MARKETING MANAGEMENT OF THE LIGHTHOUSE HERITAGE IN THE FUNCTION OF STRENGTHENING THE NATIONAL IDENTITY ON THE GLOBAL TOURISM MARKET: STONE LIGHTS (CROATIA) AND THE ART OF THE LIGHTHOUSES (MONTENEGRO)

Abstract

The paper presents marketing projects of managing lighthouses as cultural and historical heritage in Croatia and Montenegro. Regardless of the advances in technology and changes of the functioning of modern navigational aids, lighthouses as cultural-historical monuments can get other value through the touristic market. The Croatian Stone Lights project is a commercialization of lighthouse buildings as a good practice example of promoting the maritime identity of the country, promoting national tourism offer and positioning the national tourism brand in the global tourism market. The Montenegrin project The Art of the Lighthouses is an original concept of creating destination icons by implementing art installations on lighthouses, harbours and coastal lights, which were used in this project for a purpose other than their primary one – being part of the navigation safety system. The aim of the paper is to present the results of these projects and their impact on the national identity. There are few tourist destinations in the world that offer accommodation in lighthouses, and there are still fewer examples of using port and coastal lights as recognizable destination icons. The paper develops through three basic sections: the introduction of both projects, descriptive analysis of tourist valorisation of lighthouses (marketing management of lighthouses as a part of cultural heritage and creation of destination icons), and finally research findings (focus of tourism expert groups – how to connect Croatian and Montenegrin projects on the marketing platform).  The research results of this paper aim at linking Croatian and Montenegrin marketing experiences for the possible future cooperation in the field of commercialization of cultural and historical resources for touristic valorisation.