Cultural Heritage and Tourism Competitiveness in Central and Eastern Europe

Abstract

The tourism sector is and always has been of great interest at both micro and macroeconomic levels. There are countries which rely almost solely on this activity, as a way to obtain income from those resources, both natural and anthropogenic, resources that would be difficult to valorize through other types of economic activities, e.g. agriculture. Lately, more and more attention has also been given to the concept of economic competitiveness and of raising the level of competiveness of a certain area – cities, countries or regions. In the case of tourism, this trend has merged with the growing need to preserve and support the protection of those unique or rare features of a certain area – its cultural heritage. This article aims to fill a gap encountered in the scientific research of tourism, that of analyzing the evolution of the tourism sector and, specifically, of the role of cultural heritage, in a region where countries have undergone a severe period of transition: Central and Eastern Europe, also considered an area of economic emergence. After an economic analysis of the main indicators (Gross Domestic Product in Tourism and employment in tourism) in the Central and Eastern Europe, countries that are members of the European Union, this article approaches the tourism sector from a modern perspective, that of the tourism competitiveness, expressed by the Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index. The analysis of the tourism competitiveness of a country complements the classic approach of the economic contribution of the tourism sector, with a view towards determining the role of this sector in the economic development of the countries from the emerging region Central and Eastern Europe.