The Eco­nom­ics of Cul­ture and Tour­ism

Course content

This course introduces students to the economic analysis of culture and tourism as interconnected sectors that contribute to economic development, social welfare, and place-making. Cultural assets such as museums, heritage sites, festivals, performing arts, and creative industries are increasingly important drivers of tourism demand, while tourism provides opportunities for cultural production, preservation, and dissemination. At the same time, both sectors face challenges related to public funding, sustainability, market failures, and the management of shared cultural and environmental resources.

Drawing on theories and methods from microeconomics, welfare economics, public economics, and tourism economics, the course examines how cultural and tourism activities create value for individuals, communities, and destinations. Students will explore why markets for culture and tourism often differ from conventional markets, how economic impacts can be measured, and how public policies seek to balance economic, social, cultural, and environmental objectives.

The course introduces key concepts such as public goods, externalities, common resources, cultural value, tourism demand, destination competitiveness, and sustainable development. Students will learn how economic methods, including economic impact analysis, cost-benefit analysis, and valuation techniques, can be applied to assess cultural and tourism projects and policies. Through contemporary examples and case studies, students will analyze issues such as cultural tourism, heritage preservation, festival and event impacts, overtourism, and the role of culture and tourism in local and regional development.

The course provides students with a foundation for understanding how economic reasoning can be applied to cultural and tourism-related challenges and how economic analysis can support decision-making in both the public and private sectors.