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

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

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

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

The goal is for heritage to create added value through a cultural tourism product, to start the economy, to be financially self-sustaining (as much as possible), to become a tourist product, a platform for the development of new stories, etc... all that 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 potential and dead capital into a rounded tourism story, i.e. a cultural tourism product. With the revitalization of Šibenik's fortresses, Šibenik has experienced a new, bright perspective, both in terms of tourism and economy.

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

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

The fortress of culture in Šibenik is a guide and the best example of how to turn a cultural resource into a tourist product (and much more than that). They are there, in our "yard". Let's learn from them and start the evolution of cultural tourism 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

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