3. Event as a cultural product integrated into the integrated tourism product of a destination

The focus of this segment of the chapter is primarily on the destination-related issues of event tourism. The authors also present the results of the primary research and place them within the context of the previous research within this area.

Cultural tourism and event tourism as its integral part should be based on the principles of sustainable tourism development. The UNESCO World Heritage and Sustainable Tourism Program represents a new approach based on dialog and stakeholder cooperation where planning for tourism and heritage management is integrated at a destination level, the natural and cultural assets are valued and protected, and appropriate tourism developed [10].

The EU produced the Agenda for Sustainable and Competitive European Tourism, which is seen as the "New tourism" policy. This agenda primarily aims to sustain tourism promotion and development and rather downplays dimensions of sustainability. It confirms the view that tourism is seen as a major tool for regional and local development throughout the EU. Verheugen (2008) stated recently [11]: "Tourism is a strategically important sector for the European economy and can play an important role in reaching the goals of the growth and jobs Strategy." This Agenda as the following objective evidence:


The principles articulated for achieving a competitive and sustainable tourism throughout the EU are as follows:


concept is determined by tourist needs, motivations, and activities. All tourist attractions are strongly spatially marked (emphasized by authors), regardless of whether they are part of a

An attraction is often associated with the term event. The English noun event means "happening, phenomenon, consequence, competition." This word was taken over and is used as such in the Croatian language as well. In the Croatian foreign word dictionary [6], the word event is not mentioned, meaning that the word is in use only after the 1990s. An event can be a ceremony, a sports competition, a congress, a conference, an exhibition, a festival or a party, or something that happens or is regarded as happening, or an occurrence, especially one of some importance [7]. It is an event that can take place in different fields. The word event is often used

When debating the categorization of events, a thematic approach is then taken by assessing literature specific to the four general categories of events and related venues (i.e., business, sport, festivals, and entertainment) that dominate praxis and have attracted the most attention

In Kušen's overview of the usual types of individual and mass tourist attractions, music is a part of the cultural and historical attractions, located in the subgroup Manifestations (festivals, performances) and Culture of Life and People (folklore and tradition). However, Kušen points out that this basic classification does not extend to the basic tourist attractions and because of that he further contributes with a detailed classification of tourist attractions. When it comes to music, only those subgroups of attraction according to Kušen's division that directly or indirectly touch on music are stated. Attractions belonging to the folklore group, for example, are classified as a subgroup of possible attractions derived from the people: folk music, folk dances, customs, legends, urban legends, and "UFO legends," He continues by dividing the group of cultural manifestations into the following subgroups: games, festivals, presentations, exhibitions, art colonies, gatherings, and entertainment programs, while at the same time dividing the group of cultural and religious institutions into museums, galleries, exhibition spaces, shrines and locations of pilgrimage, monasteries, theaters (including the opera, national theater, drama theater, comedy, variety, cabaret, and specialty theaters) as well as concert halls. Regarding the notion of motivation or activity of a visitor who participates in the event, Kušen cites watching and listening, experiencing, learning the professional and scientific education

a. Events can attract tourists (and others, such as sponsors and the media) who otherwise might not visit a particular place; the spending of event tourists generates economic benefits; event tourism can be leveraged for maximum value in combatting seasonality of demand, spreading tourism geographically, and assisting in other forms of urban and economic development; portfolios of events can be designed for maximum impact, espe-

b. Events can create positive images for the destination and help brand or reposition cities.

specific space or their occurrence that is strictly spatially defined.

20 Mobilities, Tourism and Travel Behavior - Contexts and Boundaries

for notions such as event management and event organization [8].

Getz and Page indicate a core proposition of event tourism [9]:

cially by appealing to multiple target segments.

from researchers [9].

and photography.

• Achieve an appropriate pace and rhythm of development


This Agenda…has an emphasis on small-scale, locally managed, and controlled tourism, which has a social responsibility [11].

Within the context of tourism and the tourism system, events comprise a key element in both the origin area (i.e., events are an important motivator of tourism) as well as within the destination area (i.e., events feature prominently in the development and marketing plans of most destinations) [12]. Events are both animators of destination attractiveness but more fundamentally as key marketing propositions in the promotion of places, given the increasingly global competitiveness to attract visitor spending. To use Leiper's analogy of the tourism system, events have become a core element of the destination system (emphasized by the authors) where accommodation, attractions, transport, and ancillary services have been utilized or specifically developed (e.g., the provision of infrastructure for mega events) to enhance the destination offer, thereby expanding the tourism potential and capacity of destinations beyond a narrow focus on leisure-based tourism (e.g., holidays).

