Do sky-high gas prices have you re-thinking that long vacation?

The Kentucky Artisan Heritage Trails (KAHT) Project launched May 21 in ceremonies at EKU may be the answer. And all you need to plan your trip is a computer with Internet access.

The pilot project will do more than lead travelers to the top artists and craftsmen and other cultural heritage attractions in Madison, Estill, Jackson and Rockcastle counties. Believed to be the first on-line effort of its type, it may spark a national trend in the promotion of cultural heritage tourism, organizers believe.

The KAHT Project web site, www.kaht.net, is designed to attract visitors, enhance community and economic development and create jobs by showcasing via interactive on-line maps the area's natural scenery; craft shops, galleries and artist studios; historic sites, homes and businesses; bed and breakfast operations; regional restaurants; events, festivals and community celebrations; and other potential tourist attractions.

The pilot project was developed by the Center for Economic Development, Entrepreneurship and Technology (CEDET) at EKU through a $64,643 grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission, and doubled by an additional $70,703 in matching funds and in-kind contributions from a variety of public and private sources. Several academic departments and offices of the University collaborated with each other and with numerous state and regional agencies, including the Kentucky Artisans Center at Berea; Kentucky Guild of Artists and Craftsmen; the Kentucky Office of Geographic Information Services; Kentucky Craft Marketing Program; the Kentucky Tourism Development Cabinet; Kentucky Education, Arts and Humanities Cabinet; Kentucky Arts Council; and city and county and Chamber of Commerce officials from the four participating counties.

"The Heritage Trails project is a wonderful example of an institution of higher learning working with private businesses and government to produce an effective program that will benefit a very wide public," said Victoria Faoro, executive director of the Kentucky Artisans Center at Berea. "This certainly seems to be a model that could … be replicated in other areas of Kentucky.

"The (project) is sure to result in increased business for participating sites," Faoro added, "and an increased awareness among businesses that is sure to result in their being able to promote each other as well."

Cheryl Moorhead Stone, CEDET director and project manager, said research indicates that the growing number of cultural heritage tourists stay longer and spend more money than typical visitors.

"With so many interested in shorter vacations and an authentic culture experience, this is the best way to facilitate that," she said. "This particular trail marries GIS mapping technology with on-line service to help promote Kentucky's rich cultural heritage. When our cultural heritage is effectively marketed and we increase cultural heritage tourism, we're bringing new dollars into the community, providing businesses with customers they didn't have before. This allows businesses to identify themselves as being part of a cultural heritage tourism cluster. The cultural heritage tourist is going to be interested in many of these different types of attractions."

The cooperation from city and county officials and participants in the four-county area is significant, Stone said, because "tourists don't care about city and county boundaries. The process of developing this project encouraged everyone to recognize our interdependence."

The design of the web site allows users to group participating businesses by product line and location. It also reflects the input from faculty, staff and students spanning a number of academic disciplines at EKU - geography, communication, art and technology.

"This kind of collaboration creates a product with a lot more depth to it," Stone said. "It's a better product because of the multi-disciplinary approach."

Shelia Kusko, executive director of The Southern and Eastern Kentucky Tourism Development Association, applauded the "outstanding quality" of the web site. "It will enhance our ability to attain worldwide exposure for the arts and crafts that this region offers. We have top-quality artists and craftsmen."

All the participating businesses participated in a series of workshops last fall on hospitality, business plans, web site design and sources for assistance.

A KAHT kiosk is housed in the Berea Welcome Center in the city's old train depot. Another kiosk will be housed in the Kentucky Artisans Center at Berea when that facility opens in 2003.

For more information about the KAHT Project, call 859-622-2334.