THE FUTURE OF TOURISM REQUIRES AN ORIGIN: TRACES OF AN OLD CULTURAL POLICY IN VRNJAČKA BANJA

Abstract

The future of tourism is seen today as a key force in the process of globalization. When learning about culture, the origin of the destination is also very important, and the story of the destination is interesting if it has the history of a given culture. This paper generates short-term indicators of the development of the municipality of Vrnjačka Banja as a spa town in the Republic of Serbia with the largest market share. Apart from the fact that tourism is characterized by a highly global character and mass, it also creates knowledge about culture by connecting diferent parts of the world. The findings indicate that the existing tourist attractiveness does not exceed the potential possibilities, and in that sense it would be necessary to develop future tourist flows for the development and valorization of cultural heritage in Vrnjacka Banja. The results offer important implications for the implementation of tourism policy in the future, both for policy makers and for all stakeholders.