The first creative tourism experience design workshop was held in Salvador da Bahia on Monday, December 16. More than twenty cultural and tourist entrepreneurs actively participated in this first session, which was led by Caroline Couret, the director of the Creative Tourism Network®.
This workshop is part of an extensive collaboration program between the Department of Culture and Tourism of Salvador/BA and the Creative Tourism Network®, with the aim of consolidating Salvador’s leadership as a certified CreativeFriendly destination.
In fact, after being awarded the Best Creative Destination in the World, in early 2024, the City of Salvador developed a partnership with the Creative Tourism Network® to implement programs and actions in favor of creative, inclusive, and sustainable tourism.
The success of the International Creative Tourism Conference, held in the city from December 2 to 5, 2024, reinforced Salvador’s leadership in this field worldwide.
At the same time, a specific call for entries for the Creative Tourism Awards was created to recognize the best initiatives.
The workshops and mentoring sessions aim to continue this project’s development to involve all people who wish to create and promote creative experiences that attract travelers in search of authenticity and human values.
These workshops aim to support the co-creation of creative tourism experiences, in multiple languages, which will be promoted internationally with the CreativeFriendlyDestination label.
The workshops and individual mentoring sessions are aimed at artists from various segments, artisans, members of civil associations, professionals from the cultural sector, tour guides, entrepreneurs from the tourism, hotel, bar and restaurant sectors, as well as all people who wish to share their skills related to Salvador’s Intangible Heritage.
They are open to participants who already have experiences created or in process, as well as to anyone who wants to learn more about the concept.
In this first session, participants were able to familiarize themselves with the concept of creative tourism and the criteria to be taken into account when designing a creative tourist experience, through inspiring examples and experiences from around the world and in all areas.
It was also an opportunity to reflect on the diversity of creative tourist profiles that Salvador could attract, making creative tourism a tool to enhance sustainable development, fulfilling the SDGs of the 2030 Agenda.
As highlighted by Simone Costa, Tourism specialist at Prodetur Salvador, “the collective creation of creative projects, using different languages, is essential to strengthen Salvador as an authentic, diverse and identity-filled destination. Our culture is the main driver of this process, driving us to create unique experiences that value the local over the global, besides strengthening and recognizing those who truly make Salvador the best creative destination in the world. We want to attract visitors who seek to connect deeply with our city and our people, who create emotional and responsible ties with Salvador, generating income, promoting inclusion and building a sustainable future for the city.”
Caroline Couret, for her part, expressed her satisfaction with the diversity and relevance of the proposals, as well as the participants’ commitment to creating synergies. In addition to a destination’s creative DNA – and Salvador’s one is exceptional! – the involvement of all local stakeholders, both public and private, is crucial to the success of programs of this type. In this sense, Salvador has already exceeded all expectations and promises more achievements! … next steps coming very soon!
