Opportunities for tourism development and cooperation in the region by improving the quality of tourism services – the ‘Danube Cycle Route’ case study

The Danube Cycle Route connects countries, various cultures and traditions and has favourable trends in the development of tourism in the region. Improving the quality of supply of the Route in the Bijelo Brdo (Croatia) – Petrovaradin (Serbia) section, in terms of investment in road infrastructure, signs for tourists and designing thematic maps and guides, might strengthen cross-border cooperation between Croatia and Serbia, which would result in a direct impact on tourism and the economy of both countries. After analysing the current situation of the quality of supply, on the aforementioned relation, the aim of this study was to design a series of measures to improve cycle tourism. For the purpose of this paper the survey was conducted during the year 2010, where foreign tourists – cyclists from eight countries – participated. The cyclists were asked to analyse the condition of the Route in the section Bijelo Brdo – Petrovaradin. The initial hypothesis was that that the existing tourism supply is on a relatively poor level of development, and that long-term positive effects in this part of the region can be achieved by some strategic measures to enhance the quality. This work will result in the synthesis of theory, statistical methods, and secondary publications since the analysis of the obtained data may lead to the confirmation of the main hypothesis. The survey method is used in the study, whereas the chi-square test is used to determine the frequency of specific deviations. The reliability of the scale is assessed by Cronbach’s alpha coefficient, and the confirmatory factor analysis is applied to assess the validity.