culture heritage tourism

UN Tourism | Bringing the world closer

Ethics, culture and social responsibility.

• Global Code of Ethics for Tourism
• Accessible Tourism

Tourism and Culture

• Women’s Empowerment and Tourism

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The convergence between tourism and culture, and the increasing interest of visitors in cultural experiences, bring unique opportunities but also complex challenges for the tourism sector.

“Tourism policies and activities should be conducted with respect for the artistic, archaeological and cultural heritage, which they should protect and pass on to future generations; particular care should be devoted to preserving monuments, worship sites, archaeological and historic sites as well as upgrading museums which must be widely open and accessible to tourism visits”

UN Tourism Framework Convention on Tourism Ethics

Article 7, paragraph 2

This webpage provides UN Tourism resources aimed at strengthening the dialogue between tourism and culture and an informed decision-making in the sphere of cultural tourism. It also promotes the exchange of good practices showcasing inclusive management systems and innovative cultural tourism experiences .  

About Cultural Tourism

According to the definition adopted by the UN Tourism General Assembly, at its 22nd session (2017), Cultural Tourism implies “A type of tourism activity in which the visitor’s essential motivation is to learn, discover, experience and consume the tangible and intangible cultural attractions/products in a tourism destination. These attractions/products relate to a set of distinctive material, intellectual, spiritual and emotional features of a society that encompasses arts and architecture, historical and cultural heritage, culinary heritage, literature, music, creative industries and the living cultures with their lifestyles, value systems, beliefs and traditions”. UN Tourism provides support to its members in strengthening cultural tourism policy frameworks, strategies and product development . It also provides guidelines for the tourism sector in adopting policies and governance models that benefit all stakeholders, while promoting and preserving cultural elements.

Recommendations for Cultural Tourism Key Players on Accessibility 

UN Tourism , Fundación ONCE and UNE issued in September 2023, a set of guidelines targeting key players of the cultural tourism ecosystem, who wish to make their offerings more accessible.

The key partners in the drafting and expert review process were the ICOMOS International Cultural Tourism Committee and the European Network for Accessible Tourism (ENAT) . The ICOMOS experts’ input was key in covering crucial action areas where accessibility needs to be put in the spotlight, in order to make cultural experiences more inclusive for all people.

This guidance tool is also framed within the promotion of the ISO Standard ISO 21902 , in whose development UN Tourism had one of the leading roles.

Download here the English and Spanish version of the Recommendations.

Compendium of Good Practices in Indigenous Tourism

The report is primarily meant to showcase good practices championed by indigenous leaders and associations from the Region. However, it also includes a conceptual introduction to different aspects of planning, management and promotion of a responsible and sustainable indigenous tourism development.

The compendium also sets forward a series of recommendations targeting public administrations, as well as a list of tips promoting a responsible conduct of tourists who decide to visit indigenous communities.

For downloads, please visit the UN Tourism E-library page: Download in English - Download in Spanish .

Weaving the Recovery - Indigenous Women in Tourism

This initiative, which gathers UN Tourism , t he World Indigenous Tourism Alliance (WINTA) , Centro de las Artes Indígenas (CAI) and the NGO IMPACTO , was selected as one of the ten most promising projects amoung 850+ initiatives to address the most pressing global challenges. The project will test different methodologies in pilot communities, starting with Mexico , to enable indigenous women access markets and demonstrate their leadership in the post-COVID recovery.

This empowerment model , based on promoting a responsible tourism development, cultural transmission and fair-trade principles, will represent a novel community approach with a high global replication potential.

Visit the Weaving the Recovery - Indigenous Women in Tourism project webpage.

Inclusive Recovery of Cultural Tourism

The release of the guidelines comes within the context of the International Year of Creative Economy for Sustainable Development 2021 , a UN initiative designed to recognize how culture and creativity, including cultural tourism, can contribute to advancing the SDGs.  

UN Tourism Inclusive Recovery Guide, Issue 4: Indigenous Communities

Sustainable Development of Indigenous Tourism

The Recommendations on Sustainable Development of Indigenous Tourism provide guidance to tourism stakeholders to develop their operations in a responsible and sustainable manner within those indigenous communities that wish to:

• Open up to tourism development, or
• Improve the management of the existing tourism experiences within their communities.

They were prepared by the UN Tourism Ethics, Culture and Social Responsibility Department in close consultation with indigenous tourism associations, indigenous entrepreneurs and advocates. The Recommendations were endorsed by the World Committee on Tourism Ethics and finally adopted by the UN Tourism General Assembly in 2019, as a landmark document of the Organization in this sphere.

Who are these Recommendations targeting?

• Tour operators and travel agencies
• Tour guides
• Indigenous communities
• Other stakeholders such as governments, policy makers and destinations

The Recommendations address some of the key questions regarding indigenous tourism:

Download PDF:

• Recommendations on Sustainable Development of Indigenous Tourism
• Recomendaciones sobre el desarrollo sostenible del turismo indígena, ESP

UN Tourism/UNESCO World Conferences on Tourism and Culture

The UN Tourism/UNESCO World Conferences on Tourism and Culture bring together Ministers of Tourism and Ministers of Culture with the objective to identify key opportunities and challenges for a stronger cooperation between these highly interlinked fields. Gathering tourism and culture stakeholders from all world regions the conferences which have been hosted by Cambodia, Oman, Türkiye and Japan have addressed a wide range of topics, including governance models, the promotion, protection and safeguarding of culture, innovation, the role of creative industries and urban regeneration as a vehicle for sustainable development in destinations worldwide.

Fourth UN Tourism/UNESCO World Conference on Tourism and Culture: Investing in future generations. Kyoto, Japan. 12-13 December 2019 Kyoto Declaration on Tourism and Culture: Investing in future generations ( English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Russian and Japanese )

Third UN Tourism/UNESCO World Conference on Tourism and Culture : For the Benefit of All. Istanbul, Türkiye. 3 -5 December 2018 Istanbul Declaration on Tourism and Culture: For the Benefit of All ( English , French , Spanish , Arabic , Russian )

Second UN Tourism/UNESCO World Conference’s on Tourism and Culture: Fostering Sustainable Development. Muscat, Sultanate of Oman. 11-12 December 2017 Muscat Declaration on Tourism and Culture: Fostering Sustainable Development ( English , French , Spanish , Arabic , Russian )

First UN Tourism/UNESCO World Conference’s on Tourism and Culture: Building a new partnership. Siem Reap, Cambodia. 4-6 February 2015 Siem Reap Declaration on Tourism and Culture – Building a New Partnership Model ( English )

UN Tourism Study on Tourism and Intangible Cultural Heritage  

The first UN Tourism Study on Tourism and Intangible Cultural Heritage provides comprehensive baseline research on the interlinkages between tourism and the expressions and skills that make up humanity’s intangible cultural heritage (ICH). 

Through a compendium of case studies drawn from across five continents, the report offers in-depth information on, and analysis of, government-led actions, public-private partnerships and community initiatives.

These practical examples feature tourism development projects related to six pivotal areas of ICH: handicrafts and the visual arts; gastronomy; social practices, rituals and festive events; music and the performing arts; oral traditions and expressions; and, knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe.

Highlighting innovative forms of policy-making, the UN Tourism Study on Tourism and Intangible Cultural Heritage recommends specific actions for stakeholders to foster the sustainable and responsible development of tourism by incorporating and safeguarding intangible cultural assets.

UN Tourism Study on Tourism and Intangible Cultural Heritage

• UN Tourism Study
• Summary of the Study

Studies and research on tourism and culture commissioned by UN Tourism

• Tourism and Culture Synergies, 2018
• UN Tourism Study on Tourism and Intangible Cultural Heritage, 2012
• Big Data in Cultural Tourism – Building Sustainability and Enhancing Competitiveness (e-unwto.org)

Outcomes from the UN Tourism Affiliate Members World Expert Meeting on Cultural Tourism, Madrid, Spain, 1–2 December 2022

UN Tourism and the Region of Madrid – through the Regional Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Sports – held the World Expert Meeting on Cultural Tourism in Madrid on 1 and 2 December 2022. The initiative reflects the alliance and common commitment of the two partners to further explore the bond between tourism and culture. This publication is the result of the collaboration and discussion between the experts at the meeting, and subsequent contributions.

Relevant Links

• 3RD UN Tourism/UNESCO WORLD CONFERENCE ON TOURISM AND CULTURE ‘FOR THE BENEFIT OF ALL’

Photo credit of the Summary's cover page:  www.banglanatak.com

Advisory Council on Historic Preservation

Each year, millions of travelers visit America’s historic places. The National Trust for Historic Preservation defines heritage tourism as “traveling to experience the places, artifacts, and activities that authentically represent the stories and people of the past and present.”  A high percentage of domestic and international travelers participate in cultural and/or heritage activities while traveling, and those that do stay longer, spend more, and travel more often. Heritage tourism creates jobs and business opportunities, helps protect resources, and often improves the quality of life for local residents.

The ACHP has encouraged national travel and tourism policies that promote the international marketing of America’s historic sites as tourism destinations. The ACHP also engages in ongoing efforts to build a more inclusive preservation program, reaching out to diverse communities and groups and engaging them in dialogue about what parts of our national legacy should be more fully recognized, preserved, and shared. 

The ACHP developed Preserve America , a national initiative to encourage and support community efforts for the preservation and enjoyment of America’s cultural and natural heritage. In partnership with other federal agencies, the initiative has encouraged the use of historic assets for economic development and community revitalization, as well as enabling people to experience and appreciate local historic resources through heritage tourism and education programs. These goals have been advanced by an Executive Order directing federal agencies to support such efforts, a community designation program, and a recognition program for outstanding stewardship of historic resources by volunteers.

From 2004-2016, over 900 Preserve America Communities   were designated in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and two territories, as well as nearly 60 Preserve America Stewards . Many Preserve America Communities are featured in “Discover Our Shared Heritage” National Register on-line travel itineraries . From 2006 through 2010, the National Park Service (in partnership with the ACHP) awarded more than $21 million in Preserve America Grants   to support sustainable historic resource management strategies, with a focus on heritage tourism. 

These links are being provided as a convenience and for informational purposes only; if they are not ACHP links, they do not constitute an endorsement or an approval by the ACHP of any of the products, services or opinions of the corporation or organization or individual. The ACHP bears no responsibility for the accuracy, legality, or content of the external site or for that of subsequent links. Please contact the external site for answers to questions regarding its content, including its privacy policies.

Related resources.

MyTravelResearch.com

Easy to use market research and marketing tools for the travel and tourism industry.

• How Culture and Heritage Tourism Boosts More Than A Visitor Economy

by Carolyn Childs 43 Comments

Culture and heritage tourism plays a critical role in building the visitor economy and goes even beyond that. A recent survey showed that over 50% of respondents polled agreed that history and culture are strong influences on their choice of holiday destination. 

Culture and heritage tourism is a fast-growing and high-yielding sector

Statistics also indicate that culture and heritage tourism continues to grow rapidly, especially in OECD and APEC regions. We estimate the direct global value of culture and heritage tourism to be well over $1billion dollars, with that of the Asia Pacific region being approximately $327 million.

It is already directly responsible for more than 50 million jobs in APEC countries. And what’s more, the indirect benefits of culture and heritage tourism are thought to be of the order of $1 billion and account for further 75 million jobs across the region. 

There is no denying the fact that culture and heritage tourism tends to attract high-yield tourists. While global figures can be hard to obtain, all available statistics on tourism in various individual markets like the UK, New Zealand, Australia, India , etc. reveal a consistent pattern.

Culture and heritage tourists often stay longer and spend a lot more money in general than other tourists do. In fact, one study showed that a culture and heritage tourist spent as much as 38% higher per day and they stayed 22% longer overall compared to other kinds of travellers.

Taj Mahal, Indian Symbol

Although the statistical evidence doesn’t show consistency regarding repeat visitors, tourism data on United States’ Culture and Heritage visitors indicates that the level of repeat visitation amongst this group of travellers is higher than that of traditional tourists. 

It builds engagement

Culture and heritage tourists usually visit cultural heritage attractions such as historic buildings and other historic attractions; archaeological sites; state, local, or national parks; art galleries or museums; concerts, plays, or musicals; ethnic or ecological heritage sites; and such attractions. These travellers say that these trips are more memorable than conventional holiday trips since they allow them to learn something new.  This focus on learning skills and gain enrichment has been identified by Trendwatching as a core global trend in travel (and links to broader macro trends in consumer needs).

