Managing Experiences within the Field of Creative Tourism: Best Practices and Guidelines

Abstract

Purpose

This chapter aims to share practical experiences in creative tourism management, in order to propose some basic guidelines for DMOs and DMCs interested in designing activities that cater to this new demand. Specifically, our intention is to analyze and highlight the basic criteria that most weighs to fit such a singular demand.

Methodology/approach

As practitioners, most of the examples, observations, and analyses are based on our daily management of the Creative Tourism Network® (CTN) and the solutions found by our members in the development of their creative tourism programs all over the world. These observations rely also on surveys and literature references.

Findings

(i) The emergence of the experiential tourism in general, and the creative one in particular, is only the visible part of the paradigm shift that is affecting the tourist industry, leading to the appearance of new opportunities and challenges. (ii) Amidst such a new and versatile context, it’s important to analyze the factors that contribute to the experience achievement, in order to adapt them and guarantee the best practices. (iii) This enables to list down some guidelines and practical advises for managers to cater this new demand.

Research limitations/implications

This chapter is written simultaneously with the paradigm shift and thus limits the distance we can have on its evolution as well as on the study’s completeness. It thus just pretends to provide a provisional balance of the current situation, contrasted with literature reviews.

Practical implications

The emergence of creative tourism implies a completely new form of management for both cultural and tourist fields that leads to the creation of specific skills and general guidelines to be adapted for different contexts.

Originality/value

The study, based on examples proposed by the CTN, offers a transversal overview of creative tourism, a sector that has not been deeply analyzed yet given its increasing growth. It is thus a novel approach, close to the practitioners’ daily challenges.

Citation

Couret, C. (2016), "Managing Experiences within the Field of Creative Tourism: Best Practices and Guidelines", Sotiriadis, M. and Gursoy, D. (Ed.) The Handbook of Managing and Marketing Tourism Experiences, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 235-259. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-78635-290-320161034