Zsuzsa Deli-Gray (ed.)

Cases in Tourism Marketing III

The role of local communities in cultural consumption: the example of Veszprém – Balaton 2023 European Capital of Culture

Judit Sulyok, Katalin Lőrincz, Krisztina Dabrónaki-Priszinger

Two thousand twenty-three was a special year for Veszprém and the Bakony – Balaton region, since the area was awarded the title of European Capital of Culture (ECoC). This themed year offered locals and visitors alike the chance to choose from a wide range of cultural programmes and discover new attractions. A tangible result of winning the ECoC title was the establishment of the FACTORY’ard CulturePark (GyárKert), which has been a meeting point since 2023, by attracting large crowds to the centre of Veszprém for concerts and other events. The GyárKert Cultural Park area was previously home to the Balaton Furniture Factory and later became an abandoned, isolated industrial area in the heart of Veszprém. The residents regarded it as a scar on the city's landscape.

At the end of the ECoC year, Veszprém’s local government representatives and the organisers who played a prominent role in the town’s cultural life discussed at a committee meeting how to develop the FACTORY’ard so that it continues to be a defining element of Veszprém's cultural offerings, and what future function to give to the area.

The European Capital of Culture programme is a popular topic in tourism research. Trends affecting the ECoC are reflected in scientific research. For instance, the professional community is interested in sustainability's growing role ( Mavrin, 2024 ) and the ECoC's role in rebranding and image building ( Lindstedt, 2015 ; Richards and Rotariu, 2015 ). In terms of demand for the theme year, it can be said that the ECoC attracts both locals and tourists ( Lindstedt, 2015 ). The local community is pivotal to the ECoC ( Cunningham and Platt, 2019 ), and the locals' opinions and perceptions of the ECoC impact its success ( Sagovnović et al., 2022 ). The ECoC supports the development of cultural infrastructure and plays an important role in boosting cultural consumption ( Richards and Rotariu, 2015 ). Remoaldo et al. (2017 ) highlight in their research that the ECoC also brings changes in visitor profiles during the year; for example, there is an increase in the number of cultural tourists.

Based on expert studies ( Palmer and Richards, 2007 ), it can be concluded that the programme year associated with culture-based urban development and cultural consumption. The ECoC initiative provides an invaluable marketing opportunity to enhance cities' images, while also facilitates dialogue between various authorities, stakeholders, and the urban population ( Ooi et al., 2014 ). It has generally been observed that the population of ECoC cities has become more receptive to and open about culture during the project years, participating as active contributors rather than passive recipients (Morvay et al., 2020 ).

Each year, the European Commission selects two cities for the title of European Capital of Culture. This award was originally established in 1985 under the name 'European City of Culture'. At the time, the Greek Minister for Culture, Melina Mercouri, promoted the initiative to raise the awareness of culture, emphasising Europe's cultural richness and diversity, as well as its shared historical heritage. By 2025, more than 60 cities have held the ECoC title, including two Hungarian cities: Pécs in 2010 and Veszprém, with 116 municipalities in the Bakony – Balaton region in 2023 (Lőrincz, 2017). Over the past four decades, ECoC cities have not only promoted their image and raised awareness, but have also increasingly focused on developing cultural and creative industries. Today, they have set themselves a new, horizontal goal of improving the quality of life of the local population and communities along the three pillars of sustainability: environment, society and economy (Środa-Murawska, 2025). For the local population/residents, this means a revival of the city's cultural life, with numerous events and programmes being organised and infrastructure related to cultural offerings expanded and improved in quality. In addition, demand from domestic and international tourists for ECoC cities will increase, contributing to the economic development of the city and the region (Raffay and Lőrincz, 2018).

At the board meeting, Zoltán Tóth, a prominent expert in Veszprém's cultural life and the festival director, was the first to take the floor, summarising the city's cultural offerings:

“It would be hard to say which genre of art best characterises the cultural life of Veszprém and the Bakony – Balaton region. In any case, music would certainly be among the top genres, closely followed by classical and modern fine arts, theatre and film. The festival programme is diverse and full of improvisational elements: the Veszprém Street Music Festival fills the town centre squares and parks; VeszprémFest offers a premium concert experience; and the Auer Festival showcases elite Hungarian and international classical musicians. The Rozé, Rizling and Jazz Days are an unmissable part of the summer programme. Veszprém has been listed as a City of Music since 2019 by UNESCO. Several popular events take place as well, including the highly attended Gizella Days in May, the Kabóciádé Family Festival and the MOZ.GO Hungarian Motion Picture Festival in June, attracting mostly families. Even in autumn and winter, we can attract locals through events such as the Bakony Expo and the Holtszezon Literary Festival.”

“I would like to highlight the GyárKert CulturePark,” said Andrea Magyar, representative of the ECoC2023 project company. “As we all know, this multifunctional event space opened in the city centre in 2023. It is easily accessible, can accommodate 5,000 people, and hosts numerous events. It was a great decision by the municipality of Veszprém to purchase this abandoned, former industrial site. The success of the event space, which has been created with the help of pop-up architects, is also evident in winning the BIG SEE Wood Design grand Prix Award in 2023. I have prepared a brief summary of GyárKert's operations and achievements to date, so that we can all understand the benefits of maintaining and operating this event venue for the residents of Veszprém, as well as for visitors and tourists coming to the city.”

GyárKert CulturePark primarily operates as a concert and event venue in the summer and as an ice rink in the winter. Additional services include container-based catering facilities and food trucks. Based on concert-visitor registration data (both for free and non-free events; visitors should register via the website), it can be concluded that bus services to surrounding towns were launched in the evening in connection with several concerts in 2023, thus supporting the use of sustainable transport and helping concert visitors get home. According to the VEB2023 monitoring data, a total of 52 concerts (including 30 as part of the European Capital of Culture programme and a further 22 organised by the local government) and 72 productions awaited visitors in 2023, with visitor numbers reaching 150,000 during the ECoC year. While famous foreign and Hungarian performers gave concerts in 2023, only domestic performers appeared in 2024 and 2025. The concerts included both free and paid events.