The benefits of culture and heritage tourism are amplified through the economy, so their impact is much wider than just the direct spending levels. As Simon Thurley of English Heritage has shown in his Heritage Cycle, heritage tourism has benefits that extend beyond the solely economic. 

What are the benefits of heritage tourism?

Generally, the benefits of heritage tourism can be categorized into three groups: economic, social, and environmental. As they tend to be the highest focus for destinations and policymakers we have focused on the economic benefits first

Economic Benefits of Cultural and Heritage Tourism

• Injects new money into the economy, boosting businesses and tax revenues 
• Creates new jobs, businesses, events, and attractions, thus helping diversify the local economy 
• Supports small businesses and enables them to expand 
• Promotes the active preservation and protection of important local resources 
• Builds vital relationships among and within local communities
• Helps encourage the development and maintenance of new/existing community amenities 

Social Benefits of Cultural and Heritage Tourism 

• Helps build social capital

• Promotes positive behaviour 
• Helps improve the community’s image and pride
• Promotes community beautification
• Builds opportunities for healthy and useful community relationships and partnerships
• Provides research, education, and work-placement opportunities for students
• Creates enjoyable opportunities for both local residents and visitors attracted to the cultural arts, history, and preservation
• Boosts local investment in heritage resources and amenities that support tourism services 

There is evidence that helping maintain buildings of character culture and heritage tourism can contribute to precincts’ innovation and business diversification.  Small businesses based in amazing buildings are typically innovators and provide a core for other larger businesses.

Environmental Benefits of Cultural and Heritage Tourism 

• Heritage tourism helps encourage a culture of preservation
• Boost awareness of the tourist site, attraction, or area’s significance
• Helps encourage local residents and visitors to be mindful of their impact on the natural and built environment 

 Although there is a risk that this type of tourism can lead to a place being ‘loved to death (think the Taj Mahal or the Sistine Chapel ), properly handled it can provide a reason to invest in things like sewage and water resources in areas. 

So that is why we think Cultural and Heritage Tourism is vital to the visitor economy – and destinations should seek to maximise the opportunities it brings. In future articles, we will be delving more deeply into practical opportunities on how to do that. (If you are an MTR member then you can also access more detailed content via the Members Only HomePage .)

Looking for more Culture and Heritage tourism information? You can check out our blog about defining cultural and heritage tourism and cultural tourism opportunities .

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About Carolyn Childs

Carolyn has spent more than 25 years’ helping businesses achieve their goals by using research and other evidence to guide strategy and planning – mainly in the aviation, travel and tourism fields. She has worked in more than 35 countries on every inhabited continent and brings a detailed understanding of customers and how to connect with them. As well as running her own businesses, she has worked for organisations such as the International Air Transport Association, TNS (the world’s largest custom research company) and the Travel Research Centre.

August 30, 2024 at 7:04 pm

Hi Carolyn,

thank you for this very interesting article. I was wondering, could you perhaps share the source for the study that found out that heritage tourists stay longer and spend more than other kinds of tourists? That would be great!

September 6, 2024 at 4:44 pm

Thanks for the feedback. There are actually a number of studies .. for example https://www.ttf.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/TTF-Cultural-Tourism-2016.pdf https://diasporafordevelopment.eu/draft-heritage-tourism-in-the-digital-era/ https://history.sd.gov/preservation/docs/CHTBenefits.pdf

February 24, 2024 at 12:36 am

Hello, nice article! Really beneficial for my research. Which year was this published please?

September 6, 2024 at 4:50 pm

Eva I originally wrote this article about 8 or 9 years ago. But the reason that it is still on our website and still features so prominently on Google is that the insights it contains are still bang up to date… (actually without boasting too much we find that with a lot of our research)

November 28, 2023 at 7:58 am

Your blog, ‘How Culture and Heritage Tourism Boosts More Than A Visitor Economy,’ brilliantly unveils the multifaceted impact of cultural and heritage tourism. The depth of your analysis and compelling narrative style make this a must-read. It’s a commendable exploration of the broader positive influence that goes beyond economic aspects, showcasing the richness and importance of cultural exploration. Excellent work!

December 22, 2023 at 11:14 am

Thanks Kenny!

June 12, 2023 at 12:00 pm

What are the pros of heritage tourism?

June 12, 2023 at 12:40 pm

We try to outline these in the article but this type of tourism helps us preserve our vital cultural assets, gives communities pride and helps build economic opportunity. You can also find out more at the website of the World Tourism Association for Culture and Heritage and at that of ICOMOS .

Of course you have to do it right! This starts by the community understanding what they have, then deciding what they want to share finally finding visitors who want that.

One challenge is the concept of heritage has some negative connotations in that it can seem ‘fusty’ but by showcasing culture and immersion it becomes incredibly engaging. In our work with SHP we are working to overcome this.

Travellers say that they want to get under the skin of a destination – culture and heritage tourism does just that.

June 17, 2024 at 11:25 pm

‘It can be incredibly engaging’. From my experience in Amsterdam, where we lived for a few months, your answer to Eve is spot on. Living in Haarlem now – where like Amsterdam the cultural heritage is so well preserved – I have been amazed at how many tourists visit this country. I’m not talking about the weed trend, but the museums and similar cultural attractions, and in all the towns, whether Leiden, Alkmaar, Gouda, Utrecht etc. It makes me think of my home South Africa, where people flock to see Cape Town, the Garden Route and our wildlife – the historic tourist attractions – yet authorities ignore our significant cultural and architectural attractions. Old buildings and structures – whether the 1657 castle of Good Hope in CT, or the buildings reflecting Johannesburg’s 19th century gold mining boom, or famous battlefields – are largely left to rot and decay. There is a racial past, and the (university) Fees Must Fall campaign saw statues of significant historical characters pulled down by students who didn’t even grow up in apartheid. Gone forever. Yet they could’ve been used to tell the story of slavery or colonialism, as an example.

September 6, 2024 at 4:48 pm

Angus I think that this is changing. The next World Tourism Association for Culture and Heritage summit will be in South Africa as the country recognises the value of it. It is also strong in some places like Stellenbosch, but I feel that there is so much more that could be told. The statues one is difficult. I feel we do need to update them, but I have sympathy with the anger that propels this. I also feel it is why culture and heritage needs to recognise difficult or contested histories before they build up to that kind of pressure.

November 23, 2022 at 8:58 am

Hello. Thank you for the great blog today. Have a nice day 강남호빠

June 12, 2023 at 12:45 pm

Glad you liked it…

December 30, 2021 at 1:52 am

Thank you for this interesting piece. Can you clarify time frame for stats like this: “We estimate the direct global value of culture and heritage tourism to be well over $1billion dollars, with that of the Asia Pacific region being approximately $327 million.” Is this an annual figure? I am citing your work and want to be sure I am doing so accurately.

October 4, 2022 at 1:57 pm

Dolly it is an annual number. I think this number is now well exceeded though as this has been a huge growth area

October 12, 2021 at 7:49 pm

I would like to know on how can we able to preserve our cultural heritage so as we can ensure imcrease of coming tourists especially to the developing countries, since it has mostly be an obstacle to those nations.

November 29, 2021 at 2:38 pm

I think there is a need to engage your local community and to demonstrate the benefits to them, including opportunities for employment. Community is important as we also need to make sure that the way we promote it benefits the community.

One simple framewok I have seen in Canada is

1) work out what you have. What do you have to share. This doesn’t have to be buildings, intangible culture like cuisine and arts are important to. Audit what you have, collect your stories 2) Agree what you want to share. Agree what you want to share with visitors 3) work out what visitors want. Identify what demand there is for what you have to offer, what customers are interested? then find out about how they book and plan travel (lots of resources in our blog on this) then create a destination management plan (guidance on what to use can be found at https://www.austrade.gov.au/ArticleDocuments/5499/DM_Guide.pdf.aspx ) This will help you work out how and what to do

March 2, 2023 at 12:10 am

we are having different activities that we can do as our culture-heritage but due to financial constrain we get it difficult tp practices such kind of activities to promote our culture and also to act as tourism attraction for other continent .

June 12, 2023 at 12:34 pm

Not all culture and heritage activities have to cost a lot. Community-based tourism generally starts small scale and is built by the community asking what it can do rather. This could be simply opportunities for visitors to meet members of the local community or come for a meal at their homes. Talking to visitors already coming (if any) is a good place to start.

May 6, 2021 at 12:16 pm

Hi that is a question how heritage attractions make global marketing in order to attract more foreign tourists and enhance their popularities all over the world. Is it possible for the heritage attraction make efforts oversea? like participating in exhibition.

June 15, 2021 at 2:00 pm

Hi Cindy we definitely think attractions can promote overseas, but it depends on the attraction and whether it is likely to appeal to individual visitors. Our advice on promotion for an attraction is normally to do so in partnership with their host destination

October 27, 2021 at 6:15 pm

Hie We appreciate what you are doing. We are also trying to come up with a plan to establish a Cultural Heritage and Adventure tourism resort in our rural area in Hwedza. If you are ininterested in helping us please be intouch and will post to pictures of the magnificent sites we wish to show the world. Thank you in advance.

Best Regards Tsungai Maphosa

November 29, 2021 at 2:39 pm

Tsungai … will be in touch soon

April 9, 2021 at 7:55 pm

In which year you published it? I need it for my research paper

August 19, 2021 at 3:59 pm

April 2015… we review it each year and it still holds true and is our most read post!

January 25, 2021 at 5:39 pm

I have a question in what way how leisure helps the tourism industry?

I’m not sure I understand your question. Can you explain a bit more

December 4, 2020 at 5:15 am

I have a question, How to use tourism culture element to attract tourists ?

April 22, 2021 at 11:01 am

It was updated in 2020 but initially published on Apri 18, 2015. We revisit it reqgularly and it still holds true

September 14, 2020 at 8:57 pm

Culture or heritage consumption requires understanding how tourist’ emotions and reasons interacting in experiencing these products to ensure long-term sustainability?

October 12, 2020 at 10:33 am

It does indeed. It also means encouraging the right tourists.

September 13, 2020 at 12:52 am

I have a question explain the economic benefits, social benefits and environmental benefits of heritage tourism. Specify specific examples /situation

October 12, 2020 at 10:31 am

This could honestly be a whole text book Natalia! The three are highly linked as in what brings money in gets valued and what is valued is protected. It is called the heritage cycle. The UK Lottery fund has a report on the value of conserving and adapting heritage buildings that shows they bring in GDP.

August 17, 2020 at 11:50 pm

What are the possible objects of cultural interest that may entice or impact tourist arrivals?

October 12, 2020 at 10:29 am

Krister… the process is a three step one. Identify what you have, Agree with the community what can be shared, identify if there are enough visitors who might be interested and who they are? There isn’t a one size fits all on this.

February 4, 2020 at 11:34 pm

In your own words what are the advantages of heritage tourism and what are the disadvantages or challenges of heritage tourism?

March 3, 2020 at 5:57 pm

Mark Great question. I don’t see any disadvantages if it is managed well. The challenges come when it isn’t developed with local buy on, people fail to plan for tourism and culture together and where you don’t let the story lead. The advantages are almost too numerous to mention: social capital, civic pride, economic benefit, a clear case for protecting assets.

January 19, 2020 at 11:22 am

I have a question how does cultural heritage promotes tourism?

January 24, 2020 at 11:12 am

Cultural heritage provides a compelling reason to visit. As more people have the ability to travel we see that the desire to understand other cultures grows. Cultural heritage often includes compelling human stories and provokes a sense of wonder. Who hasn’t stood in front of the pyramids and ‘gone wow!’?

There is strong supporting evidence. Research on the impact of gaining World Heritage status indicates that it boosts visitation. It’s a way of curating the ‘best of’ that anyone can understand.

July 4, 2019 at 12:37 am

Now, that’s a great question. All places are heritage destinations since all of them have their histories. However, some places are more historically significant than others. In that sense, all travel can be classified as heritage travel.

Attractions can be either heritage attractions or otherwise. In other words, non-heritage attractions like scenery, national parks, nightclubs, safaris, adventure are also reasons why people travel. In this case, heritage has no place.

I would like to ask one question of my own: How important do you think it is for travelers going to heritage destinations, to be acquainted with the history of the place?

