European capital of culture: residents' perception of social benefits and costs – Maribor 2012 case study

This study assessed Maribor residents’ attitudes towards social impacts of the European capital of culture, using FSIAS scale. The results showed that residents perceived more social benefits than social costs of the event. They agreed that the event had positive impacts primary on the promotion of Slovenia, as well as on community cultural life and image in general, which is also consistent with the purpose and the aims of the event. In residents’ opinion the event did not cause any negative impacts. The results provide residents, event organizers, and local authorities with important community perceptions pertaining to the event

Influence of Art Nouveau and its heritage on tourism: The case study of Aveiro

Tourist destinations around the world are trying to cope with the needs of visitors, which are very susceptible to change. Nowadays, tourists are becoming more sophisticated and knowledgeable; their needs for extensive and diverse experiences increasing. As opposed to the destinations whose tourism development depends on the natural resources that are difficult to influence and whose business is susceptible to the negative impacts of seasonality, destinations of city and cultural tourism have more space to design their offers and contents that can satisfy the needs of travelers of the modern age. Content that can make a destination unique and well known, is the cultural heritage created in the Art Nouveau style. The Vienna secession architectural masterpieces can represent major tourist attractions in some destinations. For example, many attractive tourist cities such as Aveiro, Barcelona, Prague and Hamburg tourists visit just in order to feel and experience these works of art. For this reason, it is very important to point out Art Nouveau as an essential part of the cultural heritage of the destination and enable informing and introducing tourists with this valuable tourism potential. The initial hypothesis of this paper is that Aveiro has authentic cultural heritage in the Art Nouveau style that enriches the tourist offer of the city and that attracts a certain segment of the tourism market. The aim of the paper is to examine the participation and influence of Art Nouveau heritage in the tourism industry of Aveiro