SWOT Analysis Religious Cultural Tourism Tourist Services in Italy

Partner:LANCM Released: July 9th 2012

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THE OPERATIVE PHASE Description of context (overview) A brief description of tourist services toward religious Tourism in Italy. A study data processed by the Research Department of Intesa Sanpaolo Bank show lights and shadows of tourism, a key sector for economic and social fabric of Italy (direct impact: 4% of GDP, 5% of the workforce: included the satellite industries: 9, 4% of GDP, 11% of the workforce) that still has many potential 'to develop. The accommodation capacity (number of bedrooms) sees Italy at the top in the world and first in Europe, while the average size of Italian hotels is smaller than that of other major competitors in the Mediterranean. Between 2001 and 2010, investments in the Italian accommodation sector led to an increase of 19.1% of receptivity in terms of beds, although there is sensibly more modest increase in the number of facilities (1.7%). The growing dynamic was more intense in the southern area, where the number of beds increased by 37.9%;

in

Sicily, the increase was even higher with 50.8%. In the period under review, the accommodation capacity has been moving towards a national quality improvement, with a significant enhancement of beds in 4 and 5 star hotels, with an increase over 80%, and in 3 star hotel, with an increase of 17.9%; the number of beds in the lesser quality facility has declined overall by 34.3%. This sensible growth has affected all areas of the country, albeit with different intensities; the biggest increase in 4 and 5 star facilities occurred in the South (114.3%). At the end of the Island to 45.5 percent of hotel beds belong to structures with at least 4 stars, compared to 7.4 percent relative to structures 1 and 2 stars. In Italy the gross utilization rate of the hotels in 2001 had amounted to 34.6%, the highest figure since the eighties. Following the crisis of international tourism due to the attacks on the World Trade Center in New York in September of that year, the figure fell to 31.9% in 2003 and, finally, due to the international economic crisis, the index recorded a further decline, falling to 31.2% in 2008 and 30.5% in 2010. 2    

The tourist does not unfold in a uniform manner throughout the year, usually focusing in some periods, such as during the summer months for those areas in more specialized tourism. Consequently the gross utilization rate of the hotels varies considerably during the year, the national average in the range of variation in 2010 went from 14.5 percent in November to 62.2 percent in August. Among the macroareas of the country the lowest monthly level of utilization was recorded in January in the South (7.7 percent). Depending on the capacity of the area to offer services for different types of tourism (e.g religious, art, nature, business) can vary significantly seasonal flows of nights. The national average indicator in 2010 was equal to 0.293. The concentration is greatest in the southern area, where it reaches 0.447, while it is lowest in the North West (0.156), followed by Central (0.219). While the world economic crisis forces many consumers to change spending habits, at least one of Italy's economic sectors has so far been barely touched: religious tourism. Italy, which surrounds Vatican City, the spiritual home to the world's 1.1 billion Catholics, boasts more than 30,000 churches and sanctuaries, according to the country's Ministry of Culture. That's more churches per capita than any other major country. And according to United Nations' World Tourism Organization statistics, seven of the world's 10 most visited Christian sanctuaries are in Italy. Religious tourism is an evolving phenomenon, complex and fragmented in its implementation dynamics and is dominated by tendencies that express spiritual and cultural needs. It uses the basic model of tourism, but creatively reinvent it, transforming its quality, purpose, rhythms and style and must not be confused with pilgrimage, although they share the religious dimension and have mainly the same destinations. Religious tourism is a constantly growing industry that, like no other markets, moves more than 300 million people a year, with a turnover of over 18 billion dollars, of