September 11, 2019 at 2:18 pm

I am not sure we could police that. Maybe more like encourage it but great interpretation on site can do the same job

December 6, 2018 at 4:47 am

I have a great question if you can answer the question by my email address Does tourism exist without heritage or attraction? if you say yes how? if you say no how?

September 11, 2019 at 2:21 pm

It depends what you mean by an attraction … many holidays are about relaxation. They may include sightseeing, but the classic ‘fly and flop’ holiday is still tourism. We now know that even this type of holiday can help with mental and physical health

September 21, 2019 at 5:40 pm

YES you are absolutely right that tourism has a lot of advantage for health. Tourism is one which bring happiness in our life and enjoy Full moments. even through it we feel something fresh and new observation.

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Cultural Tourism: Definitions, Types, Advantages & Disadvantages, or Stakeholders of Cultural Tourism

Cultural tourism is a rapidly growing segment within the global travel industry, catering to individuals seeking to immerse themselves in local populations’ customs, traditions, and lifestyles. It combines the elements of leisure with an authentic experience of a destination’s unique historical, architectural, artistic, and culinary aspects. As a result, this form of tourism allows travellers to gain a deeper appreciation and understanding of different societies and their cultural characteristics.

In recent years, the demand for cultural tourism has been on the rise as more people are interested in exploring foreign customs and cultural experiences beyond the typical tourist attractions. This trend fosters cross-cultural connections and mutual understanding and creates positive economic and social impacts on local communities. By preserving and showcasing their traditions, local people have the opportunity to generate income and employment while maintaining a sense of pride in their cultural heritage.

With the increasing focus on sustainability and responsible tourism practices, cultural tourism sets itself apart by emphasizing the importance of engaging with local communities, adhering to ethical standards and minimizing negative impacts on the environment. As such, it presents a viable option for tourists who wish to expand their horizons while also contributing positively to the places they visit.

Table of Contents

Understanding cultural tourism.

Cultural tourism is a significant and growing aspect of the global tourism industry. The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO ) defines cultural tourism as the movement of people to cultural attractions away from their normal residence, with the intention of gathering new information and experiences that satisfy their cultural needs. It encompasses various activities undertaken by tourists to explore and experience different cultures, customs, and traditions.

One of the key aspects of cultural tourism is the opportunity it provides visitors to learn and engage with local communities, their history, and their way of life. This tourism is more than just visiting heritage sites or attending cultural events; it involves understanding and experiencing how people from different cultures live, express themselves through art, and maintain their traditions.

Cultural tourism fosters mutual understanding and respect between people from different cultural backgrounds. It encourages dialogue and exchange, breaking down social and cultural barriers and contributing to more tolerant societies. This form of tourism is an essential aspect of sustainable tourism development, as it seeks to preserve precious heritage for future generations while supporting economic growth for local communities.

As the tourism industry continues to grow, the demand for unique and authentic experiences increases. Cultural tourism serves to meet this demand by offering visitors the opportunity to immerse themselves in various cultural settings, fostering a deeper understanding of the world and its diverse cultures.

Importance of Cultural Tourism

Cultural tourism plays a significant role in society as it helps preserve and promote the values, beliefs, traditions, and heritage that define a particular culture. It allows individuals and communities to exhibit unique perspectives on arts, rituals, folklore, music, literature, language, oral traditions, and other cultural elements. Cultural tourism serves as a bridge between societies, aiding in fostering mutual respect, tolerance, and understanding among various cultures.

Economic benefits are also apparent through cultural tourism. Visitors contribute to the local economy, supporting local businesses and sustaining host communities’ cultural products and experiences. By engaging in cultural tourism, visitors gain an authentic understanding of indigenous and local cultures, empowering them to appreciate the rich diversity and uniqueness of the world.

Furthermore, cultural tourism helps preserve cultural heritage, vital for maintaining a sense of identity and continuity for future generations. This preservation and promotion of different cultures provide a sense of pride and belonging for people who are part of those traditions. In turn, this enhances cultural exchange, allowing individuals to learn about other ways of life while appreciating their values and beliefs.

Cultural tourism also supports the sustainability of performing arts and other creative industries. Through various interactions with artists and performers, visitors can develop an appreciation for a wide range of artistic expressions, contributing to the overall vitality of the art world.

Through the development of cultural tourism, a society can showcase its cultural heritage while contributing to its economic prosperity. By embracing the importance of cultural tourism, we can foster a greater understanding, appreciation, and celebration of the rich tapestry of customs, beliefs, and traditions that make up the world’s diverse cultures.

Types of Cultural Tourism

Cultural tourism allows travellers to immerse themselves in the history, heritage, and traditions of different places around the world. This form of tourism can be categorized into several types, each offering a unique way for visitors to experience and appreciate local cultures.

One type of cultural tourism is Historical and Heritage Tourism . This focuses on exploring sites related to a region’s past, such as ancient archaeological sites, monuments, and museums. It can instil a sense of wonder and appreciation for past civilizations’ achievements and teach travellers about the history of the places they visit.

Moving to the artistic side, Arts Tourism highlights the creative aspects of a culture. Tourists visit galleries, theatres, and concerts to experience local art, music, dance, and drama. It allows them to understand different communities’ aesthetic and expressive tendencies, opening their minds to new perspectives and forms of creativity.

Religious and Spiritual Tourism is another common form, where tourists visit religious sites, such as temples, churches, and mosques, or engage in spiritual practices like meditation and yoga. This type of cultural tourism can provide insights into various societies’ belief systems and rituals, fostering understanding and tolerance among people of different faiths.

However, culture isn’t just about history, arts, and religion but also daily life. Ethno and Indigenous Tourism involves tourists visiting and interacting with indigenous communities to learn about their customs, way of life, and unique perspectives on the world. This type of cultural tourism encourages empathy and cross-cultural understanding while emphasising respect for indigenous people’s rights and dignity.

Lastly, Culinary and Agritourism put emphasis on local food and drink traditions, as well as the agricultural practices that underpin them. This type of tourism can include attending food festivals, partaking in cooking classes or workshops, and visiting farms, vineyards, or breweries. Culinary experiences help tourists understand the richness of a region’s flavours and the relationship between local communities and their land and resources.

In summary, cultural tourism comes in various forms, appealing to different interests and tastes. It offers travellers a chance to explore and interact with diverse cultures, fostering connections and understanding among people around the world.

Forms of Cultural Tourism

Cultural tourism offers a wide range of experiences for travellers who seek to immerse themselves in different cultures, traditions, and ways of life. Various forms of cultural tourism cater to different interests and preferences.

Museums and galleries play a significant role in cultural tourism as they showcase a certain location’s history, art, and culture. Examples include art galleries displaying local and international masterpieces and museums featuring exhibits about the history and development of a specific region or theme.

Monuments and historic sites attract cultural tourists interested in exploring the past. Famous landmarks, archaeological sites, and heritage buildings tell the stories of civilizations and cultures that once thrived. UNESCO World Heritage Sites are often at the top of travellers’ lists, representing the world’s most significant cultural and natural heritage.

Architecture as a form of cultural tourism exposes tourists to varying architectural styles and meanings. Walking tours, cityscapes, and visits to iconic buildings provide a deeper understanding of a city’s architectural design’s cultural, social, and political influences.

Festivals and special events are another important aspect of cultural tourism, highlighting a particular community’s local customs and practices. These may include carnivals, parades, performances, traditional dances, and food festivals that provide a unique insight into the cultural identity of a place.

Gastronomy and cuisine play an integral role in the cultural tourism experience, as they allow tourists to savour the flavours and ingredients unique to a location. Local markets, food tours, cooking classes, and traditional restaurants all offer opportunities to appreciate the culinary heritage of a destination.

Shopping for crafts and textiles is a popular form of cultural tourism, as it allows travellers to bring home tangible memories of their journeys. Local artisans may showcase their talents through handmade textiles, pottery, jewellery, and other crafts, reflecting their community’s cultural heritage and artistic expression.

Cultural tourism encompasses diverse experiences, enabling travellers to engage with their chosen destination’s rich history, art, architecture, events, cuisine, and crafts. By exploring these varied aspects, visitors can deepen their understanding and appreciation of the world’s unique cultural landscapes.

Tangible and Intangible Cultural Attractions

Cultural tourism often focuses on two major aspects: tangible and intangible cultural attractions. These attractions shape a destination’s identity, providing depth and context for visitors and facilitating cultural exchange. This section will explore various facets of tangible and intangible attractions, comprehensively understanding their significance and diversity.

Tangible cultural attractions encompass elements of history, arts, and architecture that visitors can physically experience. Notable examples include monuments, visual art, and crafts that showcase local communities’ unique skills and traditions. Such attractions often reflect centuries of evolution and showcase the ingenuity of a region’s inhabitants. By visiting these sites and engaging with these art forms, travellers gain firsthand insights into the cultural heritage of their destination.

On the other hand, intangible cultural attractions comprise the non-material aspects of a culture that contribute to its unique characteristics and traditions. Music, social practices, festive events, and customs are some of the intangible elements that enrich the cultural landscape of a tourist destination. Interaction with local people plays a crucial role in understanding the region’s intangible cultural attractions, as they act as custodians of these traditions and their oral histories.

A dynamic interplay exists between tangible and intangible cultural attractions, creating a vibrant, multi-dimensional experience for tourists. For instance, the physical structure in architectural landmarks represents the tangible aspect, while the stories, legends, and rituals connected to the site contribute to its intangible allure. This symbiotic relationship reflects the essential interdependence between culture’s material and immaterial aspects.

In conclusion, tangible and intangible cultural attractions are indispensable pillars of cultural tourism. They provide an enriching experience for visitors and play a vital role in preserving and promoting a destination’s unique cultural heritage. Both aspects should be regarded with equal importance and cultivated to ensure a comprehensive and engaging experience for travellers seeking to explore a destination’s cultural offerings.

Advantages of Cultural Tourism

Cultural tourism provides a unique opportunity for individuals to immerse themselves in a particular society’s history, traditions, and customs. In doing so, they can develop a deeper understanding and appreciation of the diverse cultures that make up the world.

One significant advantage of cultural tourism is its potential to boost local economies. Tourist expenditures in local businesses such as hotels , restaurants, and shops can contribute to the growth and development of a region. Additionally, cultural tourism can create jobs, especially for local artisans, performers, and guides who offer authentic cultural experiences to visitors.

Another benefit of cultural tourism is the preservation and revitalization of cultural heritage. By attracting tourists interested in learning about and experiencing different traditions, communities are encouraged to preserve and maintain their cultural assets, such as historic sites, museums, and festivals. This helps ensure that future generations can continue to enjoy and learn from these valuable resources.

Cultural tourism also fosters cross-cultural understanding and appreciation. As people engage with diverse cultures, they may develop a broader perspective and a greater respect for cultural differences. This can lead to increased tolerance and harmony among different societies.

However, it is important to be aware of the potential disadvantages of cultural tourism. For instance, there may be issues related to overcrowding, environmental impact, or the commodification of cultural traditions. This makes it crucial to manage cultural tourism responsibly, ensuring it benefits both the tourists and the host communities.

Disadvantages of Cultural Tourism

Cultural tourism has gained popularity in recent years, drawing visitors from around the globe to experience and appreciate diverse cultures. However, this type of tourism also brings several disadvantages that must be considered.

One significant drawback of cultural tourism is the potential for commodification of cultures. As communities open their doors to tourists, they risk losing the authenticity and uniqueness of their cultural identity. Traditional practices and artefacts may be tailored to appeal to the tourist market, diluting their cultural significance.

Moreover, cultural tourism can put pressure on resources and spaces used by local communities. The influx of tourists may lead to overcrowding and increased competition for essential amenities. This could negatively impact the quality of life for local residents and strain the available infrastructure.

Another issue is the potential for environmental degradation resulting from cultural tourism. Some tourist activities may involve access to sensitive natural areas, leading to erosion, pollution, or disturbance of wildlife habitats. The construction of tourist facilities and infrastructure can also threaten the environment.

Lastly, cultural tourism can contribute to the unequal distribution of economic benefits. While some members of the community may profit from tourism-related businesses, others may not be able to participate in or benefit from these enterprises. This could exaggerate income disparities and create economic imbalances within communities.

In conclusion, despite cultural tourism’s numerous benefits to travellers and host communities, it is crucial to acknowledge and address its potential negative aspects. To ensure the long-term success of cultural tourism, policies and practices must be implemented that prioritize the protection of cultural and environmental resources and promote equitable distribution of economic benefits.

