Urban tourism as alternative tourism in Medellín: spatial behaviors of the city as a tourist destination

Abstract

The research project “Update and implementation of the inventory of Medellín city’s tourist attractions and its districts”, carried out in 2016 in collaboration with the Undersecretariat of Tourism of the City Hall of Medellín, raised the following questions: Is there a clear offer of cultural and environmental tourist tours in Medellín? How can the resources identified and assessed in the tourism inventory contribute to an offer that meets the needs of tourists visiting Medellín today? This paper focuses on these questions and aims to reflect on the recognition and assessment of the local tourism offer as well as on the management model of the city from its inception. This analysis shows manifestations and spatial behaviors that create inclusive opportunities for communities, and project a new image of an emergent city which is resilient in the face of difficulties and innovative in its actions, like few in the world. It also allows to identify new opportunities for urban planning and future intervention, for which everyone must be willing to increase and maintain the possibility of optimizing local economic and social development in a sustainable and competitive way.