Heritage and Cultural Tourism

The  Henery Hobson Richardsdon Psychiatric Center in Buffalo, NY.

Participants in two sessions on heritage and cultural tourism agreed the region has a rich and diverse array of assets – arts, performance, entertainment, architecture, history, nature, industry, sports, recreation and more – that beg to be linked, developed, interpreted, and marketed as a single destination. A number of obstacles where noted, however. Not all of the potential players in development are equally ready to participate. There is a lack of coordination in many areas, a lack of political cooperation and consensus, and a lack popular support, funding, local pride, and local understanding.

of the region. But while coordination is needed, there is a need to balance it against the demand for diversity. The potential benefits to heritage and cultural tourism development, however, were clear. Attracting more visitors, getting them to stay longer and spend more, will create more jobs and support a better quality of life for residents and improve the self-image for the whole region.

Two strategies for pursuing the opportunity emerged from these discussions. First, participants suggested creation of a bi-national organization to provide leadership, coordination, and information toward bi-national planning and development. Such an organization should include representatives of government, culture, tourism, marketing, education, corporate, environment and other private sector groups

Second, participants recommended conducting an inventory of assets as first step toward a master plan. There is a need to identify and evaluate sites and possible thematic groupings of attractions, as well as to assess current cross-border marketing efforts, leadership, and information, and to strategize pursuit of funding from public, private, and philanthropic sources.

Other provocative ideas that came out of the discussion of strategies included formation of a bi-national youth leadership group, creation of a regional historical organization, and work on establishing standards of quality in heritage and cultural destinations.