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Cultural Heritage Tourism
directly expressed in the past, they are not in operation to perform as a tour company for the city,
but as mobile neighborhood ambassadors allowing the public to explore the city and understand
the qualities and character that form its identity. This indirectly functions as neighborhood
revitalization, by allowing neighborhoods to take advantage of returning visitors and their
spending power and reinvesting that revenue into various neighborhood projects and programs.
Each tour encompasses a neighborhood’s culture and heritage and focuses on being both
entertaining and educational. CNT works with each neighborhood to ensure the safety and quality
of each tour for all participants. Examples include providing restroom facilities and ensuring that
destinations are wheelchair accessible. Once a neighborhood has been successfully introduced
to the public (Chinatown, Little Italy) then it is no longer provided as a focus tour and may be
completely eliminated or offered as a condensed version. CNT will also cancel tours that coincide
with tours offered by neighborhood organizations, such as a local chamber of commerce, that are
given to the public at rates lower than CNT’s. As a result of frequent sell-outs for CNT’s most
popular tours, other cultural organizations have begun to offer tours based on CNT’s model.
Tour budgeT
As part of the Chicago Office of Tourism, CNT is able to operate through the revenue generated
from each tour. CNT’s staff are city employees allowing the budget to be directed solely on the
planning, marketing, and operation of each tour without dedicating resources for salaries. CNT
has a publication budget of $35,000, which it uses to print 55,000 brochures annually and mail
them to individuals who have attended a tour over the past year. Moreover, CNT prints and
distributes postcards to all of its members, while the Chicago Office of Tourism promotes CNT
prominently in its general publications. Motor coach, tour guides, and other associated tour
operational expenditures have an annual budget of $75,000.
TOUR eVALUATION
CNT has not conducted social or economic analysis of the impact their tours have had on the
neighborhoods they operate in. The primary method of evaluation is conducting post-tour surveys to
measure participant’s reaction to each tour and to highlight points of interest or areas that are in need
of improvement. From these surveys, current and future tours can be refined or planned according to
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