From the first day of the new year in Virovitica-Podravina County, visitors at the new Geo-information center will be able to discover how our planet came to be, experience the Papuk underground, feel the atmosphere of caves and pits, meet rhinos, Miocene saber cats, or Miocene sharks in the former Pannonian Sea and find out all about the historical and geological development of the most famous Slavonian mountains, reports HrTurizam.
Models, sculptures and photographs of interesting living beings and stories about seven historical periods in biology and archeology will introduce you to life on Papuk, which is mostly a nature park, and due to its exceptional geological importance and a UNESCO geopark.
Photo: Kristijan Toplak/Virovitica-Podravina County Official Website
“Papuk, along the Drava River, is one of our strongest assets, and both areas are under the protection of UNESCO. Voćin is annually visited by about 100 thousand guests whose main motive for coming is the Marian Shrine of Our Lady of Voćin. The opening of this new Geo-information center in Voćin with all its facilities will be the reason for the arrival of many new visitors, which will ultimately have a positive impact on the development of tourism entrepreneurship,” says Martina Jakelić, director of Virovitica-Podravina County.
The director of the Papuk Nature Park, Alen Jurenac, points out that the construction of the Geo-information center worth around 40 million kuna is part of the “UNESCO Geoparks Geopark” project.
Photo: Kristijan Toplak/Virovitica-Podravina County Official Website
“The geo-stories of the UNESCO Geopark have so far been the largest project proposal approved in this part of Croatia. The investment is worth more than 90 million kuna with 85 percent support from the Ministry of Regional Development and EU funds, while the rest of the funds were invested by the Papuk Nature Park. The Geo-information center in Voćin, which is one of the two official entrances to the Nature Park, is an excellent starting point for getting to know the geological, biological and cultural heritage of Papuk“, says Jurenac.
Papuk Nature Park is the first UNESCO geopark in the Republic of Croatia, a place that is very popular among mountaineers and recreationists, and from year to year it is surrounded by modern houses with swimming pools and camp Duboka, an adrenaline park, and Aquapark Shhhuma in Velika. Also, Papuk is surrounded by Kutjevo and its famous wine road, Požega, Slavonski Brod, Našice with various additional tourist facilities, which makes the whole area extremely attractive for tourism. By the end of September this year, PP Papuk was visited by about 50,000 visitors.
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