The "Podravina 2024" cycling festival in IBC project

As part of the IBC project (Social Inclusion through Heritage Valorization along Existing Cycling Routes in Border Regions), Koprivnica-Križevci County organized the international promotional cycling festival "Podravina 2024" on October 16, 2024. The event aimed to promote the Croatian sections of cycling routes internationally: the European Amazon, Iron Curtain (EV13), and Balaton – Lonjsko Polje (D7) routes, as well as showcase the tourism offerings and natural and cultural heritage along the route. Participants included representatives from several organizations from Austria, Slovenia, Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Germany, Poland, Belgium, and Croatia.

The festival began with a visit to the Gallery of Naïve Art in Hlebine, where the participants were introduced to the "Hlebine School" phenomenon by museum curators and viewed both the permanent gallery collection and the current exhibition of naïve painters. Afterwards, the participants set off on e-bikes to explore the area around the Mura-Drava Regional Park.

Cycling through the picturesque landscapes of Podravina, they stopped by the Gabajeva Greda, Čingi Lingi, and Sekuline lakes, as well as along the Drava River by the bridge leading to Repaš. They took a short break at the Ivančan rural homestead and visited the bunkers along the Bistra stream, which symbolize the Cold War and Iron Curtain era in this area.

The cycling tour concluded in Molve, where the participants visited the town center, after which they travelled by bus to Đurđevac. There, they visited the Old Town and Đurđevac Sands Visitor Center, with the festival concluding at the "Croatian Sahara" site.

The guests were delighted with the attractions in Podravina they visited and returned home with very positive impressions, concluding that Podravina and continental Croatia offer unique and interesting attractions, along with an appealing eno-gastronomic experience for visitors.