Demand for cultural tourism is increasing

Demand for cultural tourism is increasing

By Rita A. Widiadana

JAKARTA (JP): Cultural and heritage-related tourism is a major
pillar of the world tourism industry and will continue to be in
great demand in the 21st century.

This new trend in tourism was revealed at the recent
International Conference on Tourism and Heritage Management in
Yogyakarta.

Attended by tourism and cultural experts of international
reputation, including American futurologist Alvin Toffler, the
conference recommended new strategies that countries will need to
manage their tourism industries, which are becoming more
competitive as the 21st century nears.

The first strategy is to learn the market's real demand.
Research and studies by the European Commission show that
developed countries' appetite for the traditional beach vacation
will likely cease.

R.W. Buttler, a professor at the University of Western Ontario
in Canada, said that between the l960s and l980s, the growth in
international tourism was characterized by a seemingly insatiable
demand for sun, sand, sea and relaxation, for the lowest possible
prices, which boosted mass tourism industry.

But in the l990s, travelers are searching for unique
experiences. They want to learn about the cultural, historical
and political life of the country they visit rather than just lie
on its tropical beaches, Buttler said.

Heritage-based travel packages appear to be capable of
satisfying the new demand, Buttler said. Cultural travel
opportunities satisfy the visitors' curiosity, and their search
for knowledge, understanding, interpretation and insight, which
are now an essential part of both domestic and international
tourism.

"A country that offers diversity of cultural and traditional
treasures will likely get the biggest piece of pie in the tourism
industry of the future," he said.

The tourism industry is a significant part of the economy.
According to a report by the World Travel and Tourism Council
(WTTC), the travel and tourism is the world's largest industry,
generating an estimated gross output of US$3.4 trillion in 1995.
Tourism is responsible for the employment of more than 211
million people, and produces 10.9 percent of the world's gross
domestic product (GDP).

The tourism industry is investing $693.9 billion in new
facilities and equipment, and contributes more than $637 billion
to global tax revenue, according to the report. WTTC expects that
industry revenues will skyrocket by 2005.

If this report's predictions are accurate, countries must
restructure their tourism development to meet the rapidly growing
demand of cultural tourism, he said.

But creating new tourism strategies is difficult because what
constitutes 'cultural and heritage' travel is still ambiguous.

Definition

During the four-day conference, participants struggled with
the definition of cultural and heritage tourism.

They concluded that heritage is an inheritance or a legacy --
things of value which have been passed from one generation to the
next.

UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organization, defines heritage as "cultural property",
which includes both visible and non-visible cultural heritage.
The non-visible properties are language, religion and customs,
while the visible aspects are distinctive natural and
archaeological sites.

For tourism purposes, heritage has come to mean any product
that can be the subject of tourist promotion. Good prospects for
heritage tourism include landscape, natural history, cultural
traditions, archaeological sites, artifacts, architecture and
artistic buildings -- in short, all of what deserves protection
as a national, regional or local treasure.

As the meaning of heritage tourism becomes more clear, tourism
promoters believe that any country which can identify heritages
can develop and promote them as potential tourist attractions.

The University of London's Richard Prentice, however, cautions
that heavy tourist traffic will have a negative impact
on heritage sites.

Other serious effect will be the environmental degradation of
building of infrastructure such as hotels, parking lots and other
utilities, he said.

"Proper heritage management is needed to ensure that the
heritage sites are well protected and preserved. Once they are
destroyed or lost, they can never be replaced," Prentice noted.

Skill

Heritage management is the skill or practice of controlling
the heritage sites. It includes the restoration, conservation and
preservation of monuments, artifacts and historical sites.

Management of heritage sites such as Jordan's Petra and
various places of archeological significance in Malaysia have
brought in millions of dollars in foreign exchange every year to
host countries.

Tourism in Jordan relies mostly on cultural and archaeological
heritage. It now represents more than 50 percent of Jordan's
domestic exports and is the second largest earner of foreign
exchange.

Mohammad Al Najjar of Jordan's Ministry of Tourism and
Antiquities said the Jordanian government encourages community
involvement in its tourism development.

"The government also conducts a series of public awareness
campaigns to help communities to appreciate more and to protect
their cultural heritage. We are actively informing visitors about
the local society, religious codes and behavior so that they
respect our culture," said Al Najjar.

Currently, Petra National Park in southwest Jordan, is
nation's premier tourist site. Listed as a World Heritage Site,
Petra is preserved and managed with great care by the Jordanian
government.

The main source of income in this area was traditionally
agriculture and animal husbandry, but with tourism development
over the last ten years, more local people are earning money from
tourism-related activities, he said.

Community involvement is a significant feature of heritage
tourism. Developers must include local residents in their
projects as either employees or shareholders. Now there are 11
star hotels, and 40 new motels employing more than 1,000 local
workers.

A World Bank study predicts that with proper management of its
cultural heritage, tourism will become Jordan's top income earner
and job provider.

Malaysia is another success story. This year it has already
spent RM213.5 million ($84.6 million) on various tourism and
conservation projects.

One of the country's tourism strategies has been to protect
and preserve archaeological and historical sites. Plans have been
drawn up to ensure that conservation works are done in line with
international standards.

Some of its major conservation projects are the Kampung Laut
Mosque, the oldest wooden mosque in Malaysia, and Kota Johor
Lama. Several archeological sites such as Bujang Valley has also
been conserved through reconstruction and restoration, which has
now become Malaysia's main tourist site.

Salah Wahab, of the University of Alexandria in Egypt, said
that there is no contradiction between heritage conservation and
tourism development as long as the carrying capacity of each site
is maintained.

"But, governments around the world should see their heritage
preservation projects as their efforts to promote their national
pride and identity and not solely for tourism purposes," Wahab
said.