Opportunities for tourism development and cooperation in the region by improving the quality of tourism services – the ‘Danube Cycle Route’ case study

Abstract

The Danube Cycle Route connects countries, various cultures and traditions and has favourable trends in the development of tourism in the region. Improving the quality of supply of the Route in the Bijelo Brdo (Croatia) -Petrovaradin (Serbia) section, in terms of investment in road infrastructure, signs for tourists and designing thematic maps and guides, might strengthen cross-border cooperation between Croatia and Serbia, which would result in a direct impact on tourism and the economy of both countries. After analysing the current situation of the quality of supply, on the aforementioned relation, the aim of this study was to design a series of measures to improve cycle tourism. For the purpose of this paper the survey was conducted during the year 2010, where foreign tourists -cyclists from eight countries -participated. The cyclists were asked to analyse the condition of the Route in the section Bijelo Brdo -Petrovaradin. The initial hypothesis was that that the existing tourism supply is on a relatively poor level of development, and that long-term positive effects in this part of the region can be achieved by some strategic measures to enhance the quality. This work will result in the synthesis of theory, statistical methods, and secondary publications since the analysis of the obtained data may lead to the confirmation of the main hypothesis. The survey method is used in the study, whereas the chi-square test is used to determine the frequency of specific deviations. The reliability of the scale is assessed by Cronbach's alpha coefficient, and the confirmatory factor analysis is applied to assess the validity.

The Role of Agritourism’s Impact on the Local Community in a Transitional Society: A Report From Serbia

“…However, Var and Kim (1989) noted that tourism also leads to the employment of locals out of their (poor) communities. Nevertheless, numerous studies (Liu and Var, 1986;Weaver and Lawton, 2001;Andereck et al, 2005;Blešić et al, 2014b;Vujko and Gajić, 2014;Vujko and Plavša, 2014) emphasized the prevailing positive eff ects of tourism on life standard, employment and income. On the other hand, those activities are often the main ones 'to blame' for numerous social issues (the rate of poverty, crime, overconsumption of alcohol, prostitution, hazardous games, etc.…”

Significant involvement of agricultural holdings in rural tourism development in Serbia

“…In many cases, these businesses have non-economic goals (Ko et Ko et al, 2002). Very often, the development of rural tourism is the wish of the host only to meet their needs and aspirations, such as the way of life, the business might have started in response to the owner's needs or desire for a particular lifestyle (Vujko et al, 2014).…”

“…In Croatia, rural tourism contributes toward sustaining the regional agriculture industry (Petrić, 2003). Rural tourism is a growing sector of the overall tourism market, representing a significant source of income and employment for rural economies (Gajić, 2009), contributing to the sustainability of local communities (Vujko et al, 2014), and revitalizing flagging rural economies (Petrović et al, 2017 (2004). He points out that profit from the development of rural tourism contributes to the positive effects and in other spheres: the development of local agriculture, handicrafts, trade, presentation of traditional quality of domestic products, and the opportunity to reevaluate a region's heritage, symbols, environment, and identity.…”

Level of integration among agritourism accommodation sector and travel agencies

“…(Randelli et al, 2014). Vujko and Gajić (2014) observes rural tourism as a key factor of rural areas revitalisation process with a special emphasis on problems and current condition of rural tourism in Serbia, assuming that such position is important in the new identity of Serbian village. According to Petrović (2014), it is estimated that about 300 rural households with 8,000 beds offer services and realize over 150,000 overnights annually (Vujko et al, 2016).…”