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which 4.5 generated only from Italy, that, in the last two years, has seen a total growth of 20% Due to these favorable perspectives, this sector needs immediate and productive attention. On the basis of studies performed, it is necessary to operate in two different strategic planning: • meeting the demand in its various aspects; • highlighting the local systems’ competitiveness and prospective in order to address needs and necessities of the territories, find solutions and design decisive and constructive development plans. The combination of religious and cultural tourism leads to the proposal by operators of a wide and varied offer, starting from the identification of new expectations in supply and demand, draws new market niches, to which new business entities address their own proposal of new tourist products and destinations. Cultural – religious tourism, therefore, may be an occasion for local development by diversifying the reasons for visiting and linking the sacred places to other cultural factors (art and architecture, food and wine, crafts, folklore, etc) as well as nature and environment, often contributing to the seasonal adjustment of tourist arrivals and presences . However, to enhance the local opportunities, the territories should

put all the

resources on the line, aiming to the integration of production systems and local stakeholders (institutional and otherwise). The religious tourism offer system includes: ü Managers of accommodation facilities, partially or totally dedicated to religious tourism; ü Bus rental companies; ü Air carriers that operate on routes containing religious sites; 4    

ü Managers of museums, art galleries and other important religious or cultural services also owned by Church’s institutions; ü Guides, escorts and entertainers working in the religious tourism sector; ü Cooperative management services operating in the religious tourism sector; ü Religious products manufactures; ü Publishing companies operating in the religious tourism sector; ü Managers of bookshops and other outlets selling religious souvenirs and gifts; It also must be defined the concept of sacred/religious place, which is characterized by: o Ability to attract and accommodate religious tourist/pilgrims; o Presence of works inspired by faith; o Be a cultural sign that tells the history of the place, its people and their relationship with faith. These features belong to shrines, churches and basilicas, catacombs and monasteries, abbeys, hermitages and others places related to historical faith. It also must be considered that the place of worship is usually inserted in an enticing surrounding that attract people, which reinforces its image among religious and cultural tourists. These sacred sites, destinations of large flows of pilgrims / tourists, required particular attention and therefore local governments (municipalities, regional authorities, public officials, etc..) must address some critical issues that demand specific interventions and sensitivity: Ø Accessibility to sacred places (fees regulation and payment, structural barriers, parking, etc..);

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Ø Protection of the physical integrity of religious sites and the respect of their significance; Ø Ensure the well-being of the local communities and their right to use the sacred areas first; Ø Reconcile the commercial interests of the tourism industry with the spiritual and religious needs of faithful or religious tourists. Local stakeholders must carefully plan and implement various activities aimed to enhance the cultural and artistic heritage of a destination, as well as ensure an adequate level of quality offer. One of the most evident trends in cultural-religious tourism appears to be the revitalization of “memory", i.e. the request for re-reading religious history, deepening its knowledge, starting from its original form in order to search for cultural roots and values and find new ideas for living in the present time. The local governments and supply systems must start from the identification of the religious patrimony and design guidelines for its promotion and enhancement and then focus on the preparation of materials, information services on the holy places and ensure their accessibility, usability and preservation . In this perspective, important factors to engage the visitor into an unforgettable religious-cultural experience are the quality of multimedia tools to support the visit of the holy places and cultural heritage, religious gadgets and souvenirs, guides and other illustrative material (brochures, video guides, posters, signposting etc.). Other fundamental aspects to ensure the quality of the religious tourism sector are the availability of suitable accommodation system (alternative forms of hospitality, atmosphere, willingness to satisfy the needs of religious tourist by the traditional accommodation businesses, etc..), Moreover, religious tourism requires the availability not only of the basic and traditional

services

(accommodation,

catering,

transportation,

information,

assistance, etc..) but also religious services when the main motive of the visit/vacation is a spiritual motivation: masses, confessions and other liturgies.