Cultural Tourism Destinations

Cultural tourism is a popular type of travel that allows visitors to immerse themselves in various destinations’ history, heritage, and traditions. Throughout the world, numerous places provide rich cultural experiences for travellers. Here, we explore a few notable cultural tourism destinations.

China is a vast and diverse country with a history dating back thousands of years. One can explore the architectural wonders of the Great Wall, the Terracotta Army in Xi’an, or the magnificent Forbidden City in Beijing. Visiting local markets and trying traditional cuisine also adds to the cultural experience in China.

India is another top destination for cultural tourism, offering many historical sites and vibrant traditions. The Taj Mahal in Agra, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is a must-see with its iconic marble mausoleum. Another popular destination is Rajasthan , where the colourful cities and the royal palaces, such as the spectacular City Palace of Jaipur, offer a glimpse into the past.

France , specifically Paris , provides visitors with rich art, architecture, and cuisine. Iconic sites such as the Louvre, Notre Dame Cathedral, and the Eiffel Tower showcase the country’s artistic and architectural achievements throughout history.

Similarly, Spain is renowned for its rich cultural heritage with attractions such as the Alhambra in Granada, the Park Güell in Barcelona, designed by Gaudí, and the Prado Museum in Madrid.

Turkey , especially Istanbul , offers an intricate blend of European and Asian influences, with historic sites such as the Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, and the Topkapı Palace. Moreover, the open-air bazaars and Turkish baths deliver an authentic cultural experience.

Italy , the birthplace of the Renaissance, is brimming with artistic and architectural masterpieces. Cities like Rome, Florence, and Venice are steeped in history, allowing visitors to marvel at landmarks like the Colosseum, St. Peter’s Basilica, or the Uffizi Gallery.

The beautiful island of Bali in Indonesia is known for its lush landscapes, Hindu temples, and vibrant arts scene, making it an excellent location for immersing oneself in the culture of the region.

Uzbekistan has gained attention recently as tourism grows along the Silk Road route. Visitors can admire the stunning architecture and mosaics of cities such as Samarkand, Bukhara, and Khiva, which capture the rich heritage of the ancient trading route.

In conclusion, cultural tourism invites travellers to explore fascinating destinations across the globe. While each location offers unique experiences, they provide a deeper understanding of human history, traditions, and heritage.

Stakeholders of Cultural Tourism

Cultural tourism is a multi-faceted industry that brings value to travellers in search of authentic experiences and to a myriad of stakeholders. From local communities to government bodies and from small businesses to environmental conservation efforts, cultural tourism can shape economies and lifestyles in both positive and negative ways. This guide delves into the key stakeholders in the cultural tourism sector, exploring their roles, impacts, and interconnected interests.

Tourists: The Heart of the Industry

Arguably, tourists are the backbone of cultural tourism. Whether they are history enthusiasts seeking out ancient ruins or gastronomes on the hunt for authentic local cuisine, tourists drive demand and shape the landscape of the tourism industry. They often seek enriching experiences that can offer a deep understanding of local cultures.

Local Communities: The Soul of the Destination

Local communities provide the lived experience that many cultural tourists seek. These people preserve the traditions, language, and heritage sites that form the basis of cultural tourism. Unfortunately, they can also bear the brunt of poorly managed tourism through cultural commodification and environmental degradation.

Government Bodies: The Framework Providers

Local and national governments play an instrumental role in regulating and promoting cultural tourism. They invest in infrastructure, enforce zoning laws, and facilitate public services like safety and sanitation that are vital to the tourism industry.

Tourism Boards and Agencies: The Promoters

Tourism boards, often funded by governments, are responsible for marketing a destination’s cultural assets to the world. These bodies work closely with other stakeholders to develop tourism packages, advertise local attractions, and even set guidelines for responsible tourism.

Tour Operators and Travel Agents: The Experience Curators

Specializing in delivering personalized experiences, these businesses are intermediaries between tourists and destinations. They can make or break the quality of the cultural tourism experience through their choices of local partnerships, itineraries, and guides.

Cultural Institutions: The Keepers of Heritage

Museums, art galleries, and historical sites are essential touchpoints for cultural tourists. They collaborate closely with various stakeholders to ensure that cultural assets are preserved and made accessible to the public.

Artisans and Performers: The Artistic Impressions

Artisans and performers add texture to the cultural fabric of a destination. These stakeholders benefit from increased visibility and economic opportunities , providing tourists a gateway to the authentic local culture.

Small Business Owners: The Local Economy Boosters

From restaurants and cafes to souvenir shops, small businesses see a surge in revenue when cultural tourism is thriving. They form a vital part of the local economy, providing services that enrich the tourist experience.

Academics and Researchers: The Thought Leaders

Cultural tourism is a field ripe for academic inquiry, touching upon anthropology, economics, and sociology disciplines. Research in this area can help shape policies that benefit tourists and local communities.

NGOs: The Advocates of Sustainability

Organizations that focus on cultural or environmental conservation often align with the interests of responsible cultural tourism. They act as watchdogs and advocates, ensuring that tourism practices are sustainable and ethical.

Real Estate Developers: The Infrastructure Builders

Though not directly related to the culture, real estate is essential in accommodating the influx of tourists, especially in booming destinations. They must balance business interests with responsible development.

Media: The Influencers

Media outlets, including travel bloggers and journalists, have a significant role in shaping public perception of a destination. Their storytelling can amplify the benefits or expose the pitfalls of cultural tourism.

The Environment: The Unspoken Stakeholder

Although not a traditional “stakeholder,” the environment stands to be significantly affected by tourism activities. Sustainable practices must be adopted to preserve the natural and cultural landscapes that attract visitors in the first place.

Understanding the intricate web of stakeholders in cultural tourism is the first step in creating an industry that benefits all. As cultural tourism evolves, stakeholders must actively dialogue to ensure sustainable and enriching experiences for everyone involved.

Cultural Tourism Experience

Cultural tourism experiences provide a unique opportunity for travellers to immerse themselves in the local culture, customs, and traditions of the places they visit. These immersive travel experiences enable tourists to understand the heritage and identity of the communities they encounter.

One popular way to experience cultural tourism is through homestays. These accommodations offer the chance to live with a local family, providing a firsthand glimpse into their daily lives and customs. The cultural exchange within a homestay environment can be transformative, offering insights that would otherwise remain veiled during a typical sightseeing vacation.

Another important aspect of cultural tourism is engaging with the local communities, participating in their events and festivals, and learning about their history and heritage through interactions with the people there. These experiences enable travellers to connect meaningfully with locals, fostering mutual appreciation and understanding of different cultures.

Cultural experiences often focus on different dimensions, such as:

• Arts and crafts: Exploring local artisans’ craftsmanship and heritage by visiting workshops, galleries, and markets.
• Cuisine: Sampling regional culinary specialities can offer a taste of local culture, traditions, and history.
• Religious sites: Visiting places of worship offers insight into the spiritual beliefs and practices of the area.
• Performing arts: Engaging with local music, dance, and theatre performances can reveal unique cultural perspectives and expressions.

Cultural tourism emphasizes responsible travel and encourages visitors to respect and appreciate the local customs, traditions, and the natural environment while exploring new destinations. Tourists can create unforgettable memories by connecting with people from different backgrounds and gaining a deeper understanding of their practices and values, fostering greater global empathy and cultural appreciation.

From Cultural Heritage to Cultural Tourism: A Historical-Conceptual Approach

• First Online: 05 October 2023

Cite this chapter

• Pedro Vaz Serra   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-9625-3827 7 , 8 ,
• Cláudia Seabra   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-8496-0986 7 , 8 &
• Ana Caldeira   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-5712-0324 7 , 8  

Part of the book series: Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies ((SIST,volume 345))

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Cultural heritage, with its uses and meanings, derives from the dynamics of society, the time, and circumstances in which it is inserted and involved, how and where it is interpreted. Over the last few decades, important documents have been published in favor of the preservation of cultural heritage, calling for its regulation and sustainability, as well as alluding to the interrelationship between tourism and heritage, namely to historical assets requalified for tourist purposes. The link between culture and tourism, founding cultural tourism, enhances the cultural content of the space, the tourist experience, and identity differentiation, in an increasingly fragmented and competitive environment. A historical-conceptual approach identified with the dynamics of cultural heritage and cultural tourism is proposed, highlighting their mutual dependence as a resource and a product. Our objective, through a literature review, is to contribute to the definition of the timeline associated with these important concepts, structural for tourism, as a system.

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Acknowledgements

This research received support from the Centre of Studies in Geography and Spatial Planning (CEGOT), funded by national funds through the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the reference UIDB/04084/2020 and, also by FCT, financed by Portuguese and European funds, under the reference UI/BD/154288/2022.

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Vaz Serra, P., Seabra, C., Caldeira, A. (2023). From Cultural Heritage to Cultural Tourism: A Historical-Conceptual Approach. In: Carvalho, J.V., Abreu, A., Liberato, P., Peña, A. (eds) Advances in Tourism, Technology and Systems. Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies, vol 345. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-0337-5_8

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Heritage Tourism

The late Alan Gordon was professor of history at the University of Guelph. He authored three books: Making Public Pasts: The Contested Terrain of Montreal’s Public Memories, 1891–1930, The Hero and the Historians: Historiography and the Uses of Jacques Cartier and Time Travel: Tourism and the Rise of the Living History Museum in Mid-Twentieth Century Canada.

• Published: 18 August 2022
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Heritage tourism is a form of cultural tourism in which people travel to experience places, artifacts, or activities that are believed to be authentic representations of people and stories from the past. It couples heritage, a way of imagining the past in terms that suit the values of the present, with travel to locations associated with enshrined heritage values. Heritage tourism sites are normally divided into two often overlapping categories: natural sites and sites related to human culture and history. By exploring the construction of heritage tourism destinations in historical context, we can better understand how and through what attributes places become designated as sites of heritage and what it means to have an authentic heritage experience. These questions are explored through heritage landscapes, national parks, battlefield tourism, architectural tourism, and the concept of world heritage.

Heritage is one of the most difficult, complex, and expansive words in the English language because there is no simple or unanimously accepted understanding of what heritage encompasses. 1 We can pair heritage with a vast range of adjectives, such as cultural, historical, physical, architectural, or natural. What unites these different uses of the term is their reference to the past, in some way or another, while linking it to present-day needs. Heritage, then, is a reimagining of the past in terms that suit the values of the present. It cannot exist independently of human attempts to make the past usable because it is the product of human interpretation of not only the past, but of who belongs to particular historical narratives. At its base, heritage is about identity, and the inclusion and exclusion of peoples, stories, places, and activities in those identities. The use of the word “heritage” in this context is a postwar phenomenon. Heritage and heritage tourism, although not described in these terms, has a history as long as the history of modern tourism. Indeed, a present-minded use of the past is as old as civilization itself, and naturally embedded itself in the development of modern tourism. 2 The exploration of that history, examining the origins and development of heritage tourism, helps unpack some of the controversies and dissonance it produces.

