Cultural Heritage as the Basis of Tourism Planning in Depopulating Regions: The Case of The Iron Gates, Serbia

The Iron Gates on the Danube is the longest gorge in Europe. As such, it is primarily known by its natural beauty and scenery. Its size and special natural conditions have also influenced the creation and preservation of interesting places of cultural heritage and folk tradition and culture. The isolation of the Iron Gates as a difficult-to-access gorge divided between two countries – Romania and Serbia – has hindered the development and promotion of this region for many years, causing further extreme depopulation. However, in the last 15 years, better cooperation between the two countries and growing tourism along the Danube as an international river have increasingly revealed the cultural heritage of the gorge to foreign tourists. Spatial and urban planning in the Serbian part of the Iron Gates have significantly contributed to individual places of cultural heritage becoming destinations within this tourist region. This paper presents the positive and negative experience of planning in order to promote the given cultural heritage in this still depopulated region.