Recent research (e.g., Connell, Page, & Meyer) also demonstrates the critical relationship that exists between events as a bridge between the market for visitor attractions created by tourists and the use of events to fill the gap left in the off-peak season by a seasonal drop in tourism demand, as residents and domestic visitors provide a substitutable form of demand stimulated by events. In this respect, events have a wider remit than destination-related tourism although the focus of this part of chapter is primarily on the destination-related issues of event tourism and the studies associated with this area.

To be simultaneously successful in all these different areas at the level of tourist destinations requires a global approach, focused on tourist satisfaction and based on the principles of sustainable development, which is described as integrated quality management (IQM). IQM model serves as a support for the activities of restructuring and repositioning of the tourism destination whose task is to ensure a higher level of quality elements in the structure of the tourism product.

Integral quality management (IQM) is a relatively new concept in the management of a tourist destination that developed in the 1990s as a response to competitive pressures on both the supply and the demand side. At least three reasons can be cited to explain the late appearance of this concept [12]:


• Involve all stakeholders

principle)

• Utilize best available knowledge

• Undertake continuous monitoring

which has a social responsibility [11].

and the studies associated with this area.

tourism product.

of this concept [12]:

• Minimize and manage risk (precautionary approach)

22 Mobilities, Tourism and Travel Behavior - Contexts and Boundaries

beyond a narrow focus on leisure-based tourism (e.g., holidays).

• Promote negative impacts, e.g., externalities should be included in costs (polluter pays

This Agenda…has an emphasis on small-scale, locally managed, and controlled tourism,

Within the context of tourism and the tourism system, events comprise a key element in both the origin area (i.e., events are an important motivator of tourism) as well as within the destination area (i.e., events feature prominently in the development and marketing plans of most destinations) [12]. Events are both animators of destination attractiveness but more fundamentally as key marketing propositions in the promotion of places, given the increasingly global competitiveness to attract visitor spending. To use Leiper's analogy of the tourism system, events have become a core element of the destination system (emphasized by the authors) where accommodation, attractions, transport, and ancillary services have been utilized or specifically developed (e.g., the provision of infrastructure for mega events) to enhance the destination offer, thereby expanding the tourism potential and capacity of destinations

Recent research (e.g., Connell, Page, & Meyer) also demonstrates the critical relationship that exists between events as a bridge between the market for visitor attractions created by tourists and the use of events to fill the gap left in the off-peak season by a seasonal drop in tourism demand, as residents and domestic visitors provide a substitutable form of demand stimulated by events. In this respect, events have a wider remit than destination-related tourism although the focus of this part of chapter is primarily on the destination-related issues of event tourism

To be simultaneously successful in all these different areas at the level of tourist destinations requires a global approach, focused on tourist satisfaction and based on the principles of sustainable development, which is described as integrated quality management (IQM). IQM model serves as a support for the activities of restructuring and repositioning of the tourism destination whose task is to ensure a higher level of quality elements in the structure of the

Integral quality management (IQM) is a relatively new concept in the management of a tourist destination that developed in the 1990s as a response to competitive pressures on both the supply and the demand side. At least three reasons can be cited to explain the late appearance

• Set and respect limits, where appropriate, e.g., apply carrying capacity models

The IQM approach implies an equal satisfaction of the needs of the visitors, the local population and everyone involved in the tourism sector. The European Commission's integrated quality management is defined as a "systematic effort for internal and external quality, i.e., short-term economic progress and long-term local development [13]."

The European Commission has conducted separate studies and has adopted the appropriate Directives, separately for the urban, coastal, and rural tourist destinations [14], taking into account their specificities, and adapting the management approach accordingly. The European Commission points out that the coastal tourist destinations "do not just include destinations right next to the sea, but destinations that have been identified, recognized, and promoted as homogeneous entities where coastal tourist activities are the primary attraction for the visitor." [15].

Figure 1 shows a different approach to the event portfolio depending on the type of destination and in conformance to the aforementioned classification of tourist destinations according to the EU Directives using music events as examples. Urban destinations should offer all genres of music offered in urban destinations, with the repertoire mostly consisting of globally relevant authors and composers, and to a lesser degree consisting of autochthonous or locally characterized events. In the coastal area, due to the frequency of tourists of other cultural interests, the offer should be varied and of equal proportion, both popular and autochthonous. Within rural areas tourism as well as event tourism should be developed around the autochthone qualities of the destination that is being visited, promoting a tourist offer based on autochthone elements such as folklore, classical, ecclesiastical, and entertaining music.


Figure 1. The link between the type of tourist destination (urban, coastal, rural) and the genre of music events. Source: Research conducted by the authors.
