Development of cultural tourism

Development of cultural tourism

Introduction (130)

The essay reflects on the process of the development of cultural tourism in a chosen destination. The city chosen for this purpose is Istanbul, which can be a significant attraction for cultural tourists. The city is located across Europe and Asia, which has an amalgamated culture of Asia and Europe. The city consists of various tourist spots such as markets, restaurants, museums, ruins, and many others. Along with all these places, the city also includes religious places that are rich in culture and heritage. In this essay, the underlying opportunities for developing cultural tourism in Istanbul will be highlighted. The potential threats affecting the process of development will also be enumerated. Overall, a summary will be presented that will highlight the entire process of tourism development along with its potential opportunities and threats.

Discussion (2350)

Description of the chosen destination (350)

The destination chosen for the development of tourism is Istanbul city, which is rich in cultural heritage since it became the capital city of Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman. In 2010, the city became the Capital of Culture and developed many religious and cultural places such as Hilye-I Serif and Prayer Beads Museum. One of the major events conducted in the place is the Istanbul Biennial which is a visual art circuit. The event is held in Istanbul Biennial, which attracts more than 5 lakh tourists from all over the world. The place has an ancient and diverse history as it is the meeting point between the eastern and western regions, that is, Asia and Europe.

The place is massively rich in cultural heritage and can be a major tourist attraction for the international visitors, who opt for cultural tourism. It can be the ideal place for tourism development in the cultural field. One of the largest cathedrals can be found in this city, which is named as Hagia Sophia. The cathedral was first inaugurated in 537 AD by an Orthodox Patriarch of Constantinople. Two other religious monuments were constructed, which were the religious inspirations of Hagia Sophia. These two monuments are Suleymaniye Mosgue and Blue Mosque. These two monuments were built in the 16^th century and 17^th century respectively.

The cultural and heritage policy of Istanbul is guided by a number of bodies such as the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and Metropolitan Municipality of Istanbul. The investment of people is utilised towards the restoration of the cultural centres of the place and towards the preservation of the heritage. However, one of the hidden issues in the city is cultural participation from the people, which is declining steadlity in the present scenario. For this purpose, tourism development should be boosted up in this city through the creation and development of a large number of cultural centres. The cooperation as well as collaboration between the cultural institutions and the government bodies should also be increased at a faster pace in order to boost up tourism development in the city.

Process of cultural tourism development (1000)

The globalisation and unification phenomena have stimulated the growth of cultural tourism in the recent environment. Cultural tourism can be an efficient way of increasing the participation and visit of people in different places within the Istanbul city. Cultural tourism relates to the phenomenon when people are involved in the journeys that include visits to the cultural attractions, situated outside the residential places of those people. The main aim of this journey is to gain knowledge and experience relating to the cultural needs of the people. The development of tourism should build up a strategy that is driven by history of the place, art and heritage such that it attracts the interests of these religious people. All the tourists should be given insights of the cultural atmosphere of the destination and the beautiful experience they should be witnessing in this place. This insights can be in through material or immaterial forms of culture.

Cultural tourism can take different kinds of forms based on the preferences of the consumers and the chosen tourist attraction. As Istanbul is quite a big city present at the mid-point of Europe and Asia, therefore, the tourists can be given a separate tourist offer instead of providing an additional offer with some other kind of tourism package. From the market research, the preferences of the customers towards Istanbul can be searched out and offers can be segregated suitably catering to their needs and choices. It should be noted that culture can be a tourist attraction after it has been shaped according to the specifications and offered in the market at a particular rate. Istanbul is a highly distinctive place and is properly located at the middle of east and west, therefore, the offer package should be developed following an image of the destination.

The competitive advantage of the place should be taken into account for the preparation of tourism packages for the customers. The historical and socio-political background of Istanbul can serve as one of the competitive advantages of the place. The symbolic cultural events of the place can also be elements of competitive advantage for the city. These factors should be accounted for while making the promotional materials for tourism development. However, promotion of cultural and historical materials of the place would not be sufficient for attracting tourists. The agencies should properly manage the available information in order to transmit it among the customers.

The travel agencies can provide hotel accommodation to the all the tourists visiting the city and can offer city-tours to them, the prices of which will be included in the package. Information of the place can be transmitted to the people through concrete and clear promotional techniques or other manifestation programs. Another activity, which should be performed by the travel agencies is to analyse the data of visitors who have already visited the place and collect the statistics. The different demographics of these people should be extracted and noted down suitably. According to few surveys conducted in Istanbul, it has been noted that most of the people have decided to visit the place based on its historical notabilities. Approximately 60% foreign visitors have visited the place, while the domestic visitors have accounted for approximately 30% of the total population.

