by an outer wall, while the sea side was finished by new invaders. Thus, on the south side we can see the Venetian opus, and on the west the Turkish opus and some remains of the mosque. It was built in the right geometric shape and has a slight slope towards the sea. Inside the fortress were various structures - arsenal, barracks, mosque, some of which remain today. This fortress is poorly visited for several reasons, one of them is the location itself (170 m above sea level), but also the inability of the city to make a route that would connect all the fortresses.

Last but not least,  we come to the fortress called Citadel. It is located on the seashore, 100 meters from Forte Mare and it was used as the last line of defense back in the time. Completely destroyed after the earthquake with almost all the remains under the sea, with its present appearance as the open book, is trying to tell us a story... Standing in the sea for years, the walls of the Citadel are waiting to be raised up to their place and regain their majesty.  Accomplishing  that, we would finally connect all four fortresses and give tourists the opportunity to take home a large part of the history and wish to return and experience everything again… Because we, the locals of this city, with every look at the fortresses walls, discover, learn and experience something new.

This is only a small part what fortresses are able to provide. We have a great desire to make Herceg Novi what it used to be and to show everyone what city can offer, because being a proud citizens, we know what the city is giving us, so we want to give it the opportunity to live a life with full capacity once again.

1. Collaboration on multiple levels (local, regional, national and international, cross-frontier transnational initiatives) with the partner cities trough digitalization of Kanli Kula Fortress.

2. Promotion of cultural exchange of ideas, information, goods and services, and the sharing of resources between different partners in European countries.

3. Active participation, engagement and cooperation between visitors and the local community.

4. Focus on links among heritage, history and culture with historical documentary shown at the Kanli Kula Fortress.

5. Focus on inclusion of youth with the modern, augmented reality (AR) technology.

6. Cross frontier cooperation of partner cities among cultural and educational structures with the digitalization.

7. Networking and cooperation trough use of high tech technology to enable a broader reach for smaller communities, to engage with new wider audiences and to provide access to all.