EFFECT OF CIRCULAR ECONOMY ON THE SUSTAINABILITY OF CULTURAL TOURISM (CROATIA)

Circular economy is a developmental concept promoted by the European Union and applied in practice by its member countries. When looking at the circular economy process, it is most commonly observed from the industry’s point of view and its related processes. Tourism is less frequently observed, but in recent years, the circular economy application has become significantly more present in tourism, both in the hotel industry and in all types of tourism overall. This paper focuses on the issue of sustainable cultural tourism, emphasising supporting the protection and/or reuse of heritage, where the entire cycle is based on the principles of the circular economy. Sustainable cultural tourism should be founded on circular economy principles wherever applicable (heritage tourism, gastronomy, urban tourism, etc.). In this paper, we take a look at cities in Croatia that apply circular economy to sustainable cultural tourism. This paper’s scientific contribution lies in the proposed guidelines for taking further action to create a “new” cultural tourism by adopting the circular economy’s principles.