THE ROLE OF CULTURAL HERITAGE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TOURISM INDUSTRY IN CLUJ-NAPOCA MUNICIPALITY

Abstract

Cultural heritage plays a very important role in tourism; its presence in many territories has led to the emergence and development of cultural tourism. In this context, the aim of the study was to show the role of cultural heritage in the development of tourism, from the perspective of tourists who visited this destination. The results consisted in identifying the perception of tourist demand regarding the attractiveness of the objectives and the understanding of the tourists who visited this destination on the promotion of the tourist objectives of this city. The municipality of ClujNapoca is an important centre, in which numerous elements of interest are concentrated, elements of the national heritage, being characterized by an ethnic and cultural mosaic, with important tourist assets, which led the city to the attention of the most visited destinations in Romania.

Headnote

Abstract: Cultural heritage plays a very important role in tourism; its presence in many territories has led to the emergence and development of cultural tourism. In this context, the aim of the study was to show the role of cultural heritage in the development of tourism, from the perspective of tourists who visited this destination. The results consisted in identifying the perception of tourist demand regarding the attractiveness of the objectives and the understanding of the tourists who visited this destination on the promotion of the tourist objectives of this city. The municipality of ClujNapoca is an important centre, in which numerous elements of interest are concentrated, elements of the national heritage, being characterized by an ethnic and cultural mosaic, with important tourist assets, which led the city to the attention of the most visited destinations in Romania.

Keywords: tourism, cultural heritage, Cluj-Napoca, identity, cultural tourism

INTRODUCTION

This paper aims to show the role, the development and the evolution of cultural heritage in the municipality of Cluj-Napoca, as well as the development of the tourist industry by capitalising on the most important cultural objectives.

Cluj-Napoca has a valuable heritage, due to its long and rich history in terms of the events that took place throughout the historical periods, and at the same time diverse, because of the presence and activities of different cultures and religious denominations that have settled on this territory or just passed through it, have influenced the emergence of numerous buildings, monuments, traditions and foodstuffs that are part of the cultural heritage of the area we call cultural tourism, and which, with its history over time, have brought the city significant prestige in this respect, as well as important revenue.

Due to the fact that it is also the county seat of Cluj County and one of the largest and oldest cities within it, Cluj-Napoca holds the first place in terms of richness of historical monuments and places with historical resonance.

In the municipality of Cluj-Napoca the cultural heritage is of particular importance, the heritage elements being well illustrated and properly promoted. Thus, within the tourism industry, cultural tourism in the city is among the most important sources of income, which generates a large number of tourists throughout the year, both from our country and abroad, thus contributing to the growth of the local economy (Radoi et al., 2020; Cioclu et al., 2022).

The importance of cultural tourism in general and for the case study in particular lies in the fact that it contributes to the preservation of local identity, a way to get to know the history of the city and its culture, contributes significantly and obviously to the growth of the city's economy and to the promotion of a beautiful image of the city, arousing the interest of tourists and potential visitors.

The location and geographical position of Cluj-Napoca have been historically advantageous. It is located within the Transylvanian region, which is an element of favourability, as well as its significant size, which gives it great diversity and a high degree of cultural, economic and social development. It is considered a Western and modem city because of its Western influences and because it is located on one of the main communication routes that linked Western Europe with Eastern and Southern Europe since ancient times (Dueman et al., 2021; Herman et al., 2014; Georghilas, 2004)

Figure 2 shows the main elements of cultural heritage of interest to tourists, such as: The Ethnographic Museum of Transylvania, the "Lucian Blaga" National Opera and Theatre, the Roman-Catholic Church of St. Michael, Cetăţuia, Museum Square, and so on, which led to the emergence, practice and evolution of cultural tourism. They are located at a short distance from each other, are very accessible and easy to visit, and the travel time from one destination to another is relatively short, all these characteristics give the city a special air, and for the locals time seems to be non-existent, as many of them are eager to socialize and share with tourists information about the local culture.

Cultural heritage and tourism development in Cluj Napoca

Today, cultural tourism is one of the most well-known and practiced types of tourism, although people have been traveling since ancient times and have taken part in the way of life of different cultures, sometimes unwittingly, other times knowingly. It was only identified as a "tourist product" towards the end of the 20th century (Park, 2011; Georghilas, 2014; Teodorescu 2009; Radu, 2013)

With a controversial history, a long history and the presence of a valuable heritage, the municipality of Cluj-Napoca has always been of interest to researchers, historians and poets, as a result, it enjoys a popularity among cities of interest. Important research and scientific works have been produced on this city, which are not limited to a single aspect, but cover numerous spheres of interest, such as: archaeology, history, economics, demography, geography, education and culture.

Immovable cultural heritage with tourist value or built cultural heritage

The elements that make up this type of heritage are: archaeological monuments, architectural monuments, public monuments, technical monuments, memorial and funerary monuments and ethnographic monuments.

Mobile cultural heritage with touristic value: is classified into 6 categories, as follows: archaeological and historical documentary goods, goods of artistic significance, goods of ethnographic significance, goods of scientific value, goods of technical significance, goods of digital significance.

Intangible cultural heritage with tourist value: this is represented by traditional crafts, artistic creation and traditional techniques and contemporary popular culture. This type of heritage therefore includes customs and traditions, certain rituals, festive events and techniques relating to traditional practices and crafts.

