Modelling the Government/Cultural Tourism Marketing Interface

ABSTRACT

The arts and cultural sector is recognised as an important driver of urban and regional development, with empirical evidence linking it to economic growth, social inclusion and increased social capital. Despite best efforts, however, government-sponsored cultural tourism policy development has been met with mixed results; researchers and practitioners alike agreeing that there are fundamental issues regarding government policy conceptualisation and implementation in this regard. In order to explore the policy development decisions that underpinned a successful cultural tourism-based economic and social development, this paper examines the relationship between a regional government and the globally renowned Museum of Old and New Art located in Tasmania, Australia. The quasi-longitudinal data revealed four critical interactions underpinning the regional government’s cultural tourism policy development: cooperation between the Tasmanian government and (a) the cultural organisation and (b) related industries; the provision of supportive infrastructure, and; the ability of the cultural organisation to provide immersive experiences.

KEYWORDS:

• Cultural tourism
• government planning
• MONA
• Australia
• marketing

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.