Analysis of tourism in Campania as a tool for the development of high-quality cultural services for sightseers: The “Reale Osservatorio Vesuviano” case history

ISSN: 2183-0800 Organização Apoios TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY TODAY AND TOMORROW Volume 5 | Número 1 | Setembro 2015 Volume 5 | Number 1 | September 2015 Volumen 5 | Número 1 | Septiembre 2015 www.isce-turismo.com www.isce-turismo.com THIJ – Tourism and Hospitality International Journal ISSN: 2183-0800 Revista semestral gratuita de distribuição digital / Free biannual journal of digital distribution E-mail: [email protected] 64 Analysis of tourism in Campania as a tool for the development of high-quality cultural services for sightseers: The “Reale Osservatorio Vesuviano” case history Avvisati, G., Marotta, E., Peluso, R., Sangianantoni, A., De Natale, G., de Vita, S., Di Vito, M., Marfè, B., Pinto, S., Tulino, S., Trimarchi, E., Ghilardi, M. National Institute of Geophisics and Vulcanology (Italy) Simonetti, B., Fuccio, N., Nunziata, C. University of Sannio (Italy) Antolini, F. University of Teramo (Italy) GonzálezRodríguez, M. R., Díaz-Fernández, M. C. University of Seville (Spain) Avvisati, G., Marotta, E., Peluso, R., Sangianantoni, A., De Natale, G., de Vita, S., Di Vito, M., Marfè, B., Pinto, S., Tulino, S., Trimarchi, E., Ghilardi, M., Simonetti, B., Fuccio, N., Nunziata, C., Antolini, F., GonzálezRodríguez, M. R. & Díaz-Fernández, M. C. (2015). Analysis of tourism in Campania as a tool for the development of highquality cultural services for sightseers: The “Reale Osservatorio Vesuviano” case history. Tourism and Hospitality International Journal, 5(1), 64-87. www.isce-turismo.com THIJ – Tourism and Hospitality International Journal ISSN: 2183-0800 Revista semestral gratuita de distribuição digital / Free biannual journal of digital distribution E-mail: [email protected] 65 Abstract The purpose of this work is to identify the guidelines for the development and diversification of the cultural touristic offer achievable at the Reale Osservatorio Vesuviano (ROV). Founded in 1841, it is the oldest volcano observatory in the world and it has always had the vocation for scientific-naturalistic and formative tourism. The present study investigates the connections between the sociology of tourism and the ROV’s sustainability and competitiveness as a tourist destination. Here it is performed a study of the tourist flow, based on the sociology of tourism and on the correct processing of data sets, distinguishing the ''statistical information on tourism" from "tourism statistics", as such a study is the basis of a proper market strategy in different sectors. Tourism remains, in fact, an important phenomenon in world economy: despite the economic crisis of recent years, international tourist arrivals show a positive development of the trend in all the major sub-areas into which the large international areas are traditionally divided. The principles for a future marketing plan were outlined after collecting all the relevant information. The plan was designed to enhance the overall touristic offer of the ROV, never ceasing to consider the integration of naturalscientific aspects and cultural events to be offered within the observatory itself. www.isce-turismo.com THIJ – Tourism and Hospitality International Journal ISSN: 2183-0800 Revista semestral gratuita de distribuição digital / Free biannual journal of digital distribution E-mail: [email protected] 66 Resumo O objetivo deste trabalho é identificar as orientações para o desenvolvimento e diversificação da oferta turística cultural realizáveis no Reale Osservatorio Vesuviano (ROV). Fundada em 1841, é o mais antigo observatório vulcão do mundo e sempre teve a vocação para o turismo científico-naturalista e formativo. O presente estudo investiga as conexões entre a sociologia do turismo e sustentabilidade do ROV e competitividade como um destino turístico. Aqui é realizado um estudo do fluxo turístico, com base na sociologia do turismo e sobre o tratamento correto de conjuntos de dados, distinguindo “informações estatísticas sobre o turismo" de "estatísticas do turismo"; como um tal estudo é a base de um estratégia de mercado adequada em diferentes setores do turismo continua a ser, de facto, um fenómeno importante na economia mundial. Apesar da crise económica dos últimos anos, as chegadas de turistas internacionais mostram uma evolução positiva da tendência em todas as principais sub-áreas em que as grandes áreas internacionais são tradicionalmente divididas. Os princípios para um plano de marketing futuro foram delineados após a recolha de toda a informação relevante. O plano foi projetado para melhorar a oferta turística global do ROV, não deixando de considerar a integração dos aspetos naturais-científicos e eventos culturais a serem oferecidas dentro do próprio observatório. www.isce-turismo.com THIJ – Tourism and Hospitality International Journal ISSN: 2183-0800 Revista semestral gratuita de distribuição digital / Free biannual journal