A development platform for tourism
The DOIT Centre is an open development, research, education, consulting and demonstration environment at the University of Primorska, Faculty of Tourism Studies – Turistica. It brings together students, researchers, businesses, destinations, public institutions, technology providers and other interested partners seeking to jointly develop solutions to challenges in tourism. At the Centre, we research and adapt ideas and technologies, develop prototypes, test them with users and demonstrate them in real-world tourism contexts. We support businesses and destinations with strategies, quality systems and product development, and the Centre is also home to the Turistica Academy, offering professional training, tailored programmes and micro-credentials.
The Centre was established as the next stage of development and a systematic expansion of the sTOUdio Turistica project. Building on the project’s experience and results, it provides a structured environment for research, development, education and collaboration. The development of the DOIT Centre is also informed by the team’s ongoing research, particularly the national study on the innovation potential of Slovenian tourism, VIPSLOT.
Knowledge and equipment for those who need them
The mission of the DOIT Centre is to connect people, knowledge and technologies in the development, testing and demonstration of solutions to real-world challenges in tourism. The Centre welcomes a wide range of partners seeking to better understand an idea or problem and to work with us to develop and test a solution. Through research, education, experimentation and knowledge transfer, we aim to contribute to the innovative, digital and sustainable development of tourism.
A reference environment for digital and sustainable tourism
The DOIT Centre aspires to become a recognised open environment for the development, research and demonstration of innovative and sustainable tourism solutions, both in the region and beyond. We aim to provide a space where diverse partners come together to address real-world challenges, new and existing technologies are tested in real tourism contexts, and solutions are developed, tested and demonstrated before being adopted on a wider scale.
Five pillars of our work
The education pillar of the DOIT Centre connects learning with practice. Students of UP FTŠ Turistica use the Centre’s expertise, methods, facilities and technologies in laboratory exercises, project assignments and other practical work, while external partners can contribute real-world challenges to their learning. For tourism professionals and other external participants, the Centre is home to the Turistica Academy, offering professional training, tailored programmes and micro-credentials.
The research pillar supports studies, analyses and experiments aimed at improving our understanding of the challenges and opportunities in tourism. The Centre brings together researchers, students and external partners who can collaborate on formulating research questions, conducting measurements, collecting and analysing data, and testing solutions. The Centre’s expertise, methods and equipment can provide a foundation for joint research projects, funding applications and research support for external partners.
The development and consulting pillar focuses on transforming ideas and real-world problems into solutions that can be tested in practice. In collaboration with students, researchers and external partners, we develop concepts, prototypes and new ways of applying existing technologies in tourism. The focus is not on technology itself, but on its meaningful application to support more innovative, digital and sustainable tourism. We also support businesses, destinations and public institutions with strategies and action plans, quality systems and the development of tourism products – see Development and consulting.
The demonstration pillar enables solutions and technologies to be showcased, tested and evaluated in real-world tourism contexts. Working alongside students and researchers, external partners can assess their usability, gather user feedback and identify opportunities for improvement or new applications. Demonstration thus becomes an integral part of the solution’s further development.
The DOIT Centre’s coworking space is currently under development and will provide an open environment for project collaboration, individual and group work, and connections between people with diverse expertise and experience. It will be available to students, researchers and external partners seeking to develop ideas, collaborate on projects or connect with the Centre’s team and users. A separate entrance will also allow access outside the Faculty’s regular opening hours.
