Community role in heritage management and sustainable tourism development: Case study of the Danube region in Serbia

Abstract

Destinations and cultural resources that are used and respected by both residents and tourists are the ultimate goal of sustainable tourism development. Sustainable tourism as an emerging paradigm seems to enhance the existing conceptual frameworks on tourism planning and development by making the residents its focal point. In that sense, opinions, and attitudes of residents on the protection of cultural heritage and the possibilities of tourism development in their environment are very important. The Danube region in Serbia is recognized as a region of high-quality natural characteristics and cultural resources which gives an outstanding opportunity for tourism development. The purpose of the study is to examine the current state of the heritage management in the Danube region in Serbia and to outline the tourism development potentials of the area. The objective of the study is to examine the role of the local communities in these aspects. The methods used in the study were a public opinion survey, a focus group interview of 12 experts and the evaluation of the sustainable cultural tourism development indicators. The results have shown that local population in the Danube region in Serbia has, in general, a positive opinion and initial enthusiasm when it comes to tourism development, but their role is marginalized in the process. This is the key proposition to start an initiative for the local communities to actively participate in tourism development.