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The
Road Ahead
Cultural Tourism Development in Bulgaria Overview
| 2003 Vision Statement
| 2003 Press Release
| 2003 Event Program
Overview
In 2003, upon request and in cooperation with one of our local partners, the Municipality of Chepelare, Bulgaria, the Friendship Ambassadors Foundation designed and implemented the First National Forum on Cultural Tourism in Bulgaria.
FAF has been leading exchange projects in Bulgaria since 1998, including the
Balkan Youth and Reconciliation Seminars
Series, the Festival of Lights, and numerous exchange tours. Bulgaria contains tremendous potential for building sustainable cultural tourism products that are competitive on the international tourism market. Yet through our experiences we have witnessed barriers that prevent many of the organizations working in this sector from achieving a product that is sustainable, high-quality, and
competitive.
The 3-day Forum on Cultural Tourism took place in September 2003 on the Municipality of Chepelare at the
Pamporovo
Resort. We brought together two important industries in Bulgaria: culture and tourism, with the goal of combining their power in order to advance sustainable development by encouraging a coherent, national marketing strategy aimed at promoting Bulgaria’s cultural tourism products to the international tourism
community.
The forum began with overviews of the Bulgarian economic and cultural sectors in relation to the international cultural tourism environment. This was followed with evaluations of the opportunities and barriers to development of the cultural tourism industry along with examples of “good practices”. We discussed coordinating efforts on local and national policy and between local providers and tourist agencies. The forum attracted national attention, and brought together local and national officials, local providers, businessmen and experts from across the country and as far away as Hungary, Germany, Spain and the
USA.
The forum was a great first step in the “Road Ahead”. We are now developing a comprehensive training for the culture and tourism organizations on creating, marketing, selling, and financing a successful cultural tourism product. To get involved, contact us here at
FAF!
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2003 Vision
Statement
 GOALS
To unite two distressed and important industries in Bulgaria: the culture and tourism industries. The aim is to combine their power in order to advance sustainable development by promoting a coherent, national marketing strategy aimed at promoting Bulgaria’s cultural tourism products to the international tourism community. In this way, the two industries will build upon the nation’s strengths to create recurring travel opportunities that add to Bulgaria’s market position and role in the travel
world.
VISION STATEMENT
Group travel for cultural purpose is a multi-billion dollar market and is one of the fastest growing segments of the $3.4 trillion travel industry. In the current world market, issues of safety, insurance, negotiations with partners and vendors, and the importance of continued cultural exchange are all emerging as critical business issues. Within the market segment of pre-formed cultural group travel these issues are critical. The question is how does Bulgaria reap the benefits of this large and diverse tourism market. When inviting travelers to visit, Bulgaria inevitably competes with more developed destinations for mass commercial tourism. An undeniable strength in differentiating and identifying Bulgaria for tourists is its rich culture. This conference will begin the process of uniting the culture and tourism industries in order to maximize benefits and profits to locally owned and managed concerns.
The nature of travel has changed dramatically over the past ten years. With less leisure time to plan, and less vacation time to use, travelers focus more on experiential travel (getting to know a particular destination or topic in depth) and less on conventional tourism. Western travelers are also more receptive to cultural travel, thanks to higher disposable incomes and increasing accessibility to “off-the-beaten-track” destinations. As the world becomes smaller consumers define travel by unique experiences and destinations not by distance. At the same time, an important destination such as Bulgaria ought to view cultural travel as a vital way to create sustainable development, since subsequent groups will take similar tours year after year once the product has been
created.
The Road Ahead: The First Bulgarian Forum on Cultural Tourism and Sustainable Development will focus on business issues that face both industries, as well as the market place “valued chain”, upon which they both depend. The Forum will be an issue-driven event, with the importance of cultural exchange being an underlying theme.
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2003 Press
Release
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Bryan Stewart: 0889 603512
Mayor’s Office Chepelare: 03051 2004
E-mail: friendlyam@faf.org
FRIENDSHIP AMBASSADORS FOUNDATION
CONVENES
CULTURAL TOURISM WORKSHOP IN COOPERATION
WITH RHODOPE MUNICIPALITY
Friendship Ambassadors Foundation, a U.S. based foundation with roots in Plovidv, Sofia, and Chepelare has created a travel conference idea called The Road Ahead. It was developed with the direct aid of Mayor Todor Buzokov and the Municipality of Chepelare in order to promote cultural tourism as a means of revitalizing the tourism and cultural industries in Bulgaria. The gathering will focus on uniting them and creating new products to promote the potential for the tourism and cultural industries to aid in Bulgaria’s
growth.
