Course 2025-2026 a.y.

Classes: 31 (I sem.)

Instructors:
Class 31: CRISTINA MOTTIRONI

We live in the “Urban Century,” and cities have become key arenas where economic, social, cultural, and environmental issues converge. While the visitor economy is often underestimated compared to other urban functions, tourism has increasingly shaped the development and transformation of cities worldwide. Cultural, recreational, and tourism activities are not only vital to the economic growth of urban destinations, but also contribute to their social vibrancy and global identity. This course explores the evolving relationship between cities and visitors, highlighting the central role of tourism in urban innovation, place branding, and regeneration. It provides students with critical insights and analytical tools to interpret urban tourism trends and assess both opportunities and challenges linked to the expansion of the visitor economy. Special attention is given to the governance, planning, and management of tourism in urban areas, with a focus on sustainability, community engagement, and smart approaches. The course equips students with competencies needed to design and evaluate tourism strategies that create value for cities and their stakeholders.

The course addresses key topics at the intersection of tourism, urban studies, and place management:

• The global significance of cities and urban tourism investments in a post-industrial and creative economy

• Main trends in urban tourism: cultural, creative, lifestyle, event-based, smart, and hybrid experiences

• Urban regeneration and place-making strategies through tourism in large and small cities

• Governance, planning and marketing of urban destinations: actors, tools, and coordination models

• Social and spatial impacts of urban tourism: gentrification, over-tourism, sustainability, inclusivity

 

At the end of the course student will be able to...

 

• Describe how tourism, culture, and entertainment have contributed to the transformation of urban centers in recent decades.

• Explain the ways in which tourism-related investments shape the physical, social, and economic fabric of urban contexts.

• Identify and interpret the main models of urban tourism governance, destination management, and marketing.

• Evaluate the positive and negative impacts of tourism on urban life and discuss appropriate policy and planning responses.

At the end of the course student will be able to...

 

• Apply strategic approaches and analytical tools to assess and enhance the tourism potential of cultural assets and creative industries in cities.

• Identify suitable tourism segments for specific urban areas and design targeted strategies to engage them.

• Use tools of destination management and marketing to plan and implement tourism initiatives at the urban scale.

• Address real-world challenges in the promotion and management of tourism assets, events, and experiences in urban contexts.

• Develop feasible and context-sensitive urban tourism projects in collaboration with public and private stakeholders.

• Lectures
• Guest speaker's talks (in class or in distance)
• Company visits
• Collaborative Works / Assignments

The course adopts a blended approach that combines face-to-face lectures, guest speaker sessions, on-site visits, and group assignments. This mix of learning methods enables students to apply theoretical concepts to real-world situations and enhances their engagement with the material:

• Talks by industry experts and site visits offer students the opportunity to interact directly with tourism professionals, policy makers, and destination managers, gaining first-hand insight into current challenges and practices in the field.
• Case studies and class discussions are integral to deepening students’ understanding of course topics and fostering critical thinking. They also encourage collaborative learning and the development of communication and problem-solving skills.
• The fild project is a key component of the course. It enables students to work on real-life challenges related to place making and sustainable urban tourism. Through fieldwork, site inspections, and stakeholder engagement, students will develop context-sensitive proposals aimed at enhancing the tourism potential of urban areas.

 

Active class participation is highly encouraged, as it contributes significantly to the learning process.

	Continuous assessment	Partial exams	General exam
Written individual exam (traditional/online)			x
Collaborative Works / Assignment (report, exercise, presentation, project work etc.)	x
Peer evaluation	x

To assess the achievement of the intended learning outcomes, student evaluation is based on two main components:

• Final written exam (40%)

• Group field project (60%)

 

The written exam consists of open-ended essay questions based on the topics discussed in class. It is designed to assess students’ ability to critically engage with key concepts, models, and case studies presented during the course. Students are expected to develop well-structured and evidence-based arguments.

 

The group field project provides students with the opportunity to address real-world challenges in urban tourism. Working on a selected case, students are expected to develop a sustainable and feasible tourism strategy tailored to a specific urban context. The project assesses the capacity to design an actionable and well-grounded tourism proposal and the effectiveness in communicating the project outcomes.

 

Please note: Both components must be passed with a minimum grade of 18/30 in order to successfully complete the course.

The assessment for non-attending students is based on a final written exam (100%). The exam includes a combination of open-ended essay questions and multiple-choice questions. It is designed to assess the students’ understanding of the full set of concepts, models, and case studies covered in the textbooks and additional course materials specified for independent study.

 

The open-ended questions aim to evaluate students’ analytical thinking, their ability to interpret and apply theoretical frameworks, and their capacity to construct well-argued and evidence-based responses.

 

The multiple-choice section focuses on the accurate comprehension of key definitions, mechanisms, and relationships within the field of urban tourism.

The reading list is provided at the beginning of the course and consists of a combination of lecture slides and selected readings. 

These materials are designed to support and deepen the understanding of the topics discussed in class. Readings complement the lectures by offering theoretical frameworks, case studies, and real-world applications that enrich class discussions and prepare students for both the written exam and the field project.

The reading list for non-attending students is specified in the syllabus at the beginning of the course.

It consists of the required textbooks, from which students are expected to study all the indicated chapters. These materials provide comprehensive coverage of the concepts, models, and case studies needed to prepare for the final exam.