The EU represents the most visited touristic place by international travellers, with 620 millions of arrivals (2016 data) and an earning of 167 billions of Euros (2015 data). It is estimated that cultural tourism accounts for 40% of all European tourism; 4 out of 10 tourists choose their destination based on its cultural offering. Tourism could play a crucial role in the development of European regions and reduce the negative effects of economic crises. Services and output created for touristic purposes contribute to the local development by creating new jobs that can compensate the industrial or local downfall, safeguard and enhance the natural and cultural heritage in branches like the artistic one, the branch of local gastronomy or the defence of biodiversity.

In recent years, there has been a general evolution of European cultural tourism, from the most traditional forms, based on museums and monuments tours, to more dynamic and participated forms of contemporary culture usage. While managing this evolution, cities and regions strongly needed to add to their traditional role of culture keepers skills of management, invention and creation of culture.

In the postmodern era, where the tourist has an active role in the choice and enjoyment of his own travel, it is necessary to change the approach to marketing and commercialization of the destination.

Politics in cultural tourism must adapt to new tendencies of  tourists looking for authentic cultural experiences and develop an offer to: 

• Promote local traditions
• Care about the sustainable aspects
• Protect the patrimony, the local places, and culture. With this kind of approach, we are now assisting to the rise of a new “race” of
  creative mediators like:
• Digital programmers and designers
• Experts in storytelling methods and theatrical techniques that come from other departments of “cultural industries”, able to project new output and experiences of cultural tourism, applied to the cultural patrimony.