TOURIST CONTEXT ANALYSIS
Area of analysis
Due to unavailable data for Public Private Partnership (PPP) Horehron, as a project SUITES partner, some parts of analysis are done for the Slovak Republic as a whole.
The Slovak Republic
The Slovak Republic, shortly also Slovakia is an landlocked republic in Central Europe, bounded on the northwest by the Czech Republic, on the north by Poland, on the east by Ukraine, on the south by Hungary, and on the southwest by Austria. Bratislava is its capital and largest city.
The country’s maximum length from east to west is about 416 km (about 258 mi), and its maximum width from north to south is about 208 km (about 129 mi). The Danube River, located in the southwest, forms part of Slovakia’s border with Hungary.
Slovakia is known for its numerous and impressive mountain ranges. Many of the country’s mountains give way to rolling hills and river valleys, where agriculture, winemaking, and livestock raising are practiced. Slovakia’s mountainous terrain has also influenced settlement patterns within the country.
The Carpathian Mountains, a major mountain system of central Europe, extend across much of northern and northwestern Slovakia and encompass the Little Carpathians, the White Carpathians, and the Tatry, which is the highest Carpathian range. The High Tatry mountains contain the country’s highest peak, Gerlachovsk Štt, which rises to an elevation of 2655 m (8711 ft). The High Tatry also contain one of Slovakia’s largest national parks and are a popular place for skiing and hiking. Other important mountains include the Low Tatry, in central Slovakia, and the Lesser and Greater Fatra ranges, in central and western Slovakia. The Slovak Ore Mountains, in eastern Slovakia, are named for their mineral deposits.
Southwestern Slovakia is dominated by the Danubian Lowlands, a fertile region that extends to the Danube River on the Hungarian border. Much of the country’s agriculture is produced in this area; Bratislava is its main industrial center.
Slovakia also contains a number of interesting and unusual caves. Among them are the Demnovsk caves, a series of caves linked by underground lakes and waterfalls, located in central Slovakia; and the Domica cave, known for its vaulted roof and colored stalactites, located near the Hungarian border in eastern Slovakia.
Public Private Partnership (PPP) Horehron
PPP Horehron is located in the central part of Slovakia with great nature, culture and historical potencial, where are approaches as a bottom up, multi-sectors and multi actors cooperation applied. We can divided PPP members by their level of their skills and knowledges from the tourism poin of view as follow as:
- members with great skills (tourism enterpreneurs, NGOs in the tourism and individual, whose were trained in the tourism)municipalities
- members with interst in tourism development
- individuals wit tourism education and own skills.
In the PPP Horehron region were local people trained from the point of view of social work adaptability (IT knowledge, languages, management, …). In the region is high unemployment and threatness group - at risk of social exclusion are especially young people with middle level of graduation. Local products are produced by old-local producers in this region and these traditions are threatened now, because there are not possibilities for skills transmission from old generations to the next generations. Crafts, local products and traditions are a big opportunity for the valorization of the territory and the development of new economic activities, linked to tourism and cultural initiatives.
Sources of information/relevant links
www.slovakia.travel
Where to find updated information about tourist sector and trends in Slovakia.
Institutional sources related to tourist sector in Slovakia
www.sacr.sk Slovak Tourist Board
www.statistics.sk – Statistical Office
www.pamiatky.sk – Heritage Office
www.portal.gov.sk – Central Public Administration Portal SR
www.sacka.eu – Slovak Association of Travel Agents and Agencies
www.zcrsr.sk – Slovak Tourism Association
www.ask.sk – Association of Slovak Spas
www.aices.sk – Association of Information Centres in Slovakia
www.azzz.sk – Federation of Employers’ Unions of the Slovak Republic
www.apmuz.sk – Association of small guesthouses and lodgings in Slovakia
www.touristguides.sk – Slovak tourist guides
www.agroturist.sk – Slovak Association of rural tourism and agrotourism
www.agritourism.sk – Slovak Association of Entrepreneurs in agrotourism
www.szz.sk – Slovak Trade Union
www.zhrsr.sk – Association of Hotels and Restaurants of the Slovak Republic
www.zms.sk – Association of Museums in Slovakia
www.caravaning.sk – Slovak Association of camping and caravaning
Regional Governments in Slovakia
www.region-bsk.sk – Bratislava Region
www.vucbb.sk – Banska Bystrica Region
www.vucke.sk – Košice region
www.unsk.sk – Nitra Region
www.vucpo.sk – Prešov Region
www.tsk.sk – Trenčín region
www.trnava-vuc.sk – Trnava region
www.zask.sk – Žilina Region
Support of start-ups in Slovakia
http://tv.hnonline.sk/biznisshn – online presentations of start-ups and its evaluation by committee, still new start-ups
http://www.startupcamp.sk/ – camps for start uppers
http://ekonomika.sme.sk/c/6520212/na-slovensku-vznikne-pracovny-portal-pre-start-up-firmy.html
http://www.startupawards.sk/
Symposium Startup Slovakia 2013 – conference for start-ups
More info and whole tourist context analysis you can download here: TOURIST ANALYSIS
