The ERHG will maintain the special membership conditions that were approved last year due to covid-19

The ERHG association celebrated its last General Assembly on September 4th and its members voted favourably to maintain the special conditions approved last year for new memberships. The new members will only have to pay the annual fee and will not pay the membership fees. The ERHG wants to encourage those historic gardens willing to join the Historic Gardens Cultural Route of the Council of Europe by facilitating the economic conditions.

The ERHG already counts with 37 historic gardens from 8 European countries. If you are interested in becoming part of our network, please read the who, what, why and how of becoming a member.

Who can be a full partner?

The non-profit cultural association European Route of Historic Gardens is open to all institutions that manage and represent this historic heritage in the context of the Council of Europe countries. The institutions can be public or private. Historic gardens need to be open to public and organize cultural, educational and research activities.

What it means to be a partner of the ERHG?

With the adhesion to the ERHG the interested entities will join the Cultural Route of the Council of Europe and give support to the recognition of this historical, artistic, social and natural heritage as part of the common European legacy and in line with the cultural and tourism values contained in the Council of Europe’s Extended Partial Agreement on Cultural Routes.

ERHG members add value to the network in different ways:

- Making available to all members its knowledge on the management, maintenance, conservation and promotion of historic gardens.

- Collaborating in the activities and projects that are proposed.

- Spreading the brand of the European Itinerary of Historic Gardens as a Cultural Itinerary of the Council of Europe.

- Attending and participating in the General Assemblies and the Annual Forum of Historic Gardens.

- Making an annual financial contribution to contribute to the viability of the network.

Why should you incorporate your historic garden to the European route of historic gardens?

Because you share our goals and the interest on the Programme of the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe, the oldest and most consolidated Cultural Tourism Programme of Europe, endorsed by the Ministries of Culture of the member states of the Council of Europe. Certification as a “Cultural Route of the Council of Europe” provides many benefits, among others:

Quality assurance. The certification is a quality label, recognised across Europe by visitors, tourism operators and public authorities alike.

- Visibility at the international level. The routes are represented at major international conferences and fairs, and network members are included in all promotional and communication materials.

- Networking. Access to a wide pool of international partners and experts in heritage management, research, cultural tourism development and promotion; national authorities, European stakeholders, international organisations and NGOs partners of the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe programme (EU, UNWTO, UNESCO, OECD, ETC, etc.).

- Funding opportunities. When applying for funding (Interreg, Erasmus+, Horizon2020, Cosme, Europe for Citizens, etc), certification as a Cultural Route of the Council of Europe gives a guarantee of quality.

- Advocacy. Cultural Routes operators enjoy greater access to European regional and local policy makers, including the European Parliament, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, and the Congress of Local and Regional authorities.

- Access to Council of Europe events and training. Representatives of Cultural Routes attend a variety of events and training courses; including the Cultural Routes Annual Advisory Forum, and the Annual Training Academy, which provides training in the field of cultural heritage management and tourism promotion.

How to start the adhesion process?

The adhesion process follows these simple steps:

1. A Letter of Adhesion is sent to the ERHG association, together with an information sheet related to the candidate garden.
2. The ERHG scientific committee assesses the suitability of the candidate garden/institution to be a member of the ERHG association, based on criteria related to its authenticity, relevance, state of conservation, openness to the public and type of activities carried out, among others.
3. During the following ERHG general assembly, all ERHG members vote the acceptance of the candidate garden/institution to be a member and the new member is included as full member (if so).
4. Upon acceptance as a new partner, a Government Agreement must be sent certifying the adhesion of the petitioner.

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