Cultural Routes as World Heritage Sites

Tourism is claimed to be one of the world’s largest industries, bringing economic benefits and contributing to the development of countries, especially those in the less-developed world (Roe and Urquhart 2001). It is also considered to be beneficial for the preservation and revival of local cultures, which might otherwise decline (Werner 2003). Moreover, the increasing interest in “cultural routes” is creating new opportunities for tourism (Zhou 2005), and, since the independence of the former Soviet states (1991), there has been a revival of the Silk Road for tourism and cultural purposes.