Cultural heritage as a factor of tourism development: a case study in the city of Cordoba

Intangible cultural heritage shapes the history of peoples. The present paper attempts to explore the concept of this type of heritage by focusing on the festivities of the Patios of Cordoba (Spain), declared by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as an Intangible Culture Heritage in 2012. The aim of this paper is to present the main results of an investigation conducted on tourists participating in the Festival of the Patios in 2014, disaggregated by gender. The research shows that most of the tourists were university educated, with an average age above 50 years and an average income level.