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HOW CAN SMALL-SCALE EVENTS CONTRIBUTE TO THE TOURISM PROGRESS OF AN UNDEVELOPED BORDER AREA? LESSON FROM EASTERN SERBIA

The study analyses the role and impact of the event "Danube Fair" (Eastern Serbia) in the tourism progress of the less-advantaged border area. The aim of this paper is to emphasize the significance of the role of events in the tourism development of rural settings and the attraction of domestic and foreign visitors with the specific offer of this part of Serbia. The tourism valorization of the event “Danube Fair” was done according to the geographical and economic criteria, and it was determined that it belongs to the category of regional events. In the paper, special attention was paid to the analysis of tourists’ satisfaction with this event as a geographical criterion, especially in dependence with the visitors’ origin, since it is what the positioning of an event on the tourism market depends on, both on the local and on the international level. “Danube Fair” presents the example of a relatively small-scale event, which can become a basis of tourism growth, with proper valorization and affirmation of local products and services, and their introduction to the international tourism market.