Heritage in Tourism

Heritage tourism sites are normally divided into two categories: natural sites and sites of human, historical, or cultural heritage. the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) separates its list of world heritage sites in this manner. Sites of natural heritage are understood to be places where natural phenomena such as wildlife, flora, geological features, or ecosystems, are generally deemed to be of exceptional beauty or significance. Cultural heritage sites, which represent over three quarters of UNESCO-recognized sites, are places where human activity has left a lasting and substantial physical impact that reveals important features of a culture or cultures. Despite the apparent simplicity of this division, it is not always easy to categorize individual sites. UNESCO thus allows for a category of “mixed” heritage sites. But official recognition is not necessary to mark a place as a heritage destination and, moreover, some authors point to versions of heritage tourism that are not tightly place-specific, such as festivals of traditional performances or foodways. 3

The central questions at the heart of heritage tourism ask what it is that designates something as “heritage” and whether tourists have an “authentic” heritage experience there. At its simplest, heritage tourism is a form of cultural tourism in which people travel to experience places, artifacts, or activities that are authentic representations of people and stories from the past. Yet this definition encompasses two, often competing, motivations. Heritage tourism is both a cultural phenomenon through which people attempt to connect with the past, their ancestors, and their identity, and it is an industry designed to profit from it. Another question surrounds the source of the “heritage” in heritage tourism. Many scholars have argued that heritage does not live in the destinations or attractions people seek. Heritage is not innate to the destination, but is rather based on the tourist’s motivations and expectations. Thus, heritage tourism is a form of tourism in which the main motivation for visiting a site is based on the traveler’s perceptions of its heritage characteristics. Following the logic of this view, the authenticity of the heritage experience depends on the traveler rather than the destination or the activity. Heritage features, as well as the sense of authenticity they impart, are democratized in what might be called a consumer-based model of authenticity. 4 This is a model that allows for virtually anything or any place to be a heritage destination. Although such an approach to understanding heritage tourism may well serve present-day studies, measuring motivations is more complicated for historical subjects. Long-departed travelers are not readily surveyed about their expectations; motivations have to be teased out of historical records. In a contrasting view, John Tunbridge and Gregory Ashworth argue that heritage attractions are created through marketing: they are invented to be heritage attractions and sold to a traveling public as such. Yet, heritage attractions, in this understanding, are still deemed authentic when they satisfy consumer expectations about heritage. 5 This insight also implies that heritage tourism destinations might be deceptions, and certainly there are examples of the fabrication of heritage sites. However, if motivations and expectations are arbiters of heritage, then even invented heritage can become authentic through its acceptance by a public. While not ignoring the motivations and expectations of travelers, for historians, any understanding of heritage tourism must include the process by which sites become designated as a places of heritage. It must encompass the economic aspects of tourism development, tourism’s role in constructing narratives of national or group identity, and the cultural phenomenon of seeking authentic representations of those identities, regardless of their origins. Such a practice might include traveling to sites connected to diasporas, places of historical significance, sites of religious pilgrimages, and landscapes of scenic beauty or cultural importance.

Scholarly interest in heritage, at least in the English-speaking world, dates from the 1980s reaction to the emergence of new right-wing political movements that used the past as a tool to legitimize political positions. Authors such as David Lowenthal, Robert Hewison, and Patrick Wright bemoaned the recourse to “heritage” as evidence of a failing society that was backward-looking, fearful, and resentful of modern diversity. 6 Heritage, they proclaimed, was elitist and innately conservative, imposed on the people from above in ways that distanced them from an authentic historical consciousness. Although Raphael Samuel fired back that the critique of heritage was itself elitist and almost snobbish, this line continued in the 1990s. Works by John Gillis, Tony Bennett, and Eric Hobsbawm, among others, concurred that heritage was little more than simplified history used as a weapon of social and political control.

At about the same time, historians also began to take tourism seriously as a subject of inquiry, and they quickly connected leisure travel to perceived evils in the heritage industry. Historians such as John K. Walton in the United Kingdom and John Jakle in the United States began investigating patterns of tourism’s history in their respective countries. Although not explicitly concerned with heritage tourism, works such as Jakle’s The Tourist explored the infrastructure and experience of leisure travel in America, including the different types of attractions people sought. 7 In Sacred Places , John Sears argued that tourism helped define America in the nineteenth century through its landscape and natural wonders. Natural tourist attractions, such as Yosemite and Yellowstone parks became sacred places for a young nation without unifying religious and national shrines. 8 Among North America’s first heritage destinations was Niagara Falls, which drew Americans, Europeans, Britons, and Canadians to marvel at its beauty and power. Tourist services quickly developed there to accommodate travelers and, as Patricia Jasen and others note, Niagara became a North American heritage destination at the birth of the continent’s tourism trade. 9

As the European and North American travel business set about establishing scenic landscapes as sites worthy of the expense and difficulty of travel to them, they rarely used a rhetoric of heritage. Sites were depicted as places to embrace “the sublime,” a feeling arising when the emotional experience overwhelms the power of reason to articulate it. Yet as modern tourism developed, promoters required more varied attractions to induce travelers to visit specific destinations. North America’s first tourist circuits, well established by the 1820s, took travelers up the Hudson River valley from New York to the spas of Saratoga Springs, then utilizing the Erie Canal even before its completion, west to Niagara Falls. Tourist guidebooks were replete with vivid depictions of the natural wonders to be witnessed, and very quickly Niagara became heavily commercialized. As America expanded beyond the Midwest in the second half of the nineteenth century, text and image combined to produce a sense that these beautiful landscapes were a common inheritance of the (white and middle-class) American people. Commissioned expeditions, such as the Powell Expedition of 1869–1872, produced best-selling travel narratives revealing the American landscape to enthralled readers in the eastern cities (see Butler , this volume). John Wesley Powell’s description of his voyage along the Colorado River combined over 450 pages of written description with 80 prints, mostly portraying spectacular natural features. American westward exploration, then, construed the continent’s natural wonders as its heritage.

In America, heritage landscapes often obscured human activity and imagined the continent as nature untouched. But natural heritage also played a role in early heritage tourism in Britain and Europe. Many scholars have investigated the connection between national character and the depiction of topographical features, arguing that people often implant their communities with ideas of landscape and associate geographical features with their identities. In this way, landscape helps embed a connection between places and particular local and ethnic identities. 10 Idealized landscapes become markers of national identity (see Noack , this volume). For instance, in the Romantic era, the English Lake District and the mountains of the Scottish Highlands became iconic national representations of English, Scottish, or British nationalities. David Lowenthal has commented on the nostalgia inherent in “landscape-as-heritage.” The archetypical English landscape, a patchwork of fields divided by hedgerows and sprinkled with villages, was a relatively recent construction when the pre-Raphaelite painters reconfigured it as the romantic allure of a medieval England. It spoke to the stability and order inherent in English character. 11

Travel literature combined with landscape art to develop heritage landscapes and promote them as tourist attractions. Following the 1707 Act of Union, English tourists became fascinated with Scotland, and in particular the Scottish Highlands. Tourist guidebooks portrayed the Highlands as a harsh, bleak environment spectacular for its beauty as well as the quaintness of its people and their customs (see Schaff , this volume). Over the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, tourist texts cemented the image of Highland culture and heritage. Scholars have criticized this process as a “Tartanization” or “Balmoralization” of the country by which its landscape and culture was reduced to a few stereotypes appealing to foreign visitors. Nevertheless, guidebook texts described the bens, lochs, and glens with detail, helping create and reinforce a mental picture of a quintessential Highland landscape. 12 The massacre of members of the Clan MacDonald at Glencoe, killed on a winter night in 1692 for insufficient loyalty to the monarchy, added romance. Forgotten for over a century, the event was recalled in the mid-nineteenth century by the historian Thomas Babington Macaulay, and quickly became a tragic tale associated with the scenic valley. At the same time the Highlands were being re-coded from a dangerous to a sublime landscape, its inhabitants became romanticized as an untainted, simple, premodern culture. The natural beauty of the landscape at Glencoe and its relative ease of access, being close to Loch Lomond and Glasgow, made it an attraction with a ready-made tragic tale. Highlands travel guides began to include Glencoe in their itineraries, combining a site of natural beauty with a haunting human past. Both natural and cultural heritage, then, are not inherent, but represent choices made by people about what and how to value the land and the past. On France’s Celtic fringe, a similar process unfolded. When modern tourism developed in Brittany in the mid-nineteenth century, guidebooks such as Joanne’s defined the terms of an authentic Breton experience. Joanne’s 1867 guide coupled the region’s characteristic rugged coastlines with the supposedly backward people, their costumes, habitudes, beliefs, and superstitions, who inhabited it. 13 Travel guides were thus the first contributors in the construction of heritage destinations. They began to highlight the history, real and imagined, of destinations to promote their distinctions. And, with increasing interest in the sites of national heritage, people organized to catalog, preserve, and promote heritage destinations.

Organizing Heritage Tourism

Among the world’s first bodies dedicated to preserving heritage was the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB), organized in England in 1877. Emerging as a result of particular debates about architectural practices, this society opposed a then-popular trend of altering buildings to produce imaginary historical forms. This approach, which was most famously connected to Eugène-Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc’s French restorations, involved removing or replacing existing architectural features, something renounced by the SPAB. The society’s manifesto declared that old structures should be repaired so that their entire history would be protected as part of cultural heritage. The first heritage preservation legislation, England’s Ancient Monuments Protection Act of 1882, provided for the protection initially of 68 prehistoric sites and appointed an inspector of ancient monuments. 14 By 1895, movements to conserve historic structures and landscapes had combined with the founding of the National Trust, officially known as the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, as a charitable agency. Much of the Trust’s early effort protected landscapes: of twenty-nine properties listed in 1907, seventeen were acreages of land and other open spaces. 15 Over the twentieth century, however, the Trust grew more and more concerned with protecting country houses and gardens, which now constitute the majority of its listed properties.

British efforts were duplicated in Europe. The Dutch Society for the Preservation of Natural Landmarks was established in 1904; France passed legislation to protect natural monuments in 1906. And in Sweden, the Society for the Protection of Nature was established in 1909, to name only a few examples. Nature was often connected to the spirit of “the folk,” an idea that encompassed a notion of an original ethnic core to the nation. Various European nationalisms of the period embraced the idea of an “authentic” national folk, with each folk considered unique due to its connection with a specific geography. Folklore and the celebration of folk culture offered Europeans links to imagined national heritages in a rapidly modernizing world, as modern, middle-class Europeans turned their attention to the romanticized primitive life of so-called simple peasants and linked notions of natural and human heritage. Through the concept of the folk, natural and human heritage combined to buttress emerging expressions of nationalism. 16

Sweden provides an instructive example. As early as the seventeenth century, Swedish antiquarians were intrigued by medieval rune stones, burial mounds, and cairns strewn across the country, but also saw these connected to natural features. Investigations of these relics of past Nordic culture involved a sense of the landscape in which they were found. This interest accelerated as folk studies grew in popularity, in part connected to nationalist political ambitions of Swedes during the growing tensions within the Kingdom of Sweden and Norway, which divided in 1905. Sweden’s preservation law required research into the country’s natural resources to create an inventory of places. Of particular interest were features considered to be “nature in its original state.” The intent was to preserve for future generations at least one example of Sweden’s primordial landscape features: primeval forests, swamps, peat bogs, and boulders. But interest was also drawn to natural landmarks associated with historical or mythical events from Sweden’s past. Stones or trees related to tales from the Nordic sagas, for example, combined natural with cultural heritage. 17

Although early efforts to protect heritage sites were not intended to support tourism, the industry quickly benefited. Alongside expanding tours to the Scottish Highlands and English Lake District, European landscapes became associated with leisure travel. As Tait Kellar argues for one example, the context of the landscape is crucial in understanding the role of tourism in the German Alps. 18 Guidebooks of the nineteenth and early twentieth century did not use the term “heritage,” but they described its tenets to audiences employing a different vocabulary. Baedeker’s travel guides, such as The Eastern Alps , guided bourgeois travelers through the hiking trails and vistas of the mountains and foothills, offering enticing descriptions of the pleasures to be found in the German landscape. Beyond the land, The Eastern Alps directed visitors to excursions that revealed features of natural history, human history, and local German cultures. 19

Across the Atlantic people also cherished escapes to the countryside for leisure and recreation and, as economic and population growth increasingly seemed to threaten the idyllic tranquility of scenic places, many banded together to advocate for their conservation. Yet, ironically, by putting in place systems to mark and preserve America’s natural heritage, conservationists popularized protected sites as tourist destinations. By the second half of the nineteenth century, the conservation movement encouraged the US government to set aside massive areas of American land as parks. For example, Europeans first encountered the scenic beauty of California’s Yosemite Valley at midcentury. With increasing settler populations following the California Gold Rush, tourists began arriving in ever larger numbers and promoters began building accommodations and roads to encourage them. Even during the Civil War, the US government recognized the potential for commercial overdevelopment and the desire of many to preserve America’s most scenic places. 20 In 1864, President Abraham Lincoln signed the Yosemite Grant, designating acres of the valley protected wilderness. This set a precedent for the later creation of America’s first national park. In 1871, the Hayden Geological Survey recommended the preservation of nearly 3,500 square miles of land in the Rocky Mountains, in the territories of Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho. Ferdinand V. Hayden was concerned that the pristine mountain region might soon be as overrun with tourists as Niagara Falls had by then become. 21 The following year, Congress established Yellowstone National Park, the world’s first designated “heritage” site. Yet, from the beginning, Yellowstone and subsequent parks were assumed to be tourist attractions. By 1879, tourists to Yellowstone had established over 200 miles of trails that led them to the park’s most famous attractions. Although thought of as nature preserves, parks were often furnished with railway access, and amenities and accommodations appeared, often prior to official designation. National parks were immediately popular tourist attractions. Even before it had established a centralized bureaucracy to care for them, the United States government had established nine national parks and nearly two dozen national monuments. Canada lagged, but established Rocky Mountain National Park (now Banff) in 1885 to balance interests of resource extraction and conservation. (The world’s second national park was Australia’s Royal National Park, established by the colony of New South Wales in 1879.) By the outbreak of the Great War, Canada and the United States had established fifteen national parks, all but one west of the Mississippi River.

