Gorana Barišić Bačelić: How to turn a cultural resource into a tourist product

In the new edition of the podcast Homo Turisticus I hosted Goran Barišić Bačelić, director of the Public Institution in Culture Fortress of Culture in Šibenik.

In Croatia, we are constantly talking about potentials, which we certainly have in practically every region, but we can never turn them into tourist products. Especially when we talk about cultural heritage that is waiting to be revitalized and experience a new "youth".

But revitalization alone, however crucial, is not enough, because the work only begins then. 

The goal is for heritage to create added value through cultural tourism products, start the economy, be financially self-sustainable (as much as possible), become a tourism product, a platform for developing new stories, etc ... everything they did in Šibenik. 

The Fortress of Culture in Šibenik is the best example of how EU funds are used wisely and how to turn it from potential and dead capital into a complete tourist story, ie a cultural tourist product. With the revitalization of Šibenik's fortresses, Šibenik has experienced a new bright perspective, both tourist and economic.

Many European countries are learning from Šibenik, and just recently the Šibenik Fortress project was included as an example of good practice in a new guide from the European Commission.

Proof of how strategic planning can change the image of the city and create the foundations for a new and bright cultural tourism future. How many fortresses and castles do we have that are decaying day by day and waiting to tell their stories.

The Fortress of Culture in Šibenik is a signpost and the best example of how to turn a cultural resource into a tourist product (and much more than that). There they are, in our "backyard." We learn from them and start the cultural tourism evolution through the revitalization of our cultural heritage. We have something to be proud of and show off. 

Gorana Barišić Bačelić: How to turn a cultural resource into a tourist product

How to listen to a podcast? 

When you walk and run, when you drive in a car, in the morning when you prepare for work, when you do some chores around the house, or just lie down or sit down and relax. Everyone has their own habits and ways, I personally listen to the podcast even when mowing the lawn and landscaping the yard.

You can listen to the podcast HERE, as well as on Amazon Music, Google Podcast, Spotify or over Apple Podcast

Listen to all the loud thoughts of Homo Turisticus so far here.