COMPETITIVENESS OF LOCAL DESTINATIONS BASED ON TRADITIONAL EVENTS

Abstract

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to determine and indicate the opportunities for increasing the competitiveness of the tourist destinations by creating recognizable tourist experiences through valorisation the traditional culture using local events. Methodology – In order to determine the opinions about the competitiveness, the originality of the contents, the target market and the contribution of the local events of the traditional culture in the positioning of the tourist destination, the authors have conducted a semi-structured interview with the organizers of the event and other local stakeholders in the tourism industry. On the other hand, the authors have conducted a survey among the visitors of the event held in October 2016 in order to look into their attitudes and to compare them with the attitudes of the organizers on the same issues. Findings – The paper indicates that well-structured integral tourist experiences based on the traditional culture, contribute to the recognition and the positioning of small, local destinations. By doing that, they increase the visitors’ interest and their immersion into the event itself and thus contribute to the better attendance of other tourist contents within the destination. Contribution – The obtained data contribute to raising the awareness the destination management holders at local levels about the need of the development of the original and well-differentiated local events of the traditional culture, which can provide additional benefits for the local culture as well as raise the competitiveness and the tourist value of the still insufficiently valorised rural areas.