In the Ukrainian public space, the idea has been circulating for many years: in order to interest tourists, our castles, palaces and museums, you need to turn into attractive locations, arranging a variety of entertainment.

Therefore, quests with plastic swords appear, firing from bows in almost every castle, torn from the context of a selfie zone, torture rooms or exhibitions of local craftsmen, concerts, public entertainment events and other " It sounds allegedly attractive. But in fact, this is a simplification of cultural context and unification of the tourist proposal, which contradicts the logic of competitiveness. I want to remind you that the object of cultural heritage is able to develop a person, increase his intellectual level and form emotional intelligence, and not turn into a capricious consumer who is used to entertaining him.

And you must admit that in Ukraine there are not many real estate objects that we reduce them to a purely entertaining. For comparison: in Spain, 2500 surviving stone locks of 10 thousand objects of fortification architecture have been preserved, and in Ukraine about 128 such castles (taking into account the fragments of ruins, such as the Gubkovsky Castle or the Castle in the Ozarins).

Since then to attract a tourist to our objects of cultural heritage, and whether the transformation of castles and palaces is into entertainment locations the only way?

Why \?

Museumified objects of cultural heritage in Ukraine for the most part exist in the format of communal enterprises or state budgetary institutions. So, they should not only be kept on budgetary funds, but also contribute to the social, cultural, economic development of territories and Ukraine as a whole. In world and domestic practice, cultural heritage is considered as an important tourist resource. Therefore, it is quite natural that the founders of utilities or state budgetary institutions require their leaders to join the development of the tourism economy.

But indicators of the influence of objects of heritage and museums on the development of tourism in Ukraine are disappointing. Castles, palace and park ensembles, individual reserves are able to attract from 3 to 12 thousand visitors. Not a month, but a year.

So, for example, castle complexes in cities of former district significance (with a population of 35–40 thousand people) work for external excursion services and are preparing annually for the tourist season, since local residents are not visited. Or the communal museum-reserve, which includes real estate (castle) and movable heritage (a number of museums), attracts 200 thousand visitors per year. And only 5 thousand of them reach the museums that store real treasures. That is, 195 thousand visitors directly say this behavior: "

There are examples of full -fledged local history museums in cities with a half -million population, which accept a little more than 2 thousand visitors a year. And some modern museums on active tourist routes have 3 thousand visitors. And again-not a month, but a year.

Even large reserves that cover dozens of hectares with national heritage objects and pass through themselves a transit tourist flow of 1.5–2 million people a year, fix only 4-12 thousand real visitors per year.

The question arises: how to attract a tourist to objects of cultural heritage in order to have a tangible economic influence? For some reason, the majority of decisions boils down to “attraction locations”, and on different professional exercises for museum workers you can hear that the tourist “has become more demanding” and it is more difficult to entertain.

But the problem is deeper: when the legacy comes down to entertainment, the level of intellectual experience decreases. A person gets used to: “I come here to have fun”, and not to think, feel and know on my own.

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Ukrainian experience: is it possible to do without a show?

Do we have examples of cultural projects that would collect thousands of visitors a month without attractions and show programs? Yes. I share my experience as the author of the constant sociocultural project " This project acted in the format of photo exhibitions, which every year changed its subject, lasted 16 years (2007–2022) and was implemented on the basis of the village Parkhomovsky Museum (120 km from Kharkov) and the regional center of culture and arts in Kharkov.

Intercession indicators of “amazing Ukraine”: from 2 to 3 thousand people a month - in the rural museum and up to 7 thousand a month in Kharkov. And this is only a photo exhibition accompanied by a communication package - there were no castles, palaces and full museums here.

You can recall the experience of the UKRAINE WOW exhibition, which opened on November 14, 2019 at the Central Railway Station in Kyiv. Initially, it was designed for a month, but according to the results of success, the exposition was extended for several months. According to official figures, the exhibition was visited by more than 330 thousand people for a little more than three months of work.

So, for example, in 2019, for a day, Ukrzaliznitsa earned more on the sale of tickets to the exhibition more than in one of its most successful directions - the Borispol express express. The General Director of Ukrzaliznitzі Evgeny Kravtsov spoke about this in a commentary..

Among the full -fledged museum projects is the center of the Chabo Wine Culture, officially recognized as one of the most popular tourist facilities of the Odessa region.

According to open data, the center accepts 60–70 thousand tourists a year, which makes it a real driver of the development of local tourism.

What is the secret? In the ability to create a story by museum and exposure means. We did not do, “like everyone else”, but formed a unique environment that is not repeated anywhere else; not entertained, but forced to think. And they remembered that a modern visitor is looking for impressions, pleasure, emotions and the opportunity to survive the unique experience available only here in this space in this space and the heritage..

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And what will the visitor do in the castle or museum without a show?

You can often hear the opinion: " However, this is a myth. A correctly created exposition is able to keep a person’s attention for several hours and turn his visit into a fascinating journey.

Imagine that you go to the castle, museum or object of the reserve. Everything is built here so that you are going from hall to hall, from object to object, as if someone specially leads you, stimulates to move forward. Since each room or object hides a new story, a new intrigue - and you want to know what will happen next. What will the castle or palace tell? About a specific family or one person? About the living conditions of a certain social estate for centuries or in one era? About a certain event or object itself? Who is the character of the exposition story? And is there this character at all? Or maybe - about the place of the object of heritage in the culture of Ukraine or the whole continent? And all this is served easily, unobtrusively, since the object of heritage speaks the language of the exposition with you. And everything is clear to you even without a guide.

So the hour, two, three passes - and you don’t even notice how time flies, because you are interested in. Emotions replace one another: delight, surprise, thought. And you want to return here again. But more than one, but in the company to share impressions. Then you sit in a cozy cafe, enjoying the experience gained. Or, having tasted the local residents of Knumbing, prepared according to a local recipe, you understand that you will not go anywhere today and willingly spent in this picturesque village with its fantastic views. This is how the cultural and economic effect of heritage works.

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Professional approach as an alternative to the show.

So, we see that the transformation of castles and palaces, museums and reserves into attaching entertainment locations is not the only way. There is also a real professional approach to strengthening the influence of heritage, when tourists do not need to be “attracted” - their interest is caused by high -quality exposition, professional approach and substantive experience.

Since the cultural heritage is not a decoration for entertainment. This is our foundation, which forms identity, brings up taste, develops thinking.

Photo by the author.

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