The cultural heritage of museums and other cultural institutions with tourist value, as the title of this type of heritage suggests, refers to museums, which are in turn classified according to different themes and areas, and which can even be located outdoors (for example, the "Ethnographic Museum of Transylvania", which also has an outdoor section, or the National Museum of the Village "Dimitrie Gusti", in Bucharest, Romania). (Szemkovics et al., 2018)

Methodology (purpose of the study, research objectives, research methods)

In this entire context, the aim of the study was to show the role of cultural heritage in tourism development, from the perspective of tourism demand, which is a key factor in image development. In order to achieve this aim, the research objectives were to highlight the perception of tourists regarding the attractiveness of tourist attractions and the perception of tourists who visited this destination on the promotion of tourist attractions in Cluj Napoca.

The main stage leading to the achievement of the two objectives was the questionnaire. For the first objective, questions were asked about the attractiveness. Six questions are formulated and asked, and for the second one, on tourists' perception of the promotion of tourist attractions, three of the questions were targeted. The rest of the questions outlined the profile of the tourist.

A number of research methods were used to develop this article, leading to the final result. A first step was to consult the bibliography, which involved both scholarly sources, represented by books and scientific articles, and non-academic sources consisting of online publications dealing with concepts such as: cultural heritage, classification of cultural heritage, cultural tourism, types of cultural tourism, events underlying the development of this form of tourism, as well as the objectives, within the field method we visited certain areas of interest and tourist attractions within the study area, the Municipality of Cluj-Napoca, with a relevant cultural tourism heritage, transposed in the photographs taken in the field (visual images method). I consider it to be an essential stage in the study, because on the ground we have concluded and classified the tourist resources that best lend themselves to the tourist heritage of Cluj-Napoca and to the practice of cultural tourism. Another method used was the graphic mapping method, through the use of QGIS 3.4.13 software techniques, with the help of which the "Map of the geographical position of Cluj-Napoca municipality" was made in order to show tourists in a more concrete and simple way the geographical position within the country and the "Map of tourist objectives belonging to the cultural heritage". (Sandor, 2020; Gheorghilaş, 2011; Teodorescu 2009).

The research instrument used to achieve the objectives of the study was the questionnaire. The questionnaire is carried out with a good knowledge of the subject and it is important that the purpose is clear and well defined (Gheorghilas, 2011).

Description of the tourist questionnaire

The questionnaire applied in order to s the role of cultural heritage in the development of the tourism industry within the municipality of ClujNapoca, was applied online, being conducted through the Google Forms platform, accumulating a total of 101 responses. The questionnaire was administered in March-April 2021 and aimed at tourists' perception of the cultural-tourist attractiveness of the city. It consists of 17 questions, of which 4 are open-ended and 13 are closed-ended, all 17 questions are compulsory. The sample of this questionnaire was represented by all categories of individuals who visited the municipality of Cluj-Napoca, the objectives of this questionnaire being to find out the degree of knowledge of the concept of cultural heritage, the population's conception of this subject, the attractiveness of certain tourist attractions and the preferences of potential tourists in this area.

This method was used in order to analyse the perception of tourists regarding cultural heritage and related aspects, as well as to observe different forms of tourism practised in the municipality of Cluj-Napoca, which are generated by the existence of cultural heritage. In accordance with this method, the statistical data processing method was used for the results of the questionnaire by means of specialised programs: Microsoft Excel 2016 and Word Clouds.

The importance of cultural heritage for the tourism sector in the municipality of Cluj Napoca.

Cultural tourism in this city is currently well promoted on the official website by means of special sections and representative images, which illustrate activities in the sphere of cultural tourism and objectives that make up its cultural heritage (Teodorescu et al., 2017).

The main favourable factors, which led to the emergence and presence of cultural heritage, build a historical framework, through which the presence of various cultural influences that have favoured the emergence of heritage has been confirmed, and which represent a very important resource from a historical and economic point of view for this city.

The research carried out can conclude that the close relationship between the areas of: politics, economy, culture and tourism, patrician to city revenues. This income can also be used to cover possible expenses for the maintenance of the heritage (Kasagranda, 2016; Lequeux-Dincă et ak, 2022; Lazaro et al., 2022).

CONCLUSIONS

The present research aimed to analyse the contribution of cultural heritage components in the development of the tourism industry and the economic contribution it brings to Cluj-Napoca municipality. Also, it is highlighted tourists' perceptions of the attractiveness of the tourist attractions and the opinions of tourists who have visited this destination on the promotion of the items of interest. The study area benefits from a rich heritage due to the multiculturality and diversity of the objectives, the conditions that favoured their emergence and participated in the shaping of the local identity.

Heritage is a source of identity and cohesion for communities disrupted by surprising change and economic instability. Each country has certain values and assets that are of particular importance, some of which are of universal significance, while others are of lesser significance only to the country in question.

Presently, cultural tourism is one of the most well-known and practiced types of tourism, although people have been traveling since ancient times and have taken part in the way of life of different cultures, sometimes unwittingly, other times knowingly. It was only identified as a "tourist product" towards the end of the 20th century.

With a controversial history, a long history and the presence of a valuable heritage, the municipality of Cluj-Napoca has always been of interest to researchers, historians and poets, as a result, it enjoys popularity among cities of interest. Important research and scientific works have been produced on this city, which are not limited to a single aspect, but cover numerous spheres of interest, such as: archaeology, history, economics, demography, geography, education and culture.

Sidebar

Notes on the author

Aurel GHEORGHILAŞ - PhD at the Faculty of Geography, University of Bucharest, Department Of Human and Economic Geography, author of books and articles in the field of tourism, e-mail: [email protected]

Elena Alina TUDOR - Master student University of Bucharest, Faculty of Geography, e-mail: [email protected]

Student PhD. Cristina CRUCERU - National Institute of Geography, Romanian Academy, Bucharest, Romania, e-mail: [email protected]

References

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