The fifth edition of the international event Night of Fortresses Goes Green was held on 8th and 9th May 2026. at 72 locations in 11 countries, featuring a total of 230 programmes. Over two days, fortresses, castles, museums, old towns, and other historic sites across Europe became places of meeting, learning, exchange of experiences, and new encounters.
This year’s Night of Fortresses took place in Croatia, Slovenia, Montenegro, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Italy, Czech Republic, Ukraine, Romania, Lithuania, and Albania. Thousands of visitors attended a total of 230 events, with diverse programmes for all age groups including walks, exhibitions, concerts, film screenings, expert-guided tours, educational workshops, children’s activities, and free admission at many sites. Educational and participatory content held a particularly prominent place in this year’s programme.
In this way, the Night of Fortresses once again demonstrated that heritage sites are not only places for preserving the past, but also spaces where cooperation, education, inclusion of local communities, and a more responsible approach to cultural and natural heritage can flourish.
The initiator and main coordinator of the event at the European level is the Fortress of Culture Šibenik, a public institution that has been developing the Night of Fortresses since 2022. in cooperation with numerous organisations across Europe.
“Year after year, the Night of Fortresses confirms that fortification heritage has strong international potential. What began as an initiative in Šibenik, now connects dozens of sites, institutions, cities, organisations, and communities across Europe. It is particularly important to us that the event is growing not only in the number of locations and programmes, but also in the quality of cooperation, the exchange of experiences, and joint reflection on how to make heritage more sustainable, accessible, and relevant to contemporary audiences. This year’s edition showed that the Night of Fortresses can be a European platform linking cultural heritage, sustainable tourism, local communities, and social responsibility,” emphasized Gorana Barišić Bačelić, Director of the Fortress of Culture Šibenik.
Fortresses Break Down Walls: Šibenik Programme on Heritage Accessibility
In Šibenik, this year’s edition of the Night of Fortresses placed a special emphasis on inclusivity. Through the programme “Fortresses Break Down Walls”, the Šibenik Fortress of Culture and the Šibenik-Knin County Public Institution for Nature, in cooperation with associations, connected all four Šibenik fortresses through inclusive thematic tours.
The programme was designed to open dialogue on how historical spaces - often physically and communicatively demanding - can be made more accessible to persons with disabilities and other vulnerable groups. The starting point was a simple but important idea: fortresses were once built to be closed, protected, and difficult to access, while today we strive to open them to everyone.
Inclusive tours were held at St. John’s Fortress, St. Michael’s Fortress, Barone Fortress, and St. Nicholas’ Fortress. Each tour focused on a specific user group and was developed in cooperation with partner associations: the Centre for Social Inclusion Šibenik , the Association of the Blind of Šibenik-Knin County, Association Aurora, and the Association of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing of Šibenik-Knin County.
The events began on 8th May at St. John’s Fortress with an inclusive tour in easy-to-understand language, created in cooperation with the Šibenik Centre for Social Inclusion. During the afternoon, inclusive tours were held at St. Michael’s Fortress in cooperation with the Association of the Blind of Šibenik-Knin County, and at Barone Fortress in cooperation with Association Aurora.
An additional highlight at Barone Fortress was the round table “Fortresses Between Defence and Accessibility: How to Make Inaccessible Heritage Available to Everyone”, attended by representatives of the associations and institutions involved in the programme. Participants agreed that accessibility does not only mean removing physical barriers, but also adapting communication, language, interpretation, and the ways visitors are engaged in cultural content.
The conclusion of the round table was that inclusive programmes should not be an exception or an occasional project, but an integral part of the regular thinking and work of cultural institutions. Representatives of associations emphasized that the programme represents an important step forward because it includes persons with disabilities and vulnerable groups from the very beginning - not only as audiences, but as partners in shaping the content. Such cooperation proved crucial for better understanding real obstacles, as well as for finding solutions that can make cultural spaces more accessible and open to all.
A special finale of the inclusive programme was a fashion show featuring persons with disabilities wearing designs by Šibenik designer Karmen Herceg. During their walks down the runway, their personal testimonies about everyday life and the obstacles they face were read aloud, giving the programme a strong emotional and social dimension.
On the second day of the event, 9th May, a heraldry workshop titled “Coats of Arms of St. Michael’s Fortress” was held at St. Michael’s Fortress in cooperation with the Šibenik City Museum.
The programme at St. John’s Fortress began with the lecture “News from the Past”, followed by sunset yoga in cooperation with Divine Studio Yoga. For the youngest visitors, the evening concluded with a special experience - a sleepover at the fortress - organised in cooperation with the Mountaineering and Environmental Association Stribor. Through workshops, social activities, and an overnight stay outdoors, children experienced St. John’s Fortress in a different way, combining play, nature, and heritage into a unique experience.
The Night of Fortresses in Šibenik concluded with a concert by BluVinil at Barone Fortress, which this year marks 10 years since its restoration and reopening.
Night of Fortresses in St. Anthony’s Channel and at St. Nicholas’ Fortress
The Šibenik-Knin County Public Institution for Nature was an important partner in implementing the “Fortresses Break Down Walls” programme, which connected all four Šibenik fortresses through inclusive thematic tours. In cooperation with the Association of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing of Šibenik-Knin County, an inclusive boat tour and visit to St. Nicholas’ Fortress was organised, focusing on the experience of deaf and hard of hearing persons in engaging with cultural heritage, as well as on the importance of visual communication and accessible information.
Alongside the inclusive visit to St. Nicholas’ Fortress, the Šibenik-Knin County Public Institution for Nature also took part in the Night of Fortresses with a series of programmes at the St. Anthony’s Channel Visitor Centre, along the promenade through the channel, and at the fortress itself.
On 8 May, the programme at the St. Anthony’s Channel Visitor Centre began with an expert-guided tour of the multimedia exhibition The Touch of River and Sea, followed by an educational and creative workshop for children along the promenade. Morning hours also featured a boat visit to St. Nicholas’ Fortress titled “Put the Screens Away, Play Nine Men’s Morris with Us,” including a guided tour and a small Nine Men’s Morris tournament.
On the second day of the event, alongside free admission to St. Nicholas’ Fortress and the St. Anthony’s Channel Visitor Centre, an evening guided night interpretative walk to the fortress was held, further connecting the area’s natural and cultural heritage.
As a reminder, the Night of Fortresses Goes Green event is part of two EU-funded projects implemented by the Šibenik Fortress of Culture:
GIFTSnet – Network for Green and Inclusive Fortified Tourism Solutions, financed through the Interreg IPA Croatia – Bosnia and Herzegovina – Montenegro Programme 2021–2027. and FORTIC – From Remains of War to the Architecture of Peace in the Cross-Border Area of Italy–Croatia, financed through the Interreg Italy–Croatia Programme 2021–2027.