The national forum on cultural tourism will take place September 1 – 3, 2003 in the resort Pamporovo, Hotel Pomporovo. Themes of the conference will include an analysis of Bulgaria’s potential in the international cultural tourism market, methods and practices for developing and attracting tourists to cultural tourism products, presentations on international and national case studies and will conclude by creating a proposal for future action. The conference is kicking off the 70th anniversary celebrations of the resort Pamporovo that will also include an international ethno-festival with live telecasts on Bulgarian National Television. A diversity of organizations coalesced to realize this conference, including sponsorship by the Pamporovo 21st Union of Hotel Owners and The Regional Tourism Association “Rhodopi”. This diversity of support symbolizes the widely felt need for just this sort of
gathering.
“For over thirty years, part of Friendship’s mission has been to aid local communities in finding ways to make cultural tourism a part of their sustainable development programme. Pre-formed, cultural group tours and the cultural exchange they engender are locally managed, create repeatable structures, such as festivals, that enable sustainable development, promote pride, mutual understanding, and global cooperation,” says FAF’s Executive Director Patrick Sciarratta. “They advance the cause of peace through tourism by not only inviting people to a destination, but by enabling them to better understand and enjoy the heart and soul of the people who live there,
too.
”This conference is seen as phase one in the development of the Road Ahead. At the conference we hope to find ways that the travel and cultural industries can work together and identify new areas for mutual development. In future gatherings, we hope to create new travel products for this niche market, and continue discussions on ways to fund their marketing, implement and then track their success. This is a multiple year
commitment.
The Road Ahead is a programme written by Maria Mandova (Assistant to Mayor Buzokov), Bryan Stewart (Peace Corps volunteer assigned to the municipality), and Patrick Sciarratta (Executive Director of Friendship Ambassadors Foundation, New York). Mr. Sciarratta is one of the programme’s organizers and keynote speakers. For further information or to arrange for interviews, please contact Mr. Stewart as noted above. Friendship Ambassadors Foundation is a legal, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in the USA and is currently filing for recognition as a Bulgarian NGO. |
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2003 Event
Program
 September 1, 2003
Arrival, check-in Hotel Pamporovo
4:00 - 7:00 pm – Registration (Hotel
Pamporovo)
Dinner
September 2, 2003
7:30 – 9:00 am – Breakfast
9:00 – 10:00 am – Registration continues
10:00 – 11:00 am – Opening of the Events
Greetings and Opening of the Festival with a song by internationally awarded folk singer Valya
Balkanska
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Representative of the President of the Republic of Bulgaria
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Mayor of the Municipality of Chepelare
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Regional Parliamentary Representative
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Representative of the Bulgarian Ministry of Economics
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Representative of the Bulgarian Ministry of Culture
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Chairman of the Pamporovo 21st Century Union
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Executive Director of the Regional Tourism Association
(RTA) “Rodopi”
Opening of the
Forum
11:00 – 12:30 First Panel
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Bulgaria’s Potential for Cultural Tourism Development; National Policy - Ministry of Economics
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Bulgaria’s National Cultural Heritage as a Force for Attracting Tourists - Ministry of Culture
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Bulgaria’s Opportunity on the International Market for Cultural Tourism – Elmar Kunz, GHH Consult, Germany
12:30 – 2:00 pm – Lunch
2:00 – 6:00 pm Second Panel
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Creating a Cultural Tourism Product, Interested Parties, Marketing and Advertisement - Patrick Sciarratta, The Friendship Ambassadors Foundation, USA
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Bulgarian Cultural Heritage as a Factor in Developing Tourism; Specific Unutilized Cultural Sites National Historic Museum
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Cultural Tourist Routes as a Demonstrational Model – University of Sofia
3:30 – 4:00 pm – Coffee Break
7:30 pm – Reception
September 3, 2003
7:30 – 9:00 am – Breakfast
9:00 – 10:30 am – First Panel: International Practices in Cultural Tourism; Case Studies
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Opportunities for Cooperation between Neighboring Countries - Boglarka
Barko, Hungary
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Andres Estirado, General Manager, TILESA Education y Culture, Spain
10:30 – 11:30 am – Second Panel: Bulgarian Practices in Cultural Tourism
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Ethnographic Arial Complex, the Town of Zlatograd
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Weak and Strong Sides of the Bulgarian Cultural Tourism Product - Bulgarian Tour Operator
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The Olympics in Greece and the Opportunities for Tourism In Bulgaria - Ministry of Youth and Sports
11:30 – 12:30 am – Third Panel: Advertising Bulgaria as a New Cultural Destination, Marketing and Branding
12:30 – 1:00 pm – Closing Remarks
Moderator : Mayor of the Municipality of Chepelare1:00 – 2:00 pm – Lunch
7:00 pm – Book release “70 Years Pamporovo” – Hotel Murgavets
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