“Beside the availability of the concerts, it is important to understand demand information as well,' Andrea continued her presentation. 'The results of the VEB2023 programme were tracked using a comprehensive monitoring system based on real time data input. I would like to present the concert-visitor registration data for the 30 concerts held in 2023 as part of the ECoC, focusing on the role of local communities. A total of nearly 130,000 visitors attended the 30 concerts. In addition to the registration data, ECoC monitoring also uses mobile cell information to examine concert attendance in downtown Veszprém, i.e. whether visitors to the GyárKert CulturePark also visited other locations in the city.”

“Based on the visitor database, different consumer behaviours can be observed at each event. Of the five most popular concerts, four were performed by domestic artists and only one by a foreign artist: the free City Rocks concert. Most events were dominated by local and regional concert visitors, with a high proportion of residents attending in all cases. Concerts by internationally famous artists attracted a significant number of international visitors.”

“As an illustration, I have prepared a table showing the distribution of local and regional visitors. We also examined mobile cell data.’ Andrea continued. ‘Taking these into account, it can be concluded that the concerts of international performers at GyárKert CulturePark generated more visitors to the city centre.”

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Figure 1. Distribution of local and regional visitors at ECoC concerts in 2023

Source: Own edited, based on data from ECoC 2023

“Last but not least, I would like to share a few insights into the results concerning more sustainable consumer behaviour. To make this easier to understand, I have prepared a short summary table (Table 1). Looking at the traffic on bus routes running in the evening, we can see that providing public transport options (complimentary connections, in line with the concerts’ schedule, and based on the registered visitors’ origin) – for which resources were available under EcoC2023 – has a positive impact on visitor numbers and the implementation of more sustainable consumer behaviour.”

Table 1. Occupancy rates of buses between Veszprém and Székesfehérvár in connection with individual concerts

Date	2023/08/03	2023/08/09	2023/08/11	2023/08/17	2023/08/18	2023/08/20	2023/08/29	2023/08/30	2023/08/31
Time of departure	22:50	22:50	22:50	22:50	22:50	22:50	22:50	22:50	22:50
Number of travallers	5	4	90	12	0	25	23	36	4

Source: Data from ECoC 2023

“I hope that the presentation of GyárKert CulturePark's achievements during the ECoC year will confirm that this venue continues to be a worthy destination for the residents of Veszprém, the surrounding area, and visitors to the city alike, offering exciting programmes throughout the year” – Andrea concluded.

“Thank you for this detailed and comprehensive presentation, Andrea,” said the chair of the representative body. “As we know, the ECoC ended in 2023, but the city must decide how to keep this popular and vibrant two-hectare area as a bustling event venue and community space.”

“Exactly,” continued Zoltán Tóth, the culture shaper. “In my opinion, the story of GyárKert CulturePark will be relatively easy to tell. We took out our magic pencil and, with the help of the country's leading pop-up architects, dreamed up an event venue with a capacity of 5,000 people, two stages and dozens of catering units. At first glance, it seemed to be just a place to enjoy the moment, but we believe that, with some luck, this place can be much more than that. For us, GyárKert is a place of belonging and shared memories, which is why the concerts featuring 10–12 international stars and performances by national and local favourites are only half of the project. The other half is showcasing Europe's diversity and providing opportunities for international connections. The 2023 concerts continued in 2024 and 2025, filling the GyárKert with members of the local community as well as domestic and international visitors. Our dream is that after the ECoC year, the above-mentioned hospitality units will be run by young people from European cities as cultural outposts for their nations.”

(https://veszprembalaton2023.hu/projekt/gyarkert)

Tartalomjegyzék

Kiadó: Akadémiai Kiadó

Online megjelenés éve: 2026

ISBN: 978 963 664 217 4

Marketing Turizmus

The publication of the third volume of Cases in Tourism Marketing is truly welcome news from both an educational and a professional perspective. Through real-world, timely, and thought-provoking cases, this collection helps readers – students and practitioners alike – gain a deeper understanding of the complex world of decision-making in tourism marketing. The case studies not only convey professional knowledge but also develop analytical skills, problem-solving abilities, and critical thinking. One of the volume’s key strengths is its focus on issues that define contemporary tourism, including the role of digitalization, artificial intelligence, destination branding, and stakeholder collaboration in tourism marketing. Long-awaited and highly relevant, this third volume is a worthy continuation of the previous collections and will undoubtedly serve as a valuable resource in higher education in tourism, while also being highly recommended to professionals who enjoy reflecting on challenges and opportunities beyond their own immediate field of expertise.

Tamara Ratz PhD

Director, Centre for International Relations, Kodolányi János University

Head of Tourism Department, Professor of Tourism

It is an honor for me to recommend this volume to everyone who wishes to understand tourism marketing not only in theory, but also through its real business and human dimensions. The worlds of tourism and hospitality have undergone fundamental changes in recent years, which makes case studies based on real market situations, decision-making dilemmas and current challenges especially valuable in supporting both learning and critical thinking. This book provides not only professional knowledge, but also encourages a complex mindset, creative problem-solving and the ability to think in connections — exactly the skills today’s tourism professionals need most. I wholeheartedly recommend this volume to students, educators and tourism professionals alike.

Judit Fodor (Liptai)

Group Director of Sales and Marketing, Danubius Hotels

Hivatkozás: https://mersz.hu/deli-gray-cases-in-toursim-marketing-iii//

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