of digital distribution E-mail: [email protected] 67 Introduction The economic crisis has in recent years brought a "hit and run" tourism with 4/5 sightseers staying in their own country. However, international tourist arrivals have had a positive trend in the last few decades (UNWTO, 2013). In this context, the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV) have, along with its institutional duties, the aim of developing its own cultural offer. The INGV was founded with the goal of collecting, in a single pole, the main national scientific institutions in the sectors of geophysics and volcanology. This specific objective is mainly pursued through the Reale Osservatorio Vesuviano (ROV), the Naples branch of the INGV that is the oldest volcanological observatory in the world. It is located on the western side of the Vesuvius, the famous volcano situated in the province of Naples (Ithaly), in the territory of the National Park. In 1997, Vesuvius was elected by UNESCO as one of the world's biosphere reserves. Since 1970 the ROV has been the place for the preservation of its precious mineralogical, instrumental and art collections, as well as a rich historical library. From 2005 to 2013 it has been visited by an average of 11,000 people per year, most of them students. Entrance is currently free of charge and there are no commercial areas in the ROV’s surroundings. Moreover, no promotional plans have ever been drawn up to attract at least a part of the 500,000 or so paying visitors who reach the Vesuvius crater every year, passing close to the ROV. Despite its weaknessess, the huge potential of such a socio-cultural and economic development has prompted us to make legal and economic considerations in order to set up an appropriate business and marketing strategy (Sangianantoni et al., 2014). The purpose of this work is to propose guidelines for the development and the diversification of the touristic and cultural offer achievable at the ROV. This study, focused on the development section of the work, was dedicated to the working out of statistical surveys (qualitative and quantitative) that exist for the current trend in the flow of tourists in the various sites previously identified on the basis of the type of people and months of the year. The methodology of the study was based on the sociology of tourism as an essential tool to fully understand what the need of today's tourist is and then formulate a market strategy. Different types of tourism were than examined, from the most established forms (e.g., cultural, natural-hiking, rural, artistic and gastronomic) to those, which are lesser known (e.g., "discovery or itinerant", "specialised scientific" and others). The study of the tourism context is, then, strongly connected and linked to the field of geophysical sciences as it forms the basis for the planning of efficient organisation and to allow sufficient revenues for the routine maintenance and the relaunching of each of the INGV’s informative structures. After collecting all the relevant information, the principles for a future marketing plan were outlined. This was designed to enhance the overall touristic offer of the ROV, never ceasing to consider the integration of naturalscientific aspects and cultural events to be offered within the observatory itself. www.isce-turismo.com THIJ – Tourism and Hospitality International Journal ISSN: 2183-0800 Revista semestral gratuita de distribuição digital / Free biannual journal of digital distribution E-mail: [email protected] 68 Historical Evolution of Tourism in Campania Linked to Changes in Society Since ancient times, Campania has been the one of the Mediterranean regions with the highest number of tourists, due not only to its many beach resorts but also to the presence of the Phlegree Islands and spa tourism. In particular, fascinating and mysterious volcanoes were very often the basis of tourism revivals in Campania - despite the danger, ash and other volcanic products in time made (and make) the land particularly fertile with rich harvests. The land of volcanoes reached its glory in the imperial era (Mattera, 2011) especially from the first century (around the year 50) when the protagonists of Roman public life (such as Nero, Cicero, Tiberius, Pollio and others) built luxurious villas of otium (summer residences intended for leisure) immersed in extraordinary bucolic landscapes and exclusive bays especially emphasising the intense hydrothermal activity. Things changed after the famous eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD, after which the pearls of the Empire (Pompeii, Ercolano and Oplonti) were completely buried. This event removed inhabitants and tourism but paradoxically, over time, had the merit of preserving the splendours from the wreckage of this ancient land. The first excavations of Pompeii began in 1748. Only in 1950 thanks to Buchner (1984) were the remains of the ancient city, also buried by volcanic eruptions, brought to light. With the rediscovery of their artistic beauty, the volcanic