New tactile solutions and audio guides at seven tourist attractions in Vidzeme

The Vidzeme Planning Region, in cooperation with local municipalities, has created new tactile solutions and audio guides at seven popular tourist attractions across Vidzeme. The objects were developed as part of the "Access Routes" project and are designed to be accessible and engaging not only for people with visual impairments, but for every visitor.

The seven sites are: Lake Lielezers in Limbaži, Skaņaiskalns Nature Park in Mazsalaca, the Madona Local History and Art Museum, Gulbene Station, Litene Manor, the nuclear missile base in Zeltiņi, and the Bilska Lake nature trail.

The new objects include figures and miniature scale models of the sites, as well as large-format tactile maps. They help people with low vision or blindness gain a detailed tactile understanding of significant historic buildings, sites, and living creatures, and to grasp the scale and layout of the places they visit.

• Zeltiņi Nuclear Missile Base (Alūksne municipality) now has a rest area with a tactile map and bench at two locations. The map lets visitors explore the site's layout, including strategic structures such as shelters and hangars, as well as residential buildings and roads.
• Bilska Lake nature trail (Smiltene municipality) features a new "Bird Tree" — an audiovisual installation showing local bird species at their natural size. Visitors can touch relief images of the birds and listen to recordings of their songs, and a QR code offers further information about Lake Bilska itself.
• Lake Lielezers in Limbaži (Limbaži municipality) now has an artistically designed environment object called "The Beaver," along with a tactile map of the beach and nature trail to help visitors understand their location and the layout of nearby features. An audio guide is also available.
• Skaņaiskalns Nature Park in Mazsalaca (Valmiera municipality) has a new relief map of the park, along with directional signage leading to points of interest and an audio guide telling the story of the park and its trails.
• The Madona Local History and Art Museum (Madona municipality) now features a scale model of the historic grounds of Birži Manor, together with an audio guide. Nearby on Parka Hill, which offers a panoramic view, a new informational bench invites visitors to sit and listen to the story of the surroundings and the town's history.
• Gulbene Station (Gulbene municipality) has a new scale model showing the station, its auxiliary buildings, and railway tracks, with an audio guide recounting the story of what was once an important railway junction. Nearby, Litene Manor has its own tactile object showing the manor, its park, and farm buildings, along with an audio guide covering the manor, its owners, and its history.

The audio guides are available in Latvian and English, narrated by actor Ivo Martinsons.

We invite you to journey through Vidzeme and discover these special attractions.

Photos: VPR and partner municipalities.

The tactile objects and audio guides were created as part of the Estonian–Latvian cross-border cooperation programme 2021–2027 project "Development of accessible tourism routes (Access Routes)" (EE-LV00043).

Author: Zane Kaķe, Public Relations Specialist, Vidzeme Planning Region
Original press release published on Vidzeme Planning Region website (25.06.2026)
New tactile solutions and audio guides at seven tourist attractions in Vidzeme - Vidzemes plānošanas reģions