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Sacred places are increasingly becoming the destination of a tourism that goes beyond the large numbers of pilgrims attracted to shrines or religious events, represented by a traveler that is well-educated and interested in quality tourism, attracted by places of

religious and historical significance, beautiful landscapes,

where usually religious values are located, allured by religious events perceived as a sign of local identity. In recent years, Italy saw the production of thematic routes linked to religious belief and reinterpretation of cultural heritage aimed to satisfy the new trends in religious tourism. In this perspective, destinations must possess or acquire a specific and consistent identity based on three components: religion, culture and nature. These trends attest that religious tourism is becoming more and more diverse, ranging from the traditional approach (organized groups, mass tourism, pilgrimages) to a new and sophisticated approach, seeking a personal and highly qualitative experience. This transformation from pilgrim to religious-cultural tourist required a new offer system addressed the traveler’s new identity, characterized by curiosity about the areas visited, search for roots and authenticity, autonomy in selecting his own route, with or without spiritual and religious motivation. The Vatican estimated between 220 and 250 million yearly visitors to religious sites and certainly not all of them are pilgrims!

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Strenght Positive elements detected

•

The richest artistic patrimony in the World.

•

Availability of cultural, religious, historical, natural heritage supported by the growing importance of religion as a crucial component of tourism demand.;

•

Availability of a broad and diverse heritage attractions to meet the demands of tourism on different levels;

•

Increase of incoming religious tourists flow;

•

Growing awareness of the national and regional governments, local institutions and stakeholders on the fundamental role of cultural-religious tourism for the welfare and development of the country

•

Enhancement of artistic, traditional and religious products manufacturing.

•

Availability of religious tangible and intangible values: countless sanctuaries and churches, monuments, archeology, worldwide recognized food and wine tradition, nature, amazing parks, spas, crafts etc.;

•

Diverse and very good climate conditions;

Weakness Negative or weak elements detected.

•

Inadequate utilization of religious and cultural resources;

•

Standardization of services that do not allow immediate adjustment to a more flexible demand;

•

Lack of experienced and specially trained personnel in religious tourism (guides, consultants, etc,)

•

Poor integration between tourism stakeholders of different areas that prevents appropriate actions of co-marketing;

•

Inadequate diversification in the accommodation sector; 8  

 

•

Insufficient level of services;

•

Low level of connection within the territories, with little accessibility to religious sites and lack of proper road signs and signposting;

•

Lack of strategies to protect and promote religious tourism at

regional,

national and international level; •

Moderate integration between promotion and marketing processes that can negatively affect the decision-making process of potential tourists.

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Opportunities Potential or real positive elements from the external environment.

•

Growing religious tourism entrepreneurship, supported by highly motivated professionals;

•

Development of alternative accommodation (B&B, agritourism, apartments, private housing, etc.);

•

Possibility to create integrated routes, due to the endless cultural-religious values and attractions, aimed to satisfy the diversity of demand;

• •

Good supply, in the most part of the country, of tourist facilities, road and highways, ports and railways;

•

Well established tourist tradition and very good level of knowledge of the offer within the brokerage tourist circuits;

•

Growing general awareness (Governments, local institutions, population) of the crucial importance of religious and cultural tourism for the social-economic development of the territories:

•

General and urgent request from local governments and institutions to the national government to bestow adequate funds to promote religious tourism, improve or develop the infrastructures in order to manage the increasing demand

Threats Negative or weak  elements  that hamper the enhancement of the theme.

•

Increasing competition of traditional tourism;

•

Reduction in average length of stay with consequent need to expand the religious tourism offer;

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•

Need to create integrated tourist routes that can meet the diverse levels of demand;

•

Increasing level of “last minute” travelers that require greater attention to the services and proposal flexibility in order to always offer tourist destination of good quality;

•

Increasing power of tourist brokers;

•

Growing need for detailed information well before planning a religious motivated trip.

