Promoting the Xemxija heritage trail to tourists, keeping the trail sustainable and marketable

Abstract

Purpose: This research primarily addresses the objective of evidencing that Heritage trails are important to be promoted to tourists in Malta in order to increase diversification of the tourism market. Design: In order to reach the objective, interviews and questionnaires were conducted. The interviews were distributed with Malta’s main stakeholders in question, Malta Tourism Authority (MTA), Ministry for Tourism, Non-Governmental Organisation (NGOs), St. Paul’s Bay Local Council and local custodian. While two separate groups of questionnaires were distributed to 50 local hikers and 50 tourists, both groups were asked if they knew about the Xemxija Heritage Trail. The local hikers sample was gathered by means of an online survey, while the tourists sample was conducted in person through manual distribution encounter at the TIO (Tourist Information Office) in Valletta.

Findings: The research conducted aided in identifying whether tourists and local hikers heard about the Xemxija Heritage Trail. When these two groups were compared, it resulted in having most tourists not aware of the Xemxija Heritage Trail, while the majority of hikers knew about it. Furthermore, the researcher was informed by the personnel at the Valletta TIO, that they had a limited number of leaflets regarding the Xemxija Heritage Trail. Hence circulation of leaflets is only done on request.

Suggestions: Regarding the awareness of the Xemxija Heritage Trail, most stakeholders interviewed knew something regarding the heritage trail, or knew a lot about the trail while only a few were not aware of it. This suggests that not enough awareness is being done. Since the study was mainly done with regards of the Xemxija Heritage Trail, the conclusions pointed out by the researcher can be drawn to all heritage sites and heritage trails taken care by local councils around Malta and Gozo. Conclusion: Through this research the author suggested that heritage trails are important to be promoted to tourists and also locals. This will help having a better cultural value and appreciation of our heritage sites. The types of tourists that need to be targeted are cultural heritage tourists. Also it is essential to have better marketing of the Xemxija Heritage Trail, hence increasing awareness of the site. Also having a sub-heritage committee taking care of heritage sites within local councils will help in preservation and conservation. Thus helping local councils with regards of their limited funds allocated to them. Implications: This study identifies that heritage trails need to be taken care of, since most of them contain ancient ruins along the countryside and rural trails. If they are not maintained well, Malta would lose part of its history in building structures forever.