THE ROLE OF DIGITISING TANGIBLE CULTURAL HERITAGE MONUMENTS IN INCREASING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF CULTURAL TOURISM IN UZBEKISTAN
Keywords:
cultural tourism, tangible heritage, digitisation, 3D modelling, Uzbekistan, IMRAD, sustainable tourism.Abstract
This paper explores digitalisation of Uzbekistan tangible cultural heritage sites and the impacts on the ability of cultural tourism to create more efficient products. It explores how digital solutions such as 3D modelling, QR codes, interactive maps and virtual walks can be integrated into UNESCO's site to contribute to visitor numbers and to support the implementation of effective sustainable strategies of cultural heritage management. An exploratory mixed qualitative research design was implemented. Data collection and analysis was conducted based on content analysis and a comparative review of 15 international policy and research documents identified through searching Google Scholar. The research concluded that the monuments which integrated digital information resources and tourist information points increased the length of visitors' stay, maintained the trend of independent tourists and facilitated the attraction of more tourists at the same cost of Destination Marketing. Practical suggestions have been outlined that support the digital transformation of the national tourism infrastructure and provide interesting pointers for future empiric research.
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