A new take on an old structure? Creative and slow tourism in Krakow (Poland)

ABSTRACT

The contemporary tourism market trends indicate an increasing need for the individualisation of tourist experience and necessitate a move away from the standardisation of tourism products, including those offered within the cities that primarily market their cultural heritage. The concept of creative tourism as a way of practising cultural tourism is a response to the changing needs and expectations of tourists. This is because it offers non-traditional uses for the cultural potential of cities. This article attempts to embed creative tourism in the overall tourist product using an example of a historic city – Krakow. The authors examine the development of tourism products in Krakow, focusing primarily on cultural and historical heritage tourism and secondarily on new forms of tourism that have emerged, such as creative tourism and slow tourism. They analyse this issue in terms of districts – traditional and new tourist areas, indicating the potential for tourism growth.

KEYWORDS:

• Cultural heritage
• creative tourism
• slow tourism
• cultural tourism
• Krakow
• historic city

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. Jarosław Gowin, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Science and Higher Education; interview from 17.06.2016 retrieved from http://lovekrakow.pl/aktualnosci/jaroslaw-gowin-centra-outsourcingowe-powinny-zniknac-z-takich-miast-jak-krakow-rozmowa_15214.html, accessed: 29.08.2016.

2. The Wawel Dragon – the legendary dragon who lived in the Dragon Cave near the Wawel Hill in Krakow. The earliest applications of the existence of this mythical creature come from the turn of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries from the chronicles of Wicenty Kadłubek. Later, the Polish chroniclers (including Maciej Miechowita and Jan Długosz) picked up the theme and created the story of the life and death. Today, the legend gives the story of the dragon that threatened people of Krakow. The dragon had eaten a sheep prepared by Szewczyk Dratewka, stuffed with sulphur and burst after drinking water from the Vistula (Wisła) river.