prof. dr.sc. Lidija Petrić: Is Croatia developing non / cultural tourism?

Cultural tourism. We have the potential, they are screaming on all sides, we all know that, and we can never make a step forward and make cultural tourism a quality complete product.

For this we need a strategic approach to the development of cultural tourism, both at the local and national level. It is through the development of cultural tourism that added value is created and the tourist season is extended. Cultural tourism does not know seasonality. 

Despite the few positive examples, we might conclude that we have a story, amazing cultural stories from our rich history and culture and way of life, but we don’t have a product. Why this is so and how cultural tourism finally gets the status it deserves, I talked prof. dr.sc. Lidija Petrić from the Faculty of Economics, University of Split, who is the author of various professional books and scientific papers related to the strategic development of tourism, sustainable development and cultural tourism. 

The last ones The need to abandon the model of mass seasonal tourism has been frequently emphasized for years relying on the sun and the sea and the development of selective forms of tourism, especially cultural tourism as counterbalances mass tourism. So what is cultural tourism, and what are its features? 

The topic of cultural tourism has been in the focus of interest of many researchers, especially since the early days  90s of the 20th century, when it began to be seen as a specific form of tourism that can help in seasonal and spatial relief of bathing destinations oriented to mass tourism, but also in the regeneration of cities after the collapse of traditional industries and rural areas seeking tourism. its new development path. 

Thus, over time, numerous definitions of cultural tourism were formed in which the authors sought to explain the synergy created by the combination of culture and tourism. Recent definitions include the World Tourism Organization  (UNWTO) from 2018. which defines cultural tourism as ‘a type of tourism in which the motivation of visitors is learning, discovering, experiencing and enjoying  tangible and intangible cultural attractions / products in a tourist destination ', provided that the "attraction / product refers to a set of distinctive material, intellectual, spiritual and emotional features of society that include art and architecture, historical and cultural heritage, culinary heritage, literature, music , the creative industries and a living culture that includes lifestyles, value systems, beliefs and traditions ’.

Given the growing focus of the scientific community on the topic of cultural tourism, can it be said that policy makers share the same interest in its affirmation? 

The answer is, of course, yes. This interest can be seen at the declarative level, but also in practice, both at the level of the European Union (and beyond) and in the Republic of Croatia. 

But the fact that cultural tourism, as well as tourism in general, due to its heterogeneous nature is not a subject of common policies at European Union level, such as agriculture, affect both its treatment and the way it is financed. Thus, for example, in the Creative Europe program, aimed at supporting cultural and creative industries in the Member States, cultural tourism is mentioned  as one of the activities focused on sectoral needs within the sub-program "Culture" (for the budget period 2021-2027), together with music, literature, architecture, cultural heritage, design and fashion.

Furthermore, the program  HORIZON 2020 (Horizon 2020), dedicated to research and innovation, under one of the topics called "TRANSFORMATIONS-04-2019-2020 - Innovative approaches to urban and regional development through cultural tourism", funds six scientific projects aimed at researching the impact of cultural tourism on the development of European regions and urban areas. One of these projects is "SmartCulTour (Smart Cultural Tourism as a Driver of Sustainable Development of European Regions) ", which, under the coordination of the Catholic University of Leuven in Belgium, engaged 9 other partners, including  i Faculty of Economics, University of Split. Of course, there are other program lines from which professional projects on the topic of valorization of cultural resources through tourism are financed,  and above all  from the European Regional Development Fund. 

In the Republic of Croatia, the topic of cultural tourism is present in many  national and local strategic development documents. Thus, back in 2003, the Institute for Tourism drafted an independent Strategy for the Development of Cultural Tourism, and after the adoption of the Tourism Development Strategy of the Republic of Croatia until 2020 (OG 55/2013), in which cultural tourism is marked as a key product, an Action Plan was made. development of cultural tourism. 

In February this year, the Ministry of Tourism and Sports published on its website the document "Scenario Analysis - Final Version",  which is an integral part of the process of drafting the Sustainable Tourism Development Strategy for the period until 2030. This strategy, in turn, relies on  The National Development Strategy until 2030, which has as one of its goals the development of sustainable, innovative and sustainable tourism, where cultural tourism is one of the priority directions for achieving this goal (on page 47, it is stated that one of the priorities of public policy which should contribute to the development of sustainable, innovative and resilient tourism  "Tourist valorization and presentation of cultural and natural heritage, gastronomic and oenological offer", which is stated in the National Recovery and Resilience Plan 2021-2023, within  Component C1. ECONOMY, ie subcomponents C1.6. Development of sustainable, innovative and sustainable tourism).

In addition to these key national documents, the topic of cultural tourism is present in numerous regional and local strategic development documents aimed at cultural development (eg Dubrovnik City Culture Development Strategy 2015-2025) or tourism (for example, Split-Dalmatia County Tourism Development Plan 2017 - 2027, with a strategic and operational marketing plan), and somewhat less often cultural tourism (eg the Plan for the Development of Cultural Tourism of the City of Makarska 2015-2020). 

Finally, it is important to note that UNESCO, as the umbrella institution for the protection and promotion of culture and cultural heritage, in the document entitled 'UNESCO Culture | 2030 Indicators' (2019: 12) emphasizes that' culture contributes as a sector of activity itself and as an intrinsic component present in other sectors ”, which confirms that culture can be treated as a driver that directly contributes to development, but also as a driver that contributes to the effectiveness of development interventions in other activities, including those of tourism.

Continuing the previous elaboration on the role of cultural tourism in scientific research and public policy, can you say something more about the SmartCultour project you are currently engaged in? What kind of project is it, what are its goals and expected results? 

The SmartCulTour project is funded  Of the European Commission under the HORIZON 2020 program, in the amount of 2,980,000.50 Euros. The estimated duration of the project is 42 months, and it started on January 1, 2020. As previously indicated, the lead partner is the Catholic University of Leuven, from Belgium, and in addition to the Faculty of Economics, University of Split, the following partners are also engaged: University of Applied Sciences Breda from the Netherlands; University of Lapland of Finland; Module University of Vienna in Austria; Ca'Foscari University  from Venice, Italy; UNESCO, Paris; Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Zaragoza, Spain; Visit Flanders - Regional DMO from Belgium and Quantitas, a technology company from Venice. 

The aim of the project is to explore how cultural tourism contributes to the sustainable and resilient (sustainable) development of Europe's heritage-rich regions, especially those in rural, peripheral and sub-urban areas. 

The results of the SmartCulTour project are reflected in:

• theoretical contribution to the development of concepts related to cultural tourism and the life cycle of cultural tourism destinations;
• development of a methodology for assessing the impact of cultural tourism on sustainability  and destination resilience  with the help of a unique system of indicators (this task was entrusted to a team of researchers from the Faculty of Economics in Split); 
• developing a “smart” support platform  the process of deciding on the development of cultural tourism, the so-called SmartCulTour DSS;
• empirical validation of the best practices of cultural tourism in the environment of the so-called. Living Labs. Within 6 Living Labs of urban and rural type (Scheldeland Region in Flanders) (Belgium);  Utsjoki Municipality of Lapland (Finland); Province of Huesca (Spain);  Split metropolitan region  (Croatia); Vicenza (Italy); Rotterdam Metropolitan Region (Netherlands), new creative methods of engaging stakeholders in the planning process, based on  local context (for example: arts-based methods; serious games and service design methods). 

The results of the SmartCulTour project are available on the project website: http://www.smartcultour.eu/ 

Let us return to the current practice of tourism development in the Republic of Croatia and the role of culture in this process. How do you assess the current situation?

According to the research of the Institute for Tourism "Attitudes and consumption of tourists - TOMAS Croatia 2019", 'culture and art' are the fifth most important motive for visiting Croatia, and among the activities related to cultural offer in Croatian destinations, guests prioritized the following activities: sightseeing , visits to historical buildings, visits to museums, galleries and exhibitions, and visits to cultural events. According to the collected data on the satisfaction with the offer of the destination, it is evident that tourists are very satisfied with the atmosphere of the destination, while they are moderately satisfied with the cultural and artistic offer and the quality of sightseeing. The quality of events and performances was assessed as low, which indicates the need for further reflection on the cultural aspects of the tourist offer, but also its interpretation.

Judging by the position of culture as a motive for coming, in the Republic of Croatia, according to the 1993 classification of Bywater, culturally interested visitors predominate, while  culturally motivated, and especially culturally inspired few. Namely, culturally interested tourists are those who have a fairly general interest in culture and who will consume cultural attractions in a relaxed manner as part of a vacation and not as part of a pre-planned itinerary. Culturally motivated tourists are those who consume culture as a major part of their holiday experience, but do not choose a destination based on specific cultural experiences. Culturally inspired tourists are those who see culture as the main goal of their vacation and who will travel long distances to gather cultural experiences. 

For the latter, Croatia, unfortunately, still does not offer an adequate cultural and tourist product, despite the abundance of exceptional resources, from those of heritage (tangible and intangible), on the UNESCO list, to cultural events / manifestations with a long tradition such as the Dubrovnik Summer Festival, the Split Summer Festival, the Varaždin Baroque Evenings and many others…

Unfortunately, these events, despite the occasional visits of top artists, fail to significantly establish themselves in the market of major international cultural events (so-called hallmark events), which is probably the result of a number of unfortunate circumstances, from organizational to financial, human resources. and others… 

Equally, valuable heritage is often not even recognized as a tourist potential, not to mention the difficulties in its preservation, conservation, reconstruction, management and physical and market accessibility. Suffice it to mention the Salon, which has been waiting for decades for umbrella institutions to finally agree on its preservation and transformation into an archeological park worthy of its exceptional value. 

Sometimes it seems that from the huge amount of high-value cultural resources in our area, simply  we cannot decide which to give priority to and what to do with them. This applies not only to inherited heritage but also to other products of cultural industries (theater, film, music) and  creative industries, such as architecture. In our country, it is almost unknown the fact that Split has two gems of modern architecture, Hajduk Stadium in Poljud and the residential area Split 3, which is  The Museum of Modern Art in New York (MoMa) presented in 2018 as part of the large exhibition "Toward a Concrete Utopia: Architecture in Yugoslavia, 1948-198", as the pinnacle of modern architecture in the former Yugoslavia. 

Will someone, motivated by this, finally remember to include the routes of modern architecture in the tourist itineraries of our cities?

I'm afraid not, because domestic travel agencies, unfortunately, due to the initial costs of introducing new products (without the possibility of copyright protection for such a product), mostly follow well-established trails and find it difficult to decide to include programs outside the usual routes. Moreover, a number of agencies that specialize in  cultural tourism in the domestic field can be counted on the fingers of one hand, which reduces the possibility of valorization of cultural resources through tourism. 

Interpretation of cultural content and resources through tourism is an additional problem. Despite the growing number of cultural institutions using modern augmented and virtual reality technologies (such as the Museum of Neanderthals in Krapina, the Alka Museum in Sinj, Šibenik's fortresses of St. John and St. Michael), most cultural content still does not use these media. They may not always be the most credible means of interpreting heritage, but they are certainly the most interesting to visitors. 

/ / / Croatian intangible heritage presented on the Google Arts & Culture platform

In an effort to increase the attractiveness of cultural destinations, cultural institutions, private tourism companies and tourist communities offer ‘innovative’ cultural products. Guided by the guidelines of the economics of experience, many of these actors stage historical events, often compromising the historical truth or authenticity of the resources on which they are based.

Typical examples of such pseudo-authentic manifestations / stagings can be seen during the tourist season in almost all our coastal places, but also in many continental ones. The growing trend of "storytelling" should also be viewed with caution. because the "slippage" from the sphere of authenticity and deviation in the interpretation of facts may be the easiest thing to do here.

The topic of intangible heritage is particularly sensitive, which, if not practiced, is no longer considered living heritage. Therefore, special care is required in its interpretation, so that different interpretations do not diminish its authenticity (a good example is Alka from Sinj, whose performance follows strict protocols and rules that have not changed for over 300 years).

How to develop cultural tourism and preserve the authenticity of cultural and tourist products, without neglecting the need of modern tourists to learn and parties?

I will not say anything new if I emphasize the need for constant cooperation, mutual learning and mutual respect between the various stakeholders involved in the development of cultural tourism. It is on this trail that he acts Split Living Lab which gathers public, private and non-governmental stakeholders in the field of culture, tourism and public administration.

The exchange of experiences and knowledge strengthens synergies at the level of the entire territory, and from it arise common ideas for innovative cultural and tourist products. Examples of innovative and authentic cultural and tourist products can be found throughout the territory of the Republic of Croatia, some of which are in the initial and some already in the mature phase of development. What they all have in common is that they were created through the cooperation of the cultural sector that cares about the authenticity of cultural products, and tourism, which as an economic, profit-oriented activity takes into account elements of management, marketing, finance, etc. without clear institutional support it is unlikely that such demanding projects would come to life. At first glance, the logic of this connection seems unquestionable, but in our circumstances this is often not the case.

Namely, on the one hand a large number  The "culturalist" still believes (often rightly) that culture is vulgarized through tourism and that the cultural sector must not be put at the service of tourism, regardless of the increasingly scarce sources of funding. On the other hand, a large number of tourism workers believe that culture is exclusively an economic good and as such is subject to change, adaptation and spending, not respecting its universal and intergenerational  values.

The fact that the role of the wider local community in the development of a cultural and tourist product is still not sufficiently recognized or clear in our country is also worrying, although it is itself a part of that product. with its lifestyle, value systems, beliefs and traditions.

In the future, awareness should be raised intensively among all stakeholders about the importance of culture, but also about the possibilities of its valorization through tourism. At the same time, we should praise the numerous destinations in continental Croatia that are rapidly developing ever higher quality cultural and tourist products. Let's just hope so in the process will be able to avoid many of the development mistakes experienced by coastal destinations.

It is through the development of cultural tourism that added value is created and the tourist season is extended. Could this be one of the solutions to extend the season? Rain and worse weather do not play a role here, because it is a year-round tourism as a motive for coming.

Of course, that's the point, for several reasons. First of all, cultural tourism can really develop  throughout the year, which of course brings significant direct income, both to tourism activities and cultural and other activities that indirectly serve tourism, but also to the wider local community. There is no need to waste words on the contribution to the growth of employment, both direct and indirect, and induced, because it goes without saying. Of course, year-round cultural tourism also means additional public sector revenues, and thus direct and indirect benefits for society as a whole.

In addition, cultural tourism generates creativity, and thus added value to cultural tourism products,  because it covers the whole spectrum of cultural and creative industries,  and it is known that the most creative individuals work in them. It is a special challenge to educate such people in basic entrepreneurial skills and knowledge, in order to recognize in tourism the space of action and the medium of valorization of their achievements through their own entrepreneurial endeavor. 

Education of citizens on the importance of sustainable and smart valorization of cultural goods through tourism is also a necessity. It is possible that a number of citizens would not be happy with year-round tourism, especially those living in  overcrowded coastal  places, because after the seasonal pressure they want to spend a peaceful winter (especially if they are engaged as renters of accommodation and if they have realized their financial aspirations in the season).

Of course, it is no less important to explore potential markets, ie market niches for  specific cultural and tourist products that we can develop, because we must not forget that cultural tourism is the umbrella name for a number of products, from heritage tourism, through art, archeology, religion, eno-gastronomy, events, film  and others, and that each of these products has a number of specific sub-forms.  By developing new products based on culture, we enrich not only the tourist offer, but also the quality of life of the local community. 

Finally, I would like to emphasize that culture, which is deeply intertwined with all aspects of life and work of a society, receives its additional affirmation through tourism because it is aimed at a larger number of users, thus achieving significant  multiplicative effects in the national economy. That is why we must not look at cultural tourism as a "place" of accidental meeting of culture and tourism,  we must already be aware of their deep and intrinsic connection.

In conclusion, we need a strategic approach to the development of cultural tourism. In my opinion, the biggest problem of our tourism, because of the rare endemic positive examples, everything happens spontaneously and by inertia? So in the case of cultural tourism, which can not develop well and become a product of its own, but it should be smartly arranged and developed in the long run. No way to make a breakthrough…

As I mentioned earlier, there are a significant number of strategic documents, from the local to the national level, in which cultural tourism is mentioned as a priority area of ​​action. There are, of course, a number of excellent cultural and tourism products, funded mainly from EU sources. 

But despite this, one really gets the impression that most cultural and tourism products are developed thanks to the enthusiasm of individuals. I personally know a significant number of them, and they all struggle with prejudice, misunderstanding and strong administrative and often political  obstacles.

In our circumstances, most strategic documents are drafted to meet the form, often due to the need for a larger infrastructure project that needs to be covered when applying for sources of EU funds. 

Employees of local administrations, tourist boards, cultural institutions and agencies generally do not understand that strategic documents with action plans are intended for them and that they must be a guide in their daily activities. But, on the other hand, why would they deal with it if no one controls the fulfillment of the goals set out in these documents? In other words, the system of monitoring or monitoring the realization of goals and activities as required by the planning process, as well as penalties  for their non-execution does not actually exist… 

So, we know what needs to be done, we have more and more available sources of funds and educated young people who would like to show their creativity, but at the same time we have inert and politically (not to say politically) burdened systems of public administrations and other public institutions and organizations.  both in culture and in tourism, who simply do not want to  develop in a systematic, multidisciplinary and participatory way  cultural tourism. 

Working on the SmartCulTour project with a foreign  fellow scientists, but also practitioners in the field of culture and tourism, especially in Belgium and the Netherlands,  I am pleasantly surprised their achievements in the development of cultural and tourist products, primarily through  stakeholder engagement  and encouraging their co-creation in the development of new ideas. Maybe we will in the future !?

The results of the SmartCulTour project are available on the project website: http://www.smartcultour.eu/

Photo: KatarzynaTyl, PIxabay.com / Illustration: HrTurizam

Sources: 

Matteucci, X. & von Zumbusch, J. (2020), Theoretical framework for cultural tourism in urban and regional destinations, Deliverable D2.1, SmartCulTouur project financed by the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement No. 870708

UNWTO (2018). Report on tourism and cultural synergies. Madrid: UNWTO.

culture. Croatian Encyclopedia, online edition. Lexicographic Institute Miroslav Krleža, 2021. Accessed 20 May 5. .

Bywater, M. 1993 The market for cultural tourism in Europe. Travel and Tourism Analyst no. 6, 30-46.