The evaluation of cultural heritage elements and natural attractions in the scope of tourism marketing: The case of Gevaş

Purpose and scope: Historical artifacts left from societies throughout the historical process and transferring these artifacts to the present day by preserving them under certain conditions, as well as researching and examining some intangible cultural values ​​or elements bring out the concept of cultural heritage. Cultural heritage elements are elements that have existed throughout history and are preserved and transferred from generation to generation. They are the achievements of humankind's past experiences, intelligence and creativity that have reached the present day. Cultural heritage is divided into two as tangible and intangible cultural heritage in terms of its nature. Tangible cultural heritage is also divided into movable and immovable. Cultural heritage emerges as an ancient city, archaeological site, old rug, or ritual (Aysu, 2013). Cultural heritages have a very important place economically for the region in which they exist. As a result of ensuring the perception and awareness of cultural heritage, a large number of tourists will tend to travel to these regions to discover cultural heritage values ​​(Karaca Yılmaz et al., 2017). Cultural heritage is becoming a very important investment area for regions that want to benefit from the economic return of the tourism industry and gain an image in global competition. Especially in industry, agriculture etc. In countries that have not developed enough in other areas, tourism destinations are becoming one of the basic elements of the economy. The economic return of destinations is possible by increasing the number of visitors and tourism expenditures of the visitors. In this respect, in order to attract tourists, the difference and attractiveness of the destination from other destinations should be emphasized; Effective marketing strategies must be developed and the destination must be marketed rationally in order to obtain the highest level of benefit (Çakmak and Kök, 2012: 82). The destination must have cultural, climate and nature features, contain natural and cultural richness, develop region-specific activities for the tourists coming to that region, have accommodation, eating and drinking, transportation and communication opportunities, have public services and host tourist attraction centers. Despite its tourism potential, Gevaş is one of the destinations that cannot benefit from tourism to the extent it deserves. The district has very rich resources in terms of both nature and cultural tourism. Despite this, it can be seen that the level of tourism is quite low. In this context, it is aimed to determine the problems Gevaş experienced in tourism marketing and to develop solutions for these problems with the research.