New cultural heritage plaques mark the first milestone in the tourist wayfinding system

In downtown Jena, new glass cultural heritage plaques will soon provide information about the history of significant buildings and sites. With the installation of the plaques nearly complete, an important first phase of the new tourist wayfinding system for Jena, the “City of Light,” has been implemented. The bilingual information plaques provide key details right on site.

The content of the 52 cultural heritage plaques and 9 information pillars was developed in collaboration with the historic preservation office and the city historian. In addition to the information in German and English on the plaques and pillars, QR codes provide access to supplementary digital content with further details. In addition, two QR codes have been embedded in the cobblestones at Hanfried and the Carmelite Monastery. The content is accessible at kulturdenkmale.visit-jena.de.

The new wayfinding system was jointly developed by JenaKultur’s tourism marketing department, the City of Jena’s Urban Development Department, and with the cooperation of Kommunalservice Jena (KSJ), and the project was funded by urban development grants. The Berlin-based design firm minigram designed the visual identity, which deliberately draws on Jena’s tradition as a city of optics and glass through the use of anti-reflective glass. A broad-based participatory process incorporated suggestions from, among others, the Senior Citizens’ Advisory Council, the Advisory Council for People with Disabilities, and the Thuringian State Commissioner for People with Disabilities.

“With the new tourist wayfinding system, a modern orientation system will be created in the coming years that combines high-quality design, digital information, and the history of Jena, the City of Light,” 

emphasizes Hemmi Eckardt, Head of Tourism/Conventions at JenaKultur.

This is based on data from the Thuringian Content Architecture for Tourism (ThüCAT). 

“Digital data only realizes its full value when it reaches people, thereby making navigation easier and more informative when visiting a city. ThüCAT, the Thuringian Tourism Content Architecture, serves as our shared tourism database and contributes precisely to this in the context of cultural experiences in Jena. With the new QR codes, cultural landmarks are directly linked to information from the tourism sector,” 

says Christoph Gösel, managing director of Thüringer Tourismus GmbH.

However, the overall project is not yet complete with the cultural landmark signs. The next steps will involve installing two large orientation pillars at the Jena Paradies and Jena West train stations, as well as implementing the new pedestrian wayfinding system for tourists. Kommunalservice Jena is scheduled to issue the call for bids later this year. In the future, the new signs will guide visitors to attractions, museums, and other tourist destinations. The orientation pillars at the train stations will provide an initial overview of the city center and its most important sights.