THE ATTRACTIVENESS OF VOJVODINA PROVINCE AS A TOURIST DESTINATION ON THE BASIS OF DOMESTIC TOURISTS PERCEPTION

Geographica Timisiensis, vol. 20, nr. 1, 2011 (pp.59-67) THE ATTRACTIVENESS OF VOJVODINA PROVINCE AS A TOURIST DESTINATION ON THE BASIS OF DOMESTIC TOURISTS PERCEPTION Vanja DRAGIĆEVIĆ, Uglješa STANKOV, Daniela АRSENOVIĆ University of Novi Sad Abstract. According to data of the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia, domestic tourists are very important segment of tourism market in the region of Vojvodina Province. In 2007, this segment represented 68.70% of whole tourist arrivals. But still, there is no tourism market research, that would be focused on domestic tourists perception of Vojvodina Province as a tourist destination. This study seeks to provide an assessment of the attractiveness of Vojvodina region based on the perception of domestic tourists and their evaluation of tourism offer. Also, behavioral intentions will be examined. The results of this research should show which elements of tourism offer in Vojvodina Province are the most attractive and could be quick win tourist products. Rezumat. Atractivitatea provinciei Voivodina ca destinaţie turistică pe baza percepţiei turiştilor interni. Conform datelor furnizate de Oficiul de Statistică al Republicii Serbia, turistii interni sunt un segment foarte important al pieţei turismului din provincia Voivodina. În 2007, acest segment a reprezentat 68.70% din ansamblul sosirilor turistice. Dar, totuşi, nu există nici o cercetare de piaţă a turismului, care să fie axată pe percepţia turiştilor din provincia Voivodina asupra acestei destinaţii turistice. Acest studiu urmăreşte să ofere o evaluare a atractivităţii din regiunea Voivodina pe baza percepţiei turistilor din piaţa internă şi a evaluării de către aceştia a ofertei turistice. De asemenea, vor fi examinate şi intenţiile comportamentale. Rezultatele acestei cercetări trebuie să indice care elemente ale ofertei turistice din provincia Voivodina sunt cele mai atractive şi care ar putea castiga rapid produse turistice. Key words: domestic tourists, attractiveness, behavioral intention, Vojvodina Province Cuvinte cheie: turişti interni, atractivitate, intenţie comportamentală, Provincia Voivodina 1. INTRODUCTION Vojvodina Province occupies 24,3% of Republic of Serbia (Statistical Yearbook, 2008a, 18). It is economically most developed region of Serbia (Romelic, 2000). Tourism Strategy of Republic of Serbia (2005-2015) points out region of Vojvodina Province, as one of four clusters in Serbia, besides Belgrade, Southeast, and Southwest regions, yet tourism sector gets behind other parts of country. There are also very different levels and patterns of domestic tourism between different countries, even within the same region of the world. For example, French people take far more domestic holidays that their neighbors in Germany (Swarbrooke, Horner, 2007, 27). In general, in Western Europe the ratio of domestic guests to foreign guests is 50:50 (Johnson, Vanetti, 2008, 289). Until the political change of the late 1980s and early

60 The attractiveness of Vojvodina province 1990s in Eastern Europe, the countries of the east were locked in their own tourism world. Domestic tourism existed on a large scale and cross-border tourism also existed, although it largely took place wholly within the Eastern bloc (Swarbrooke, Horner, 2007, 18). Although, the number of foreign tourists in Serbia has been increased since 2000, domestic tourists represent the majority of whole tourist arrivals. In 2007, the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia registered 2,306,000 tourists and almost 70% are domestic tourists (1,610,000). Statistics shows that main administrative centers in Serbia are the most visited and are followed by other resorts and mountain resorts (Statistical Yearbook, 2008b, 320). But, domestic tourists spend majority of overnights in spas and mountain resorts (Statistical Yearbook, 2008b, 318). This is a logical consequence of different nature of the tourist stay in city, spa and mountain tourism. In 2007, only 13,5% of all tourists in Serbia visited Vojvodina Province. From that number, 68,70% were domestic tourists (Statistical Yearbook, 2008b, 316). Empirical evidence from several studies often supports propositions that appear to be just common sense, such as, domestic visitors to a destination usually stay longer and manage to spend less than foreign visitors; domestic visitors more often represent repeat visits to a destination, compared to foreign visitors (Woodside et al., 2005,74-75). As there is no tourism market research, organized and conducted by leading bodies in tourism industry of Vojvodina Province that would be focused on potential and existing domestic travel demand, the aim of this paper is to examine experience and behavioral intentions of domestic tourists in Vojvodina Province in order to identify the most attractive tourist products of this region. 2. RESEARCH METHOD Students of the University in Novi Sad, Faculty of Sciences, Department of Geography, Tourism and Hotel Management, who participated four-day vocational excursion in Vojvodina Province in October 2008, were used as the sampling frame for this study. The itinerary included the most attractive tourist sites in this region (map 1). After the excursion, students were invited to participate in the data collection process on a voluntary basis. A survey questionnaire was used as an instrument of study. It includes 10 items relating to experience, attractiveness, evaluation of tourism offer in Vojvodina Province and behavioral consequences. Data collection resulted in 101 useable surveys. Target group of respondents were, purposely, students of Tourism Management. As they are trained to work in tourist industry, they are capable to recognize strengths and weaknesses of tourist sites or tourist destination. Also, these students are potential domestic tourists, who could express their opinions about tourism development in Vojvodina Province in this survey. 3. STUDY RESULTS The study results reported focus on the attractiveness of tourist sites in whole region of Vojvodina Province and its sub regions (Backa, Banat and Srem), which is very important for planning tourism development. Also, these results point to necessary investments in tourism offer of Vojvodina. Province Furthermore, students were asked to

Vanja DRAGIĆEVIĆ, Uglješa STANKOV, Daniela ARSENOVIĆ 61 evaluate some elements of tourism offer in Vojvodina. Those elements are divided into six basics groups: old city cores, natural protected areas, traditional gastronomic offer, authentic houses and szalashes (traditional architecture of Vojvodina Province), castles and sacral objects. Using grades from 1 (the lowest) to 5 (the highest), students evaluated tourism offer of Vojvodina Province. The results of this research should show which elements of tourism offer in Vojvodina Province could be quick win products and should identify forms of tourist movements in future tourism development in Vojvodina Province. Satisfaction and behavioral consequences of the students are captured from two aspects: intention to return and word of mouth. Fig. 1. The itinerary of four-day vocational excursion in Vojvodina Province of the students of Tourism Management 3.1. Profile of respondents The profile of respondents, students of Tourism Management, is reported in Table 1. The majority of respondents are female (71.29%) towards male (28.71%). In terms of their origin, more then one half of the respondents (59.41%) reported they live in Vojvodina Province, 17.82% of respondents are from Central Serbia, followed by respondents from Western Serbia (6.93%), Eastern Serbia (5.94%) and 1.98% from the south of Serbia. The rest of the respondents (7.92%) are students from the countries in the region (Montenegro, Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina).

62 The attractiveness of Vojvodina province Tab. 1. Profile of Respondents Students of Tourism Management, University in Novi Sad Profile Frequency % Gender Female 71.0 71.3 Male 29.0 28.7 Total 101 100.0 Origin Vojvodina 60.0 59.4 Central Serbia 18.0 17.8 Western Serbia 7.0 6.9 Eastern Serbia 6.0 5.9 Southern Serbia 2.0 2.0 Abroad 8.0 7.9 Total 101 100.0 3.2. The experience of the respondents and the attractiveness of tourist sites in whole region of Vojvodina and its sub regions Topping tourist sites which made the greatest positive impact on the respondents are: 1.Carska bara (Carska marsh), one of the last oasis of the relic pannonian pool region (Tomic et al. 2002a), protected nature reserve, residence of rare, almost endangered, reduced species of birds and marsh area of international significance according to Ramszar Convention (Stojanovic, 2005). 2. Vrsac, one of the oldest towns in Banat, rich in history and tradition, under the slopes of Vrsacke mountains and near Deliblato sand terrain, one of the biggest sand area in Europe. As a host of Wine Festival Days every year in autumn, Vrsac is a member of the Foundation European Carnival Cities FECC. 3. Kikinda, town in northeastern Vojvodina Province, near the border Serbia-Rumania, with numerous cultural and historical values, but the most significant are suvaca (dry mill working on horse power, one of two in whole Europe) and building Kurija, built in the first half of XIX century (Tomic et al. 2002b), today town museum where the rests of mammoth named Kika, found near Kikinda in 1996, are kept and represent the most attractive exhibit of museum. 4. Palic lake, summer resort, recreational center, spa and one of the favorite vacation area of people in Serbia. 5. Belo blato, multiethnic village near Carska bara, with preserved tradition, rural architecture, and customs presented in ethno houses opened for tourists. 6. Subotica, town situated in the north of Vojvodina Province, near the Hungarian border and Palic lake, with the unique and picturesque old center formed at the turn of XIX century into XX in the Hungarian variant of secession style (Tomic et al. 2002b). 7. Sombor, town situated in the peripheral part of northwestern Vojvodina Province, famous for its architecture, old carriages and lots of greenery. In the opinion of respondents, these sites are, also, the most attractive tourist destinations in whole region of Vojvodina. Almost one third of respondents (30%) reported

Vanja DRAGIĆEVIĆ, Uglješa STANKOV, Daniela ARSENOVIĆ 63 that Palic Lake is the most attractive tourist destination in Vojvodina Province and is followed by Carska bara (17.82% of respondents), towns Subotica (9%), Vrsac (7.92%) and Kikinda (7.92%). The attractiveness of these sites lies in preserved ambience, natural and/or cultural values and they represent not just regional, but also tourist sites of national significance. Tab. 2. The experience of the respondents and the most attractive tourist destinations in Vojvodina Province and its sub regions Top experience The most attractive tourist destinations in Vojvodina in Backa in Banat in Srem 1. Carska bara Palic lake Palic lake Vrsac Obedska bara 2. Vrsac Carska bara Subotica Kikinda Museum of bread 3. Kikinda Subotica Sombor Belo blato Kupinovo 4. Palic lake Vrsac Bac Carska bara Fruska gora 5. Belo blato Kikinda Karadjordjevo Zrenjanin spa Vrdnik 6. Subotica 7. Sombor Vojvodina Province is consisted of three sub regions, Backa, Banat and Srem, so, it is important to point out the tourist attractions of these sub regions and, furthermore, the forms of tourist movements based on these attractions, which should be the subject of future tourism development in this region. Backa is always considered the most developed part of Vojvodina Province, and today, it represents the most visited sub region, thanks mostly to Novi Sad, administrative, economical, cultural and university center of Vojvodina, which is situated in Backa. This survey points out Palic lake, as the main attraction of Backa, followed by towns of Subotica and Sombor, medieval fortress of Bac and Karadjordjevo, horse farm and protected nature reserve. In the sub region of Banat, 38.61% of respondents experienced town of Vrsac as the most attractive locality, about 20% considered Kikinda main attraction, followed by ethno village Belo blato (10.89%), Carska bara (9.90%) and town of Zrenjanin (7.92%). In the sub region of Srem, 39.60% of respondents considered Obedska bara (Obed marsh), special nature reserve and marsh area of international significance according to Ramszar Convention (Stojanovic, 2005), as the most attractive site, 31.68% of respondents found out thematic Museum of bread as the main attraction, 9.90% of respondents considered Kupinovo, village with ethno park, as attractive for tourists. Among top five attractions of Srem, respondents reported Fruska gora (8.91%), national park with 16 orthodox monasteries, dated from XV to XVIII century, and spa Vrdnik on Fruska gora (7.92%). The respondents were, also, asked to indicate the least interesting tourist site they had visited during the excursion, and the answers were quiet different. About 10% of respondents and less considered Zobnatica, horse farm, Obedska bara, Rokin salazsh, Kupinovo and Museum of bread the least interesting tourist sites in Vojvodina Province.

64 The attractiveness of Vojvodina province 3.3. Evaluation of tourism offer in Vojvodina province The respondents were also asked to evaluate the tourism offer in Vojvodina Province using a 5-point scale, with 1 indicating the lowest grade and 5 indicating the highest grade. The mean of the evaluation items are reported in Table 2. Tab. 3. Evaluation of tourism offer in Vojvodina Province Elements of tourism offer Mean Old city cores 3.82 Natural protected areas 3.87 Traditional gastronomic offer 3.54 Authentic houses and szalashes 3.94 Fortresses and castles 3.44 Sacral objects 3.88 Mean 3.75 As can be seen from Table 2, the highest score is reported for authentic (ethno) houses and szalashes (M=3.94), which represent recognizable national architectonic heritage of Vojvodina Province, where it is possible to see how local people earned their living during XVIII and XIX century. The most attractive forms of national architecture are protected, and some of them are turned into ambience country entireties, through the formation of ethno houses and ethno parks. Szalashes are cultural and ambience special feature of Pannonian soil, and they are, in the sense of cultural heritage, the protective symbol of Northern Backa (Tomic et al. 2002b). There is a great number of szalashes, well preserved, near highway or on more busy crossroads, which are, with some investments, turned into tourist objects, where visitor can experience the endless plain, learn about tradition, try local cuisine, buy souvenir... Ethno houses and szalashes in Vojvodina Province represent a form of attractive tourist product for domestic tourists in Serbia. This statement justifies relatively high grade the respondents in this survey gave to this element of tourism offer. High scores, above the average (M=3.75), were reported for sacral objects (M=3.88), natural protected areas (M=3.87) and old city cores (M=3.82), which represent the basic elements of tourism development in Vojvodina. The rating of the elements by the respondents also reveals some areas where tourism offer could improve, such as: traditional gastronomic offer (M=3.54) and fortresses and castles (3.44). Having in mind, that nowadays many of castles are in process of reconstruction, in years to come, they will be probably better ranked in tourism offer in Vojvodina Province and better presented to potential tourists. 3.4.The relationship between the experience of respondents and the behavioral consequences The experience of the respondents was based on the results reported in Table 2. Behavioral consequences of the respondents are captured from two aspects: word of mouth (Which locality would you recommend to others to visit?), and intention to return (Which locality would you like to visit again?), and are reported in Table 4.

Vanja DRAGIĆEVIĆ, Uglješa STANKOV, Daniela ARSENOVIĆ 65 Table 4. Aspects of behavioral consequences of the respondents Word of mouth Carska bara Belo blato Vrsac Subotica Palic lake Intention to return Palic lake Subotica Kikinda Carska bara Vrsac As can be seen from Table 2 and Table 4, the respondents gave similar answers about their experience, attractiveness of localities and their intentions, so it was not surprising to find the path significant between experience of the respondents, satisfaction and behavioral consequences. Those who experienced positive impressions on certain localities also considered those sites as the most attractive in Vojvodina Province and its sub regions and were more likely to return and to tell others to visit those localities. Strong impression or positive experience is not enough to guarantee a return but certainly gives a much higher chance than poor impression. If the result of experience is satisfaction, it will lead to favorable word-of-mouth. Return intention Experience Satisfaction Word-of-mouth Fig. 1. Conceptual model on relationships between experience, satisfaction level and behavioral consequences Studies have varied in their determination of the power of word-of-mouth and links to satisfaction. One result indicated that 20 satisfied people will tell 100 people resulting in a amplification of their business market (Heskett, Sasser, Schelsinger, 1997). Generally, it was found that positive word-of-mouth was 700% more effective than newspaper or magazine advertising, 400% more effective than personal selling and 200% more effective than radio advertising in getting consumers to change brands. In addition, those satisfied with the service were known to tell 5 people while those dissatisfied were known to tell 11 people (Reichheld & Sasser, 1990). CONCLUSION Based on the results of this study and literature review, this paper represents contribution to future tourism development of Vojvodina Province. It points to the most

66 The attractiveness of Vojvodina province attractive tourist values of Vojvodina in opinion of domestic tourists and to the elements of tourism offer which should be improved in the future, in order to increase the number of tourist arrivals. Results from this case study confirm the attractiveness of the main elements of tourism development in Vojvodina Province: ethno houses and szalashes, sacral objects, protected nature areas and old city cores. Evaluation of tourism offer indicates there is much room left for improvement since the highest item only achieved a mean score of 3.94 on a 5.00 scale. Quick win tourist products of Vojvodina should be based on the combination of tradition, cultural heritage and protected nature of national and international significance. Certainly, the biggest chance for tourism development and increasing number of tourists, domestic and foreign, has cities, with old preserved nucleus, as they represent place of business meetings, different types of events, and have necessary infrastructure for tourism development. Vojvodina Province as an agricultural area has numerous potential for sustainable rural tourism development. Melting point of different cultures, religions and nationalities, rural festivities and picturesque villages are the base of anthropogenic rural tourism attractions in Bačka. Szalashes and ethno houses are already recognizable tourist product of Vojvodina. But the problem is that they usually represent a stop during long journey, if they are located near highways, or they are visited during summer and winter holidays by families from different regions of Serbia. In the future, owners of szalashes, together with local authorities and representative bodies of tourist industry of Serbia and Vojvodina Province, should create programs with the aim to prolong stay of visitors. Based on numerous medieval sacral objects, which are, according to results of this study, attractive element of tourist offer in Vojvodina Province, it is possible to develop religious tourism. One of the primary forms of tourism movements in Vojvodina should be ecotourism, as some natural protected areas, like Obed marsh, Carska marsh, Fruska gora, are seen as attractive for visitors. Domestic tourists are major part of tourism market in Vojvodina Province, and they certainly will keep this place in years to come. In order to increase number of incoming tourists in Vojvodina, especially foreign tourists, local authorities and representative bodies of tourist industry in Serbia and Vojvodina should work together to improve infrastructure necessary for tourism development, to define tourist product priorities and to promote them in country and in abroad. Future studies on the attractiveness of Vojvodina Province should be based on the foreign tourists perception, as they spend more, stay longer and their consumption has the multiplier effect on the whole economy of the region. Also, stakeholders involved in Vojvodina tourism development could be asked to evaluate the attractiveness of the region. The best results would be achieved through comparison of domestic, foreign tourists and stakeholders opinions on Vojvodina tourist attractiveness. Also, future studies of the attractiveness of Vojvodina as a tourist destination should include not just elements of tourist offer (attractors), but also supporting factors (infrastructure, accessibility, hospitality), destination management (human resources, information, quality of service) and qualifying determinants (location, security, image, cost ect.).

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