Establishing parks was one component of building a heritage tourism infrastructure. Another was the creation of a national bureaucracy to organize it. The Canadian example reveals how heritage and tourism drove the creation of a national parks service. Much of the mythology surrounding Canada’s national parks emphasized the role of nature preservationists, yet the founder of the parks system, J. B. Harkin, was deeply interested in building a parks network for tourists. 22 Indeed, from early in the twentieth century, Canada’s parks system operated on the principle that parks should be “playgrounds, vacation destinations, and roadside attractions that might simultaneously preserve the fading scenic beauty and wildlife populations” of a modernizing nation. 23 Although Canada had established four national parks in the Rocky Mountains in the 1880s, the administration of those parks was haphazard and decentralized. It was not until the approaching third centennial of the founding of Quebec City (now a UNESCO World Heritage Site) that the Canadian government began thinking actively about administering its national heritage. In 1908, Canada hosted an international tourist festival on the Plains of Abraham, the celebrated open land where French and British armies had fought the decisive battle for supremacy in North America in 1759. The event so popularized the fabled battlefield that the government was compelled to create a National Battlefield Commission to safeguard it. This inspired the creation of the Dominion Parks Branch three years later to manage Canada’s natural heritage parks, the world’s first national parks service. By 1919 the system expanded to include human history—or at least European settler history—through the creation of national historic parks. These parks were even more explicitly designed to attract tourists, automobile tourists in particular. In 1916, five years after Canada, the United States established the National Parks Service with similar objectives.

As in Europe, nationalism played a significant role in developing heritage tourism destinations in America. The first national parks were inspired by the series of American surveying expeditions intended to secure knowledge of the landscape for political control. Stephen Pyne connects the American “discovery” of the Grand Canyon, for example, to notions of manifest destiny following the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848) that ended the Mexican-American War and ceded over 500,000 square miles of what is today the western United States. Popularized by the report of John Wesley Powell (1875) , the canyon began attracting tourists in the 1880s, although Congress failed to establish it as a national park. 24 Tourism was central to developing the Grand Canyon as a national heritage destination. Originally seen by Spanish explorers as an obstacle, and as a sacred place by the Navajo, Hopi, Hualapai, and Havasupai peoples, the canyon came to mark American exceptionalism. Piece by piece, sections of the canyon were set aside as reserves and finally declared a national park in 1919. By then, the park had been serviced by a railway (since 1901) and offered tourists a luxury hotel on the canyon’s south rim.

Archaeology also entered into the construction of American heritage. Almost as soon as it was annexed to the United States, the American southwest revealed to American surveyors a host of archaeological remains. For residents of the southwest, the discovery of these ancient ruins of unknown age pointed to the nobility of a lost predecessor civilization. By deliberately construing the ruins as being of an unknown age, Anglo-American settlers were able to draw distinctions between the ancients and contemporary Native Americans in ways that validated their own occupation of the territory. The ruins also had commercial potential. In Colorado, President Theodore Roosevelt established Mesa Verde National Park in 1906 to protect and capitalize on the abandoned cliff dwellings located there. These ruins had been rediscovered in the 1880s when ranchers learned of them from the local Ute people. By the turn of the century, the ruins had attracted so many treasure seekers that they needed protection. This was the first national park in America designated to protect a site of archaeological significance and linked natural and human heritage in the national parks system. 25

If, as many argue, heritage is not innate, how is it made? Part of the answer to this question can be found in the business of tourism. Commercial exploitation of heritage tourism emerged alongside heritage tourism, but was particularly active in the postwar years. Given their association with tourism, it is not surprising that railways and associated businesses played a prominent role in promoting heritage destinations. Before World War II, the most active heritage tourism promoter was likely the Fred Harvey Company, which successfully marketed, and to a great degree created, much of the heritage of the American southwest. The Fred Harvey Company originated with the opening of a pair of cafés along the Kansas Pacific Railway in 1876. After a stuttering beginning, Harvey’s chain of railway eateries grew in size. Before dining cars became regular features of passenger trains, meals on long-distance trips were provided by outside business such as Harvey’s at regular stops. With the backing of the Santa Fe Railroad, the company also developed attractions based on the Southwest region’s unique architectural and cultural features. The image capitalized on the artistic traditions of Native Americans and early Spanish traditions to create, in particular, the Adobe architectural style now associated with Santa Fe and New Mexico. 26 These designs were also incorporated into tourist facilities on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, including the El Tovar hotel and the Hopi House souvenir and concession complex, designed to resemble a Hopi pueblo.

Relying on existing and manufactured heritage sites, North American railways popularized attractions as heritage sites. The Northern Pacific Railroad financed a number of hotels in Yellowstone Park, including the Old Faithful Inn in 1904. In 1910, the Great Northern Railroad launched its “See America First” campaign to attract visitors (and new investments) to its routes to the west’s national parks. In Canada, the Dominion Atlantic Railway rebuilt Grand Pré, a Nova Scotia Acadian settlement to evoke the home of the likely fictional character Evangeline from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s 1848 poem by the same name. In the poem, Evangeline was deported from Acadia in 1755 and separated from her betrothed. By the 1920s, the railway was transporting tourists to Grand Pré, christened “Land of Evangeline,” where reproductions stood in for sites mentioned in the poem. 27 However, following World War I, heritage tourism in North America became increasingly dependent on automobile travel and the Dominion Atlantic eventually sold its interest to the Canadian government.

Conflict as Cultural Heritage

Tourism to sites of military history initially involved side trips from more popular, usually natural, attractions. Thomas Chambers notes that the sites of battles of the Seven Years’ War, Revolutionary War, and War of 1812 became tourist attractions as side trips from more established itineraries, such as the northern or fashionable tours. War of 1812 battlefields, many of them in the Niagara theater of the war, were conveniently close to the natural wonders people already came to see. By visiting the places where so many had sacrificed for their country, tourists began attaching new meaning to the sites. Ease of access was essential. Chambers contrasts sites in southern states with those in the north. In the south, the fields of important American Revolution victories at Cowpens and King’s Mountain were too remote to permit easy tourist access and long remained undeveloped. 28 In a contrary example, the Plains of Abraham, the scene of General Wolfe’s dramatic victory over France that led to the Conquest of Canada, was at first a curiosity. The visit to Quebec, a main destination on the northern tour, was originally based on its role as a major port and the attraction of the scenic beauty of the city on the cliffs, compared favorably to Cintra in Portugal. 29 Ease of access helped promoters convert an empty field near the city into the “hallowed Plains.”

Access to battlefields increased at almost the exact moment that one of the nineteenth century’s most devastating wars, the American Civil War, broke out. Railway travel was essential to both the success of the Union Army in reconquering the rebelling Confederacy, and in developing tourism to the sites of the slaughter. Railway travel made sites accessible for urban travelers and new technologies, such as photography and the telegraph, sped news of victories and defeats quickly around the nation. Gettysburg, the scene of a crucial Union victory in July 1863, became a tourist attraction only a few days later. Few would call the farmland of southeastern Pennsylvania sublime, but dramatic human history had unfolded there. The battle inspired the building of a national memorial on the site only four months later, the Soldiers’ National Cemetery. At the inauguration of the cemetery Abraham Lincoln delivered his “Gettysburg Address,” calling on the nation to long remember and cherish the “hallowed ground” where history had been made.

Gettysburg sparked a frenzy of marking sites of Civil War battles and events. Battle sites became important backdrops for political efforts at reunion and reconciliation after the war and attracted hundreds and later thousands of tourists for commemorative events and celebrations. Ten thousand saw President Rutherford Hayes speak at Gettysburg in 1878 and, for the 50th anniversary of Gettysburg, some 55,000 veterans returned to Pennsylvania in July 1913. What had once been a site of bloody, brutal combat had been transformed into a destination where tourists gathered to embrace their shared heritage, north and south. As the years progressed, more attractions were added as tourists began to see their heritage on the battlefield. 30

The conflict that most clearly created tourist attractions out of places of suffering was the World War I. Soon after the war ended, its sites of slaughter also became tourist attractions. As with the Civil War in America, World War I tourists were local people and relatives of the soldiers who had perished on the field of battle. By one estimate 60,000 tourists visited the battlefields of the Western Front by the summer of 1919, the same year that Michelin began publishing guidebooks to them. Numbers grew in the decades following the war. Over 140,000 tourists took in the sites of the war in 1931, which grew to 160,000 for 1939. Organizations such as the Workers’ Travel Association hoped that tourism to battle sites would promote peace, but the travel business also benefited. Travel agencies jumped at the chance to offer tours and publishers produced travel guides to the battlefields. At least thirty English guidebooks were published by 1921. 31

This interest in a conflict that killed, often in brutal fashion, so many might seem a ghoulish form of heritage tourism. Yet Peter Slade argues that people do not visit battlefields for the love for death and gore. They attend these sites out of a sense of pilgrimage to sites sacred to their national heritage. Organized pilgrimages reveal this sense of belonging most clearly. The American Legion organized a pilgrimage of 15,000 veterans in 1927 to commemorate the decade anniversary of America’s entry to the war. The following year 11,000 Britons, including 3,000 women, made a pilgrimage of their own. Canada’s first official pilgrimage involved 8,000 pilgrims (veterans and their families) to attend the inauguration of the Vimy Ridge Memorial, marking a site held by many as a place sacred to Canadian identity. Australians and New Zealanders marched to Gallipoli in Turkey for similar reasons. 32 As with the sites of the Western Front, Gallipoli and pilgrimages to it generated travel accounts and publishers assembled guidebooks to help travelers navigate its attractions and accommodations. In these episodes, tourism was used to construct national heritage. In the interwar years, tourist activity popularized the notion that sites of national heritage existed on the battlefields of foreign lands, where “our” nation’s history was forged. National heritage tourism, then, became transnational.

Since the end of World War II, battlefield tourism has become an important projection of heritage tourism. Commercial tour operators organize thousands of tours of European World War I and World War II battlefields for Americans and Canadians, as for other nationalities. The phenomenon seems particularly pronounced among North Americans. The motivation behind modern battlefield tourism reveals its connection to heritage tourism. If heritage is an appeal to the past that helps establish a sense of identity and belonging, the feelings of national pride and remorse for sacrifice of the fallen at these sites helps define them as sacred to a particular vision of a national past. The sanctity of the battle site makes the act of consuming it as a tourist attraction an act of communion with heritage.

Built Heritage and Tourism

During the upheaval of the Civil War, some Americans began to recognize historic houses as elements of their heritage worthy of preservation. These houses were initially not seen as tourist attractions, but as markers of national values. Their heritage value preceded their value as tourist attractions. The first major preservation initiative launched in 1853 to save George Washington’s tomb and home from spoliation. Behind overt sectional divisions of north and south was an implied vesting of republican purity among the patrician families that could trace their ancestors to the revolutionary age and who could restore American culture to its proper deferential state. The success of preserving Mount Vernon led to a proliferation of similar house museums. By the 1930s, the American museum association even produced a guide for how to establish new examples and promote them as sites of heritage for tourist interest. Historic houses provided tangible, physical evidence of heritage. Like scenic landscapes attached to the stories of history, buildings connected locations to significant events and people of the past. Architectural heritage came to be closely associated with tourism. Architectural monuments are easily identified, easy to promote, and, as physical structures, easily reproduced in souvenir ephemera. Although the recognition of architectural monuments as tourist draws could be said to have originated with the Grand Tour, or at least with the publication of John Ruskin’s “Seven Lamps of Architecture” (1849), which singled out the monuments of Venice for veneration, twentieth century mobility facilitated a greater desire to travel to see historic structures. Indeed, mobility, especially automobility, prompted the desire to preserve or even reinvent the structural heritage of the past.

A driving factor behind the growth of tourism to sites associated with these structural relics was a feeling that the past—and especially the social values of the past—was being lost. For example, Colonial Williamsburg developed in reaction to the pace of urban and social change brought about by automobile travel in the 1920s. Williamsburg was once a community of colonial era architecture, but had become just another highway town before John D. Rockefeller lent his considerable wealth to its preservation and reconstruction. 33 Rockefeller had already donated a million dollars for the restoration of French chateaux at Versailles, Fontainebleu, and Rheims. 34 At Williamsburg, his approach was to remove structures from the post-Colonial period to create a townscape from the late eighteenth century. By selecting a cut-off year of 1790, Rockefeller and his experts attempted to freeze Williamsburg in a particular vision of the past. The heritage envisioned was not that of ordinary Americans, but that of colonial elites. Conceived to be a tourist attraction, Colonial Williamsburg offered a tourist-friendly lesson in American heritage. Rockefeller, and a host of consultants convinced the (white) people of Williamsburg to reimagine their heritage and their past. America’s heritage values were translated to the concepts of self-government and individual liberty elaborated by the great patriots, Washington, Madison, Henry, and Jefferson. The town commemorated the planter elites that had dominated American society until the Jacksonian era, and presented them as progenitors of timeless ideals and values. They represented the “very cradle of that Americanism of which Rockefeller and the corporate elite were the inheritors and custodians.” 35

Rockefeller’s Williamsburg was not the only American heritage tourist reconstruction. Canada also underwent reconstruction projects for specifically heritage tourism purposes, such as the construction of “Champlain’s Habitation” at Port Royal, Nova Scotia or the attempt to draw tourists to Invermere, British Columbia with a replica fur trade fort. 36 Following World War I and accelerating after World War II, the number and nature of places deemed heritage attractions grew. Across North America, all levels of governments and private corporations built replica heritage sites with varying degrees of “authenticity.” Although these sites often made use of existing buildings and landscapes, they also manufactured an imaginary environment of the past. The motivation behind these sites was almost always diversification of the local economy through increased tourism. Canada’s Fortress of Louisbourg National Historic Site is perhaps the most obvious example. It is a reconstructed section of the French colonial town, conquered and destroyed in 1758, built on the archaeological remains of the original. Constructed by the government of Canada as a means to diversify the failing resource economy of its Atlantic provinces, the tourist attraction was also designated a component of Canada’s national heritage. The US government also increased its interest in the protection of heritage destinations, greatly expanding the list of national historic landmarks, sites, parks, and monuments. As postwar governments became more concerned with managing their economies, tourism quickly came to be seen as a key economic sector. The language of national heritage helped build public support for state intervention in natural and historic artifacts and sites that could be presented as sacred national places.

In Europe, many historic sites were devastated by bombardment during World War II. Aside from pressing humanitarian issues, heritage concerns also had to be addressed. In France, the war had destroyed nearly half a million buildings, principally in the northern cities, many of which were of clear heritage value. The French government established a commission to undertake the reconstruction of historic buildings and monuments and, in some cases, entire towns. Saint-Malo, in Brittany, had been completely destroyed, but the old walled town was rebuilt to its seventeenth century appearance. Already a seaside resort, the town added a heritage site destination. In the 1920s and 1930s, European fascist states had also employed heritage tourism. In Mussolini’s Italy and Nazi Germany, workers’ leisure time was to be organized to prevent ordinary Italians and Germans from falling into unproductive leisure activities. Given the attachment to racialized views of purity and identity, organized tourism was encouraged to allow people to bond with their national heritage. Hiking in the Black Forest or the alpine Allgau might help connect Germans to the landscape and reconnect them to the traditional costumes and folkways of rural Germany. As Kristin Semmens argues, most studies of the Nazi misappropriation of the past ignore the displays of history aimed toward tourists at Germany’s heritage sites. Many museums and historic sites twisted their interpretations to fit the Nazi present. 37 In ways that foreshadowed the 1980s British left’s critique of heritage, fascist regimes made use of heritage tourism to control society. After the war, a vigorous program of denazification was undertaken to remove public relics of the Nazi regime and in formerly occupied territories, as was a program of reconstruction. In the communist east, blaming the Nazis for the destruction of German heritage was an ideological gift. It allowed the communist regime to establish itself as the true custodian of German identity and heritage. 38 In the capitalist west, tourism revived quickly. By early 1947, thirteen new tourist associations were active in the Allied occupation zone. Tourism rhetoric in the postwar years attempted to distance German heritage from the Nazi regime to reintroduce foreign travelers to the “real Germany.” Despite this objective, Alon Confino notes that traces of the Nazi past can be located in postwar tourist promotions that highlighted Nazi-era infrastructure. 39

Postwar Heritage Tourism

As tourism became a more global industry, thanks in no small part to the advent of affordable air travel in the postwar era, heritage tourism became transnational. Ethnic heritage tourism became more important, and diaspora or roots tourism, which brought second- and third-generation migrants back to the original home of their ancestors, accelerated. Commodifying ethnic heritage has been one of the most distinctive developments in twenty-first century tourism. Ethnic heritage tourism can involve migrants, their children, or grandchildren returning to their “home” countries as visitors. In this form of tourism, the “heritage” component is thus expressed in the motivations and self-identifications of the traveler. It involves a sense of belonging that is rooted in the symbolic meanings of collective memories, shared stories, and the sense of place embodied in the physical locations of the original homeland. Paul Basu has extensively studied the phenomenon of “roots tourism” among the descendants of Scottish Highlanders. He suggests that in their trips to Scotland to conduct genealogical research, explore sites connected to their ancestors, or sites connected to Scottish identity, they construct a sense of their heritage as expatriate Scots. 40 Similar “return” movements can be found in the migrant-descended communities of many settler colonial nations. For second-generation Chinese Americans visiting China, their search for authentic experiences mirrored those of other tourists. Yet, travel to their parents’ homeland strengthened their sense of family history and attachment to Chinese cultures. 41 On the other hand, Shaul Kellner examines the growing trend of cultivating roots tourism through state-sponsored homeland tours. In Tours that Bind , Kellner explores the State of Israel and American Jewish organizations’ efforts to forge a sense of Israeli heritage among young American Jews. However, Kellner cautions, individual experiences and human agency limit the hosts’ abilities to control the experience and thus control the sense of heritage. 42

Leisure tourism also played a role in developing heritage sites, as travelers to sunshine destinations began looking for more interesting side trips. Repeating the battlefield tourism of a century before, by the 1970s access to historic and prehistoric sites made it possible to add side trips to beach vacations. Perhaps the best example of this was the development of tourism to sites of Mayan heritage by the Mexican government in the 1970s. The most famous heritage sites, at least for Westerners, were the Mayan sites of Yucatan. First promoted as destinations by the American travel writer John Lloyd Stephens in the 1840s, their relative inaccessibility (as well as local political instabilities) made them unlikely tourist attractions before the twentieth century. By 1923, the Yucatan government had opened a highway to the site of the Chichén Itzá ruins, and local promoters began promotions in the 1940s. It was not until after the Mexican government nationalized all archaeological ruins in the 1970s that organized tours from Mexican beach resorts began to feature trips to the ruins themselves. 43

Mexico’s interest in the preservation and promotion of its archaeological relics coincided with one of the most important developments in heritage tourism in the postwar years: the emergence of the idea of world heritage. The idea was formalized in 1972 with the creation of UNESCO’s designation of World Heritage Sites. The number of sites has grown from the twelve first designated in 1978 to well over 1,000 in 167 different countries. In truth, the movement toward recognizing world heritage began with the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings, which did not limit its activities to preserving only England’s architectural heritage. Out of its advocacy, European architects and preservationists drafted a series of accords, such as the Athens Charter of 1931, and the later Venice Charter of 1964, both of which emerged from a growing sense of cultural internationalism. These agreements set guidelines for the preservation and restoration of buildings and monuments. What UNESCO added was the criterion of Outstanding Universal Value for the designation of a place as world heritage. It took until 1980 to work out the first iteration of Outstanding Universal Value and the notion has never been universally accepted, although UNESCO member countries adhere to it officially. Once a site has been named to the list, member countries are expected to protect it from deterioration, although this does not always happen. As of 2018, 54 World Heritage Sites are considered endangered. This growth mirrored the massive expansion of tourism as a business and cultural phenomenon in the late twentieth century. As tourism became an increasingly important economic sector in de-colonizing states of Asia and Latin America, governments became more concerned with its promotion by seeking out World Heritage designation.

Ironically, World Heritage designation itself has been criticized as an endangerment of heritage sites. Designation increases the tourist appeal of delicate natural environments and historic places, which can lead to problems with maintenance. Designation also affects the lives of people living within the heritage destination. Luang Prabang, in Laos, is an interesting example. Designated in 1995 as one of the best-preserved traditional towns in Southeast Asia, it represents an architectural fusion of Lao temples and French colonial villas. UNESCO guidelines halted further development of the town, except as it served the tourist market. Within the designated heritage zone, buildings cannot be demolished or constructed, but those along the main street have been converted to guest houses, souvenir shops, and restaurants to accommodate the growing tourist economy. Critics claim this reorients the community in non-traditional ways, as locals move out of center in order to rent to foreign tourists. 44 While heritage tourism provided jobs and more stable incomes, it also encouraged urban sprawl and vehicle traffic as local inhabitants yielded their town to the influx of foreign, mostly Western, visitors.

Heritage tourism may hasten the pace of change by making destinations into attractions worth visiting. To accommodate the anticipated influx of global tourists, Luang Prabang airport was renovated and its runway extended to handle larger jets in between 2008 and 2013. The influx of tourists at Machu Picchu in Peru has repeatedly led the Peruvian government to attempt to control access to the site, yet dependent on tourism’s economic contribution, such restrictions are difficult. The temple at Borobudur in Indonesia undergoes near continuous maintenance work to repair the wear and tear caused by thousands of tourists walking its steps every day. Indeed, the preserved ruins are said to be under greater threat than when they were discovered in the early nineteenth century, overgrown by the jungle.

Another colonial aspect of world heritage designation stems from the narratives of the sites themselves. Many critics accuse UNESCO of a Eurocentric conception of Outstanding Universal Value and world heritage. 45 Cultural heritage destinations in non-Western countries are often associated with sites made famous by the projects of European imperialism. The fables of discovering ancient ruins, for instance, prioritize the romance of discovery. Many of the most famous non-Western sites were “discovered” by imperial agents in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Angkor Wat in Cambodia was introduced to the world by the French explorer Henri Muhot in 1860. Machu Picchu, the Mayan sites of Yucatan, and the ancestral Anasazi sites of the American southwest were excavated, in some cases purchased, and their narratives constructed by American and European adventurers. The cultural relics of these ancient places were looted and assembled in Western museums, the stories of adventure and discovery published for Western audiences, and eventually a travel infrastructure was established to bring mostly Western tourists to the destinations. Western tourism thus forms another kind of imperialism, as the heritage of a destination is determined to suit the expectations and motivations of the visitors. This tends to obscure other features of local history, leaving those features of heritage not suitable to the tourist trade less valuable.

Made or Experienced?

Heritage is both made and experienced. Critics of heritage tourism rightly point to the ways in which heritage promotions can manipulate the past to defend specific ideological or commercial values. Yet, at the same time, heritage experiences are honestly felt and fundamental in the shaping of modern national or cultural identities. Thus, the questions of what constitutes “heritage” in a tourist attraction and whether or not the experience is “authentic” are fundamentally connected and contradictory. Neither heritage nor authenticity can be separated from both the process of their construction and the motivations and expectations of visitors. This makes heritage tourism a slippery subject for study. It involves numerous contradictions and complications. Indeed, contradiction and dissonance are at the heart of any notion of heritage tourism; what might be heritage for some is merely leisure and consumption for others. The dissonance comes from this dichotomy: the consumer exploitation of a destination that is held by many to have sacred properties. Yet, as this chapter suggests, the construction of those sacred properties is at times dependent on the consumer culture of the tourism industry.

Further Reading

Ashworth, Gregory J. , and John E. Tunbridge . The Tourist-Historic City: Retrospect and Prospect of Managing the Heritage City . London: Routledge, 2001 .

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Basu, Paul.   Highland Homecomings: Genealogy and Heritage Tourism in the Scottish Diaspora . London: Routledge, 2006 .

Dearborn, Lynne M. , and John C. Stallmeyer . Inconvenient Heritage: Erasure and Global Tourism in Luang Prabang . Walnut Creek, CA: Left Coast Press, 2010 .

Hall, Melanie , ed. Towards World Heritage: International Origins of the Preservation Movement, 1880–1930 . Farnham: Ashgate, 2011 .

Hewison, Robert.   The Heritage Industry: Britain in a Climate of Decline . London: Methuen, 1987 .

Harrison, Rodney.   Heritage: Critical Approaches . New York: Routledge, 2013 .

Kirshenblatt-Gimblett, Barbara.   Destination Culture: Tourism, Museums, and Heritage . Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 1998 .

Lowenthal, David.   The Past Is a Foreign Country: Revisited . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2015 .

Miles, Stephen.   The Western Front: Landscape, Tourism and Heritage . Barnsley: Pen and Sword, 2017 .

Macdonald, Sharon.   Memorylands: Heritage and Identity in Europe Today . London: Routledge, 2013 .

Park, Hyung Yu.   Heritage Tourism . London: Routledge, 2014 .

Shaffer, Marguerite S.   See America First: Tourism and National Identity, 1880–1940 . Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Press, 2001 .

Schama, Simon.   Landscape and Memory . New York: Alfred A Knopf, 1995 .

Sears, John F.   Sacred Places: American Tourist Attractions in the Nineteenth Century . Amherst, MA: University of Massachusetts Press, 1998 .

Timothy, Dallen J.   Cultural Heritage and Tourism: An Introduction . Bristol: Channel View, 2011 .

Winter, Tim.   Post-Conflict Heritage, Postcolonial Tourism: Culture, Politics and Development at Angkor . London: Routledge, 2007 .

1   Peter J. Larkham , “Heritage As Planned and conserved,” in Heritage, Tourism and Society , ed. David T. Herbert (London: Mansell, 1995), 85 ; Peter Johnson and Barry Thomas , “Heritage As Business,” in Heritage, Tourism and Society , ed. David T. Herbert (London: Mansell, 1995), 170 ; David Lowenthal , The Heritage Crusade and the Spoils of History (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998), 94.

2   David C. Harvey , “The History of Heritage,” in Ashgate Research Companion to Heritage and Identity , eds. Brian Graham and Peter Howard (Aldershot: Ashgate, 2008), 22.

3   Deepak Chhabra , Robert Healy , and Erin Sills , “Staged Authenticity and Heritage Tourism,” Annals of Tourism Research 30, no. 3 (2003): 702–719.

4   Tomaz Kolar and Vesna Zabkar , “A Consumer-Based Model of Authenticity: An Oxymoron or the Foundation of Cultural Heritage Marketing?” Tourism Management 31, no. 5 (2010): 652–664.

5   John Tunbridge and Gregory Ashworth , Dissonant Heritage: The Management of the Past as a Resource in Conflict (Chichester: J. Wiley, 1996), 10–13.

6 See Lowenthal, The Heritage Crusade and the Spoils of History ; Robert Hewison , The Heritage Industry: Britain in a Climate of Decline (London: Methuen London, 1987) ; Patrick Wright , On Living in an Old Country: The National Past in Contemporary Britain (London: Verso, 1985).

7   John A. Jakle , The Tourist: Travel in Twentieth-Century North America (Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press, 1985).

8   John F. Sears , Sacred Places: American Tourist Attractions in the Nineteenth Century (Amherst, MA: University of Massachusetts Press, 1998).

9   Patricia Jasen , Wild Things: Nature, Culture, and Tourism in Ontario, 1790–1914 (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1995).

10   Simon Schama , Landscape and Memory (New York: Alfred A Knopf, 1995), 6–19 ; Pamela J. Stewart and Andrew Strathan (eds.), Landscape, Memory and History: Anthropological Perspectives (London and Sterling: Pluto, 2003), 2–3.

11   David Lowenthal , “European and English Landscapes as National Symbols,” in Geography and National Identity , ed. David Hoosen (Oxford: Blackwell, 1994), 21–24 ; and David Lowenthal , “Landscape as Heritage,” in Heritage: Conservation, Interpretation and Enterprise , eds. J. D. Fladmark (London: Routledge, 1993), 10–11.

12   Katherine Grenier , Tourism and Identity in Scotland, 1770–1914: Creating Caledonia (London: Routledge, 2005), 5–11.

13   Patrick Young , Enacting Brittany: Tourism and Culture in Provincial France, 1871–1939 (Farnham; Burlington: Ashgate, 2012).

14   Christopher Chippindale , “The Making of the First Ancient Monuments Act, 1882, and Its Administration Under General Pitt-Rivers,” Journal of the British Archaeological Association 86 (1983): 1–55 ; Tim Murray , “The History, Philosophy, and Sociology of Archaeology: The Case of the Ancient Monuments Protection Act (1882),” in Histories of Archaeology: A Reader in the History of Archaeology , eds. Tim Murray and Christopher Evans (New York: Oxford University Press, 2008), 145–176.

  National Trust Act, 1907 . 7 Edward 7, Ch cxxxvi, first schedule.

Other countries developed similar programs, especially after World War II: Australia, 1947; United States, 1949; Japan, 1964; and Italy, 1975.

17   Bosse Sundin , “Nature as Heritage: The Swedish Case,” International Journal of Heritage Studies 11, no. 1 (2005): 9–20.

18   Tait Keller , Apostles of the Alps: Mountaineering and Nation Building in Germany and Austria, 1860–1939 (Chapel Hill, NC: UNC Press Books, 2015).

19 See Karl Baedeker , The Eastern Alps, Including the Bavarian Highlands, The Tyrol, Salzkammergut, Styria, and Carinthia (Leipsic: K. Baedeker, 1879).

20   Eric Zuelow , A History of Modern Tourism (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2016), 108–109.

21   M. D. Merrill (ed.), Yellowstone and the Great West: Journals, Letters, and Images from the 1871 Hayden Expedition (Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press, 2003), 210–211.

22   Alan Gordon , Making Public Pasts: The Contested Terrain of Montreal’s Public Memories (Montreal: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2001).

23   John Sandlos , “Nature’s Playgrounds: The Parks Branch and Tourism Promotion in the National Parks, 1911–1929,” in A Century of Parks Canada, 1911–2011 , ed. Claire Elizabeth Campbell (Calgary: University of Calgary Press, 2011).

24   Stephen Pyne , How the Canyon Became Grand (New York: Viking, 1998), 25–26, 55–60 ; J. W. Powell , The Exploration of the Colorado River and Its Canyons (New York: Dover Press, 1875).

25   Linda Rancourt , “Cultural Celebration,” National Parks 80, no. 1 (2006): 4.

26   Charles Wilson , The Myth of Santa Fe: Creating a Modern Regional Tradition (Albuquerque, NM: University of New Mexico Press, 1997).

27   Ian McKay and Robin Bates , In the Province of History: The Making of the Public Past in Twentieth-Century Nova Scotia (Montreal: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2010), 71–129.

28   Thomas A. Chambers , Memories of War Visiting Battlegrounds and Bonefields in the Early American Republic (Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press 2012).

29 See Alan Gordon, “Where Famous Heroes Fell: Tourism, History, and Liberalism in old Quebec,” 58–81 and J. I. Little , “In Search of the Plains of Abraham: British, American, and Canadian Views of a Symbolic Landscape, 1793–1913,” in Remembering 1759: The Conquest of Canada in Historical Memory , eds. Phillip Buckner and John G. Reid (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2011), 82–109.

30   John S. Patterson , “A Patriotic Landscape: Gettysburg, 1863–1913,” Prospects 7 (1982): 315–333.

31   David Lloyd , Battlefield Tourism: Pilgrimage and the Commemoration of the Great War in Britain, Australia and Canada, 1919–1939 (Oxford and New York: Berg, 1998), 100–111.

  Lloyd, Battlefield Tourism , 98–100.

33   George Humphrey Yetter , Williamsburg Before and After: The Rebirth of Virginia’s Colonial Capital (Colonial Williamsburg, 1988), 49–52 ; Stephen Conn , Museums and American intellectual life, 1876–1926 (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000), 155.

34   Raymond B. Fosdick , John D. Rockefeller Jr.: A Portrait (New York: Harper, 1956), 356–357.

35   Michael Wallace , “Visiting the Past: History Museums in the United States,” in A Living History Reader , ed. Jay Anderson (Nashville: American Association of State and Local History, 1991), 190.

36   Alan Gordon , Time Travel: Tourism and the Rise of the Living History Museum in Mid-Twentieth-Century Canada (Vancouver: UBC Press, 2016), 65–70 ; Ben Bradley , “The David Thompson Memorial Fort: An Early Outpost of Historically Themed Tourism in Western Canada,” Histoire sociale/Social History 49, no. 99 (2016): 409–429.

37   Kristen Semmens , Seeing Hitler’s Germany: Tourism in the Third Reich (Basingstoke and New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2005).

38   Gregory Ashworth and Peter Larkham , “A Heritage for Europe: The Need, the Task, the Contribution,” in Building a New Heritage , ed. Gregory Ashworth and Peter Larkham (London: Routledge, 1994), 127–129.

39   Alon Confino , “Traveling as a Culture of Remembrance: Traces of National Socialism in West Germany, 1945–1960,” History & Memory 12, no. 2 (2000): 92–121.

40 See, for example, Paul Basu , Highland Homecomings: Genealogy and Heritage Tourism in the Scottish Diaspora (London: Routledge, 2007).

41   Huang, Wei-Jue , Gregory Ramshaw , and William C. Norman . “Homecoming or Tourism? Diaspora Tourism Experience of Second-Generation Immigrants,” Tourism Geographies 18, no. 1 (2016): 59–79.

42   Shaul Kelner , Tours That Bind: Diaspora, Pilgrimage, and Israeli Birthright Tourism (New York: New York University Press, 2010).

43   Dina Berger , The Development of Mexico’s Tourism Industry: Pyramids by Day, Martinis by Night (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2006).

44 See, for example, Dawn Starin , “Letter From Luang Prabang: World Heritage Designation, Blessing or Curse?” Critical Asian Studies 40, no. 4 (December 2008): 639–652.

45   Tim Winter , “Heritage Studies and the Privileging of Theory,” International Journal of Heritage Studies 20, no. 5 (2014): 556–572.

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Heritage Traveler

History, Travel, Heritage, Inspiration

What is Heritage Tourism?

Heritage tourism refers to the practice of traveling to places that possess historical, cultural, or natural significance. It involves exploring and experiencing the tangible and intangible elements of a region’s heritage, including historical sites, museums, monuments, traditional festivals, cultural traditions, and natural landscapes. This form of tourism allows individuals to immerse themselves in the rich tapestry of a community’s past and present, connecting with its unique identity and preserving its legacy for future generations.

One of the primary aspects of heritage tourism is the exploration of historical sites and landmarks. These can include ancient ruins, architectural marvels, castles, forts, and UNESCO World Heritage Sites. By visiting these locations, tourists can witness firsthand the remnants of past civilizations, gaining insights into their history, architecture, and cultural practices. Exploring historical sites provides a sense of timelessness and allows individuals to appreciate the achievements and struggles of those who came before them.

In addition to historical sites, museums play a significant role in heritage tourism. Museums house collections of artifacts, artworks, and documents that showcase a region’s history, art, science, and culture. Visitors can engage with these exhibits, learning about the cultural and social context of a place. Museums often offer interactive displays, guided tours, and educational programs that enhance the visitor’s understanding and appreciation of the heritage being presented.

Cultural festivals and traditions also form an integral part of heritage tourism. These events celebrate a community’s customs, rituals, music, dance, cuisine, and attire. They provide an opportunity for tourists to witness and participate in vibrant cultural expressions, fostering a deeper understanding and respect for different ways of life. Cultural festivals often showcase traditional performances, craft demonstrations, and culinary experiences, allowing visitors to engage with the local traditions on a personal level.

Natural heritage tourism focuses on the exploration of natural landscapes and conservation areas. It involves activities such as hiking, wildlife spotting, bird watching, and eco-tours. Natural heritage sites, including national parks, protected areas, and scenic landscapes, offer opportunities for individuals to reconnect with nature, appreciate biodiversity, and learn about sustainable practices. These experiences promote environmental awareness and encourage responsible tourism.

Overall, heritage tourism serves as a means to preserve, promote, and celebrate the diverse and unique aspects of a region’s heritage. It enables individuals to connect with their roots, gain knowledge, and develop a sense of cultural identity. Heritage tourism also contributes to economic growth by generating employment and income for local communities. Furthermore, it plays a vital role in the preservation of historical sites, artifacts, and traditions, ensuring their longevity for future generations to enjoy and appreciate.

Image Attribution: Marco Almbauer , Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

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Cultural Heritage