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Final Report

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Synthetic summary of the Strengths and Opportunities

Desk analysis and meetings with opinion leaders have raised some critical issues that affect the organization of facilities and services for religious tourism. These are the positive: ü High customer loyalty. Tourists are particularly faithful to territories and accommodation facilities. This means that a professional welcome and great services are always a good business investment as they are a guarantee of returning guests ü Low use of mediation and use of marketing tools that are different from the traditional ones; ü Strong use of word-of-mouth to get information and selecting the destination and accommodation; Internet is used as a useful device to complete the information already obtained and therefore becomes an important descriptive product rather than an effective tool for sale; ü Demanding customers. The belief according to which the religious tourist has low purchasing power should be debunked; in fact, the new cultural-religious customer looks for quality product and, in particular, quality (and quantity) of food services, is ready to buy local products and crafts with obvious benefit to the related sectors (agriculture, trade, commerce and public services). ü Seasonality. Cultural-religious vacation only partially coincide with the average tourist holiday: in fact, the high season is in Spring and Summer.

•

Approaches to be taken to overcome shortcomings and constraints and possible disadvantages

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It is clear that a territorial system is characterized by a series of identifiable elements related to the local resources (physical, infrastructural, productive) and the distinctive historical and socio-cultural dynamics, as well as the degree of contamination resulting from relations with other areas. A territory must be analyzed and broken down into its subsystems: for every component is necessary to highlight the strengths and weaknesses in order to engage the stakeholders that are crucial for its development. It is therefore necessary to analyze and outline to potential investors the territory’s values: ü Social: quantity and quality of human resources; quality of services for the population; quality of urban settlement;

political-institutional operation; legal

system; ü Production: enterprises and production services, specific local products, supply consortiums or chains, degree of cooperation between enterprises; ü Infrastructure: highways,

accessibility;

railways,

links;

industrial

basic

sites’

infrastructure

equipped

(ports,

areas;

airports,

environmental

infrastructure (water purification plant; waste disposal); ü Administrative system: efficiency; bureaucracy streamline; instrumental intermediate organizations; associations of enterprises. ü Environmental resources: nature, culture, protected areas, environmental restrictions. In a territory, quite often there is a significant asymmetry between local stakeholders and the institutions in supporting the development process: the lack of combined efforts is obviously very critical and can sensibly slow the development process. The connection between the two entities, instead, is definitely a beneficial factor to the process, therefore the business system and government must work together to assure the economical and social growth of the territory.

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In doing so, the local needs must be taken into consideration, interpreting them and addressing the demand for development that comes from local stakeholders, channeling the cash flows from government intervention or private investments to their requests. Other elements should also be taken into consideration for the development of religious tourism: ü The measurement and the management of the flow of persons during megaevents; ü Maintenance and rehabilitation of religious and cultural monuments; ü Environmental protection of natural sites where large religious events are held; ü Pilgrimage routes and itineraries; ü Health and safety of persons;

ü Application of very strict rules preparation of food, in order to satisfy and protect all different cultural and religious dietary habits; ü Mandatory attention to assistance for handicapped persons; ü Effective use of new information and communication technologies; ü Promotion and marketing of new products and services related to religious tourism. In conclusion, religious tourism can play a fundamental role in the dialogue among religions, cultures and civilizations, and serve as a catalyst for numerous projects and programs; it is not possible to bring people together without freedom to travel, freedom of movement and without respecting human rights. The need to develop religious tourism and other forms of tourism that facilitate encounters and dialogue should lead administrative authorities to make border

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formalities as flexible as possible while ensuring the safety and security of persons and their property and without hindering the fight against terrorism. The content of programs, circuits, trips and stays under the rubric of religious, spiritual or “dialogue” tourism should avoid all stereotyping, incitement to racism, xenophobia or to extremist nationalism and terrorism. Internet sites linked to religious and spiritual tourism should respect ethical guidelines that could be established following the principles set forth by the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism (GCET). All forms of tourism in favor of rapprochement, dialogue and ecumenism should be encouraged and be guided. Bibliography: ISTAT (Italian National Institute of Statistics) Italian National Tourism Observatory Italian Union Chambers of Commerce Italian National Institute for Tourist Research World Tourism Organization

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