identifying key forces and/or events that have trigger such a strong interest in cultural heritage within the tourism industry.
Uploaded by kat_112 on May 21, 2012
Cultural heritage within the tourism industry is a flourishing phenomenon worldwide, and the cultural tourist who partakes in this type of tourism is equally burgeoning and multiplying at excessive speed (Lord 1999; Craik 2001; Richards 2009). Cultural heritage can be defined as the legacy of traditions, customs, practices, and artefacts of a group identity, which are inherited from past generations and socially constructed in the present (Craik 2001). This consumption of cultural heritage in the tourism industry is seen to be undertaken predominantly by middle class westerners, who are educated, wealthy and middle aged (Lord 1999; Craik 2001). These characteristics of the cultural heritage tourist illustrate with key forces and events why interest has increased so dramatically over the years. These key forces and events that have triggered a strong interest in cultural heritage within the tourism industry include; The Grand Tour, The revolution of tourism in the 1960’s and 1970’s, Globalization and the nation states beneficial use of cultural heritage and finally tourists collecting of cultural capital and their search for authenticity. All these key forces and events together discuss why there has been such a noticeable rise of interest in cultural heritage within the tourism industry.
Western society’s interest in cultural heritage or the origins of the cultural tourist can be said to date back to ‘The Grand Tour’ from the mid seventeenth century (Towner 1985). This tour of Europe was undertaken for education and pleasure (Towner 1985), which we can also identify as a primary motive of today’s cultural tourist (Lord 1999, Mckercher 2002). Similar to today’s society it is also worthy to note that cultural movements influenced the route, and number of tourists undertaking ‘The Grand Tour’ (Towner 1985). This proves that there was a strong interest in cultural heritage within the very first example of what we would today; call a cultural tourist (Towner 1985). For example, from 1661 to 1700 the cultural movement/interest of the time focused predominantly on classical and renaissance (Towner 1985). This cultural popularity can be mirrored in the earlier version of ‘The Grand Tour’ which travelled routes predominantly taken through Italy, and France the ancient hubs of classical and renaissance (Towner 1985). This early interest in cultural heritage, in the tourism industry can be said to form the beginnings of today’s interest and increasingly growing popularity in cultural heritage.
As highlighted above ‘The Grand Tour’ was...