Paper Title
THE RESIDENTS’ ATTITUDE TOWARD SPA TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN VOJVODINA

Abstract
Abstract - Although Vojvodina (Autonomous Province in Serbia) is rich in thermal mineral springs, they are still not sufficiently utilized in the economic development of rural areas in this part of the country. It has been established that a spa complex can be built in 33 municipalities across Vojvodina. According to that, there is a question whether the local community members, as one of the crucial stakeholders in sustainable development, want to be involved and whether actual perceived concrete benefits are established. The research was conducted as a survey, between October 2022 and January 2023, on the basis of the 44-item SUS-TAS scale on 254 respondents. The focus was put on the representatives of Generation Z, who will soon take over the majority of the leading positions and will directly influence the business. Furthermore, this generation is also recognized as a ‘digital natives’ for this time. Given that, they could help to better connect rural communities to the market and revive them economically. The research results showed the positive attitudes of the local community on spa tourism sustainable development. More precisely, the research results are indicating the respondents’ perception related to further economic benefits of spa tourism development in the local community. They believe that spa tourism could provide an access to new markets for their local products, as well as that development of spa tourism is good for the local economy. It is encouraging that respondents mostly agree with the fact that local community members need to be involved in planning of further spa tourism development. Finally, findings are indicating the respondents’ awareness on the importance of general involvement of the local community members in further spa tourism development based on the principles of sustainable development. The main findings might be useful for different stakeholders related to the economy, sustainable development, as well as for inbound tourism development. Keywords - Local Community Members’ Perception, Generation Z, spa, Sustainable Tourism Development, SUS-TAS.