The Finnish Heritage Agency and the Ministry of Education and Culture organised together with Muisti Centre of War and Peace a Cultural Routes Forum in Mikkeli, Finland in mid-November. Muisti Centre of War and Peace is a cultural route destination, and a member of the Liberation Route Europe. 

This two-day event held each year at a different Cultural Route destination, brings together Finnish Cultural Routes, route destinations, and stakeholders from the cultural heritage and tourism sectors. The initiative, introduced in the Roadmap for the National Development for Cultural Tourism, was developed in collaboration with Finnish Cultural Route operators. It combines an open seminar day with a second, invitation-only day focused on practical workshops.

The first day gathered over 100 participants and featured academic and practical presentations on cultural tourism, regional vitality, and development prospects. Cultural Routes active in Finland also presented their activities at exhibition stands, which drew strong interest.

The second day invitation-only event for Finnish Cultural Route operators gathered over 20 participants. The programme included for example a practical workshop on tourism product development along the routes and a presentation and discussion about of Creative Europe funding opportunities.

The forum’s core mission is to support the networking of Finnish Cultural Route destinations and networks, provide training and a platform for sharing good practices, as well as create stronger links between tourism and cultural heritage sectors.

Finland has been a member of the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe (EPA) since 2018, and is currently crossed by 9 certified Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe.