Traveling to discover a culture or heritage is a fast-growing segment of international tourism.
For those who want to work in the field of culture, cultural tourism is therefore a booming sector.
What is the definition of cultural tourism?
Cultural tourism refers to a form of tourism whose aim is to introduce visitors to the cultural heritage and the way of life of a region and its inhabitants. This type of tourism includes visiting natural sites, architectural tourism, but also religious tourism, trips made to attend festivals and other cultural events, gastronomic tourism, and visits to museums, monuments, art galleries…
What programs exist in cultural tourism?
To train professionals in charge of developing tourism around heritage, IESA arts&culture offers a two-year program open to holders of a 3-year postsecondary degree. The Master in Heritage and Cultural Tourism allows students to enter these careers in cultural tourism, heritage, and cultural policy. This program covers various themes such as defining a development strategy for a cultural site or territory, such as the tourism development study for the VMF-IESA Prize, designing tourism products related to the heritage of a local authority, managing a heritage animation project, carrying out economic impact studies, etc. Diagnosing a heritage’s potential and designing communication materials to develop mediation routes are, among others, skills acquired during this program.
Careers in the Cultural Tourism Sector
To create jobs, many local authorities are betting on their cultural heritage. Thanks to innovations in the animation and mediation of cultural sites, the promotion of cultural riches and the establishment of an infrastructure development policy, cultural tourism is an evolving sector, anchored in today’s world. For those who choose to work in this field, career opportunities are relatively numerous. They can notably build a career in heritage site administration, event programming or heritage outreach. To work in cultural tourism, you need a curious mind, good general knowledge, of course an interest in culture, and the technical skills acquired through specialized training.