cities regained their ancient charm. In the eighteenth century, both Solfatara and Vesuvius became necessary stops of the Grand Tour - the journey of the European aristocracy that served as an educational rite of passage. During the second half of the nineteenth century, Campania, and Naples in particular, became a centre of attraction for those with a European culture who were seeking both natural and cultural delights. In the twentieth century, which was chaotic and not very sensitive to the protection of the environment economic development, the Campania volcanoes (with the exception of Vesuvius, Solfatara and the island of Ischia) were gradually abandoned. The exploitation of the waters continued because they produced wealth, but no revaluation policy of the volcanic sites started (Mattera, 2011). It is recognized that we must not aim at the creation of new artificial goals to motivate and increase the flow of tourists in these areas because they are already full of morphological, historical and cultural elements that are attractive for tourists. We must, however, appreciate traditions and local products through concrete promotional measures, the implementation of accommodation services and marketing. Tourism Observers Activity as a Tool to Support the Programming Requirements of Statistical Information on Tourism Tourism is a transversal phenomenon for the economic sectors that characterize it but also for the companies operating in that sector. The service activities that characterize it www.isce-turismo.com THIJ – Tourism and Hospitality International Journal ISSN: 2183-0800 Revista semestral gratuita de distribuição digital / Free biannual journal of digital distribution E-mail: [email protected] 69 are, in fact, very different, including transport, tourism promotion, recreation management and park management, as well as activities related to local food and wine. Despite this embracing attitude, it is possible to define a tourist-related “industry” within the services and economic units that operate in this area and they represent a well-defined statistical collective. The statistical representation of such complex and diverse phenomenon is inevitably both conceptually and methodologically difficult. The rediscovery of territory and local identity through the promotion of a network of small businesses was considered to be a mean to enhance the competitiveness and innovation of the industry. This is the main reason why, for example, the harmonised statistics on employment in tourism were not disclosed for a long time, since much of the analysis carried out (OECD, 2011) has preferred to estimate employment in tourism, limiting the analysis to the HO.RE.CA activities only. But at the moment none of these trends is represented by tourism statistics. In this extremely complex context, where tourism policy initiatives cannot really depend on tourism, it is necessary to define the statistical requirements necessary at the local level in order to achieve some important goals. Statistical information should in fact allow local policy makers to make a long-term plan, assessing the sustainability of activities. It follows that statistical information should have a modular structure (transversal), in order to be able to meet the different needs of different operators:  a first form should be aimed at the monitoring and evaluation of the policies implemented;  a second form ought to respond to the need for variables/indicators (pressure indicators) to measure whether the form of the development of tourism in the local area is compatible with the character and the resources of the host communities and destinations (Russo & Antolini, 2013).  a third form should provide a framework of the indicators for impact generated employment, income generation and, ultimately, the level of prices. The price level, particularly of services, may also impact on the competitiveness of the tourism industry by changing both the incoming of people and the socio-economic profile of the tourist. The statistical information on tourism, however, in addition to being transversal must be multi-layer, at least in Italy, where the existence of decentralised governance can produce failures in policy coordination. Having consistent and relevant statistical information can contribute to impove the competitiveness of territories, avoiding a not correct use of statistics. Examining, for example, the Competitivness Tourism Report, in 2011 Italy was 27th in the Global Index, and 1st. in the infrastructure for tourism index. The issue is particularly important because the infrastructure improves the quality of the services and can facilitate the mobility of people. But if we look in analytical way the index of infrastructure, we can observe a lack of representativeness of the indicator just described: “Car rentals” and “number of rooms in hotels” contribute positively to the rankings mentioned. But regarding Italy, there is a situation of circularity that makes the www.isce-turismo.com THIJ – Tourism and Hospitality International Journal ISSN: 2183-0800 Revista semestral gratuita de distribuição digital / Free biannual journal of digital distribution E-mail: [email protected] 70 indicator for infrastructure unrepresentative. In fact, considering that in Italy cars are the means of transport mainly used, the indicator “car rentals” should be interpreted as a sign of inefficiency, being an indirect representation of the poor use of the public transport system. With respect to the number of rooms (beds), it is necessary to analyse those occupied in relation to those available, as evaluating only the available rooms could lead to wrong interpretations. Research on Statistical Surveys of Existing Tourism in Campania Note on Methodology and Data Limits It was decided to start from the scenario of international tourism, to advance to the Italian context, and finally to analyse the local dynamics, by the need to ensure that the analysis related to the development of the ROV is not out of context and does not have ties to the global tourist market. For each source identified all the available data relating to the flow of tourists were collected, primarily in terms of the number of arrivals, registrations and average length of stay. As the latter figure is not always available, it was deduced and plotted by knowing arrivals and presences, as:  tourist arrivals, the number of customers, both italian and foreign, all accommodated within a period;  number of tourists, the number of nights spent by guests in accommodation, hotels or complementary businesses;  average stay, the ratio between the arrivals and presences. The analysis of all the data collected was complex because not all the sources are updated and the data are often reported with different details. Also discordant values are commonly found between the evaluations of entities that provide official data, due to different reference fields. For exemples The ISTAT (the National Institute for Statistics in Italy) investigates, on the offer side, the capacity of accommodation establishments which it carries out on an annual basis in order to quantify the facilities available. Despite the abundant statistical information on tourism, often at a local level, only the arrivals and overnight stays are represented. So there is definitely a gap between the tourist market in the data and the real market. We have tried to fill this gap as much as possible with a cross-sectional study of many sources analysed. The data were taken from the internet where possible or requested officially. Arrivals and Earnings: Analysis from the Global to the Particular International sources such as the UNWTO (2013c) show how tourism is an important sector in the world economy. Despite the economic crisis that has led to a "hit and run" tourism (with 4/5 tourists stayingin their own country: domestic or internal tourists), international tourist arrivals have in recent decades been a trend of positive www.isce-turismo.com THIJ – Tourism and Hospitality International Journal ISSN: 2183-0800 Revista semestral gratuita de distribuição digital / Free biannual journal of digital distribution E-mail: [email protected] 71 development in all the major sub-areas into which traditionally large international areas are divided (Fig. 1). The number of international tourist arrivals recorded worldwide in 2012 (in terms of overnight visitors) exceeded a billion for the first time in history (UNWTO, 2013c). The number of arrivals, according to the UNWTO forecasts (UNWTO, 2013b) could increase by 3.3% per year in the period 2010-2030. According to this projection of growth, it is expected that international arrivals worldwide will reach 1.4 billion by 2020 and 1.8 billion by 2030. In this global context it is interesting to note that between 2000 and 2011 Mediterranean Europe (which includes Greece, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Turkey) has overtaken Western Europe (Germany, the Netherlands, Austria and France) both in terms of the number of visitors (Fig. 1) and in increment, defined as the average annual percentage change in the international arrivals. Trend confirmed until the end of 2012 (UNWTO, 2013c). Within Southern Europe, Italy is second only to Spain in terms of international and domestic arrivals (UNWTO, 2013d). Also in the world framework, Italy is among the top 10 Nations both regarding arrivals (UNWTO, 2013c) and profit (UNWTO, 2013a). It seems clear that, despite the effects of the economic crisis having a consequent increase in domestic tourism, the turnover related to international tourism remains high and that the greatest gain is not directly linked only to a greater number of visitors It is interesting to ask who the travellers who spend more are. In a world ranking, the countries that spent more in international tourism are China (102 billion dollars in 2012), followed by Germany and the United States (about 83 billion), although there is a greater increase of the Chinese (UNWTO, 2013c). In this ranking, however, the Italians are tenth, spending 26.4 billion (US $) in 2012 (UNWTO, 2013c). UNWTO sources (UNWTO, 2013c) show that the increased spending is often directly related to the number of nights that visitors remain in accomodation establishments and therefore their average stay. These data are important in the context of an initial marketing plan because they enable us to programme the correct type of offer. To compare trends in the world tourism scenario with the current Italian one, it is important to refer to the national statistical data collected by the ISTAT. These data, as part of an investigation into the "movement of customers in hotels," referring to 2012 in Italy (ISTAT, 2013a) indicate 103.7 million national and international arrivals with 381 million nights spent in accommodation establishments, and then an average stay (ratio between the length of stay and arrivals) of about 3.7 days (Fig.2). It is interesting to note a marked contrast to these trends: an increase in arrivals but a decline in the average length of stay which corresponds to a decrease in the number of nights that tourists spent. www.isce-turismo.com THIJ – Tourism and Hospitality International Journal ISSN: 2183-0800 Revista semestral gratuita de distribuição digital / Free biannual journal of digital distribution E-mail: [email protected] 78 Figure 1. Number of international tourist arrivals (in millions) in the sub-areas, for the years indicated. Developed from the UNWTO source in "XVIII Report on Italian Tourism”. Mediterranean Europe: Greece, Spain, Portugal, Turkey, Italy. Western Europe: Germany, the Netherlands, Austria, France. Central and Eastern Europe: Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland. Northern Europe: United Kingdom. www.isce-turismo.com THIJ – Tourism and Hospitality International Journal ISSN: 2183-0800 Revista semestral gratuita de distribuição digital / Free biannual journal of digital distribution E-mail: [email protected] 79 Figure 2. Arrivals and Average length of stay of domestic and international tourists in Italian accommodation establishments (hotel + complementary businesses) 2002-2012. Developedfrom ISTAT sources (2013a). www.isce-turismo.com THIJ – Tourism and Hospitality International Journal ISSN: 2183-0800 Revista semestral gratuita de distribuição digital / Free biannual journal of digital distribution E-mail: [email protected] 80 Figure 3. Italian and foreign tourist arrivals in the provinces of Campania in 2008-2010. The numbers on the histogram refer to the year 2010. Developed from ISTAT sources (ISTAT 2008, 2009, 2010b). www.isce-turismo.com THIJ – Tourism and Hospitality International Journal ISSN: 2183-0800 Revista semestral gratuita de distribuição digital / Free biannual journal of digital distribution E-mail: [email protected] 81 Figure 4. Foreign tourists arrivals accommodated in hotels in the city of Naples, by major nationalities of origin (EPT Napoli, 2013). www.isce-turismo.com THIJ – Tourism and Hospitality International Journal ISSN: 2183-0800 Revista semestral gratuita de distribuição digital / Free biannual journal of digital distribution E-mail: [email protected] 82 Figure 5. Flow of visitors to museums, monuments and national archeological areas of the Campania Region from 2005 to 2013 (Ministero del Beni Ambientali e Culturali, 2014). www.isce-turismo.com THIJ – Tourism and Hospitality International Journal ISSN: 2183-0800 Revista semestral gratuita de distribuição digital / Free biannual journal of digital distribution E-mail: [email protected] 83 Figure 6. Streams of visitors to Pompei and Ercolano from 2000 to 2011 (Soprintendenza Speciale Beni Archeologici di Pompei, Ercolano e Stabia, 2013). www.isce-turismo.com THIJ – Tourism and Hospitality International Journal ISSN: 2183-0800 Revista semestral gratuita de distribuição digital / Free biannual journal of digital distribution E-mail: [email protected] 84 Figure 7. Streams of visitors to the Vesuvius crater 2005-2013 (Ente Nazionale Parco del Vesuvio, 2013). www.isce-turismo.com THIJ – Tourism and Hospitality International Journal ISSN: 2183-0800 Revista semestral gratuita de distribuição digital / Free biannual journal of digital distribution E-mail: [email protected] 85 Figure 8. Annual distribution of visitors at the Historical Site of the Vesuvius-INGV 2005-2013 (De Lucia et al., 2010; Trimarchi, 2013). www.isce-turismo.com THIJ – Tourism and Hospitality International Journal ISSN: 2183-0800 Revista semestral gratuita de distribuição digital / Free biannual journal of digital distribution E-mail: [email protected] 86 Figure 9. Distribution of visitors to the Historic Vesuvius Observatory Site -INGV 2009-2012 by country of origin (Trimarchi, 2013). www.isce-turismo.com THIJ – Tourism and Hospitality International Journal ISSN: 2183-0800 Revista semestral gratuita de distribuição digital / Free biannual journal of digital distribution E-mail: [email protected] 87 Figure 10. Distribution of visitors to the Historic Vesuvius Observatory Site-INGV 2009-2012 by region of origin (Trimarchi E., 2013).