Gastronomic and food tourism as an economic local resource: Case studies from Romania and Italy

The aim of this study was to contribute to the literature on food tourism by proposing the concept of place and events linked to food, and to analyze the opportunity of gastronomic tourism for local development around Romania (Sibiu Region) and Italy (Sicily Region). The materials were 336 interviews with tourists. Specially designed questionnaire allowed fast data collection. The questions were of qualitative and quantitative type, useful to encode the expressed opinions of the tourists. The results highlight the need for destination marketing organizations to pay more attention to the link between destination image and food events. It concludes that tourism practices enable the continuity of local foods, reinterpreted in the light of urban consumption. Further research is needed to explain why, despite recommend a food tourism policy integrating upon the preservation and the development of the cultural and ethnic identity, in order to attract tourists.