01-108 Tourism 2009 01e.indd

Since cultural monuments and/or heritage sites, depending on the degree of their international recognition, generate economic activity and contribute to the economy of the countries in which they are located, one should regard them as valuable economic resources. Th e aim of this work is to fi rstly, address the issue of economically eff ective and socially responsible management of cultural monuments and/or heritage sites. Second aim is to provide theoretical background and empirical reasons for the introduction of the so called “heritage rent” as an eff ective mean for long term preservation of tangible cultural heritage. Th ird aim of this paper is to draw attention to the Croatian experience with the introduction of the heritage rent. Despite the fact that there seems to be enough support for the introduction of heritage rent in areas (destinations) rich in cultural heritage, the introduction of heritage rent system in Croatia still suff ers from a number of defi ciencies. In order to improve the existing system, concrete solutions are off ered, especially concerning the principle of heritage rent assessment, the determination of heritage rent liability, as well as the determination of the heritage rent generated (appropriated).