Out of the domestic visitors, 44% are from immediate neighbouring country, who has portrayed greater interest towards the material things of the cultural heritage. Considering the tourist visits in Europe, it has been reported that 20% people visit Europe responding to the cultural motivations of the place. 60% of the European tourists actually want to explore the culture during their trips to the places. Almost 40% of the cultural trips to different places of Europe have been in search of heritage and culture. The cultural trips should be prepared in such a way that the tourists are active participants in some of the touristic activities conducted during the trip. These touristic activities may include international art workshops for children, where the children can showcase their artistic creation through their impression of the city. Other activities might include creative workshops and exhibitions for the people belonging to all ages and other light-and-shows of the place, where people can also participate.

The cultural, historic and artistic contents of Istanbul should be discussed with the customers in a touristic manner, such that the tourists really feel interest in visiting the place. The population of the potential visitors can be appropriately segmented based on their demographical and behavioural aspects. The level of education and age are two important factors of the potential tourists. The information should be conveyed according to the chosen segment such that specific segments get information according to their demographic profile and choices or interests.

Other important factors contributing to tourism development in Istanbul can be appropriate infrastructural development of the city, protected cultural and historical heritage, the strategic developmental plan of the government and cultural institutions inhabiting in the city, system or restoration and protection measures taken by the legal acts of the city. Therefore, the tourist agencies can create programs using parts of historical units, manifestations, concerts or art colonies related to the different monuments and religious places of the city, covering the cathedral churches and the mosques for enhancing the experience of the tourists.

As cultural tourism is one of the selective forms of tourism, it can help in strengthening the economic growth of a place. The cultural forms inhabiting in the place will create higher quality of life due to development of tourism. However, in uncertain situations touristic development might bring about disruptions in the harmony of life, as it might cause negative environmental conditions. Therefore, the local people might get affected due to change in the environmental conditions. Sometimes, people might try to damage the authenticity of the place through negative publicity of the place. This might lead to the destruction of the pure cultural heritage of the place. Suitable protective measures should be taken by the agencies so that there is no such mis-happening and the originality of the place can be preserved in its true form.

Potential Opportunities (480)

Istanbul is predominantly located in Europe and also contains parts of Asian continent. Therefore, opportunities for cultural tourism in Europe can be relevant in this context. Europe is a well-established market for attracting cultural tourists from around the globe. Most of the European holidaymakers increase the interest of the tourists through delving into new regions and teaching them about the local culture of the place. This is one of the major reasons behind the promising presence of the cultural tourism in Europe.

Europe offers many cultural components to the visitors so that they can have an appealing presence in front of the motivated and incidental tourists. Another important element in this process is the presence of internet and the cultural tourists can easily book the trip tickets directly from the online platform. Europe is a lucrative market for the cultural tourists as it is already visible that most of these tourists hunt for cultural heritage in these cultural spots. The experiences of cultural tourism are at peak and are likely to expand in the coming days through inclusion of different historical treasures related to architecture and archaeology. Other historic or heritage sites including monuments and landmarks are constantly undergoing renovation for attracting more number of tourists. Other important events and festivals are constantly undergoing changes and transformation for being more attractive to the tourists, which is automatically boost up tourism in the places of Europe.

Another important opportunity lying in the segment of tourism in Europe in health and safety measurement. Europe can introduce safety measures in the different tourist destinations so that tourists can have a healthy and comfortable ride. The different measures of health and safety can be safe driving, clean rooms of the hotels, smoke detectors at sensitive places and many more. Political stability is another important criteria residing in Europe, which can be opportunistic for tourism development. The place is normally devoid of political turmoil, which can boost up tourism in different cities of Europe.

European tourists normally look for cheaper deals in short period of time for saving their costs. However, in case of cultural holidays, the tourists are ready to pay money and go for expensive visits just to have a pleasurable experience. The travel-makers can make provide value to their money through emphasising on the selective sites according to their demands. The travel-makers should also be quite transparent regarding the pricing of their deals. They should avoid charging unexpectedly to the customers at the middle of the trip due to uncertain conditions. Heritage places of Europe are excellent places for incorporating sustainability within the trip. The tourism providers can include eco-friendly activities that are relevant to the type of visitors visiting the places. It has been observed that cultural tourists value sustainability and therefore, it is always suggested that travel-makers offer sustainable elements within the packages of the trips.

Potential Threats (500)

Conclusion (120)

From the above essay, it can be concluded that Istanbul can be one of ideal places for cultural tourism development in Europe. Owing to its historical background, religious monuments like cathedrals and mosques, and rich culture, the city can attract major tourists in the present environment and also in future. The tour-makers should follow some of the tips, like customer research, development of best offer packages and offering best deals in the market, for attracting majority of the cultural tourists. The tastes and preferences of the customers must also be taken into consideration for this purpose. Despite all the vulnerable threats, Europe can be one of the biggest markets for cultural tourism in the future years.

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