State of the art of cultural tourism interventions
Creators: name: Moretti, Simone
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2021
Subjects: Cultural tourism
Cultural heritage
Taxonomy
Case studies
Tourism interventions

description: This report serves as deliverable D3.1 of the SmartCulTour ‘Horizon 2020’ project (grant agreement number 870708). The goal of SmartCulTour is to support regional development in all European regions with important tangible and intangible cultural assets, including those located in rural peripheries and the urban fringe, through sustainable cultural tourism (SmartCulTour, 2020). To fulfil this supportive role, SmartCulTour Work Package 3 intends to first provide more clarity and in-depth knowledge on the state of art of ‘cultural tourism interventions’. Cultural tourism interventions are interpreted as a variety of initiatives, of different nature, potentially impacting on cultural tourism destinations and initiated by a wide variety of stakeholders (public, private, mixed). The fragmented range of possibilities and the diverse spectrum of involved actors stress the urgency to gather and frame structured insights on what are the typologies of cultural tourism interventions, what are their objectives, impacts and success conditions. The collection and analysis of data concerning 107 cultural tourism interventions (see "Desk research of 107 case studies on state-of-the-art of cultural tourism interventions", DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.5213017) implemented all over Europe allowed to propose a taxonomy based on 5 ‘essential purposes’, therefore distinguishing between interventions: To protect, restore, safeguard and promote; To develop and innovate; To interpret, understand and disseminate; To involve and connect; To manage and influence. Through an expert’s evaluation process and using the proposed taxonomy as a frame, 18 interventions were selected and further analysed through case studies (see "In-depth analysis of 18 case studies on state-of-the-art of cultural tourism interventions", DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.5270665). This selection also fulfils the SmartCulTour’s aim to identify good practices that seem especially innovative and significant for the project goals. Therefore, they can also be of particular interest for the SmartCulTour Living Labs. The case studies reported insights gathered through desk research and semi-structured interviews with relevant stakeholders, focusing especially on expected, perceived and/or measured impacts of the interventions, success conditions and their contribution to sustainable development. A combination of insights from the case studies and data regarding the database of 107 interventions allowed to describe the ‘state of the art of cultural tourism interventions’ and outline a framework that shows the different types of cultural tourism interventions, their impacts and success conditions. The framework is more than just a summary. It is a starting point for engaging stakeholders in conversations or decision-making processes concerning cultural tourism interventions. Therefore, it might also be a valuable tool in the context of the SmartCulTour Living Labs, to stimulate and inspire reflections on cultural tourism and sustainable development.
description: See "Desk research of 107 case studies on state-of-the-art of cultural tourism interventions" (DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.5213017) for an overview of research data on the 107 analyzed cultural tourism interventions. Also see "In-depth analysis of 18 case studies on state-of-the-art of cultural tourism interventions" (DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.5270665) for underlying research data on the 18 in-depth case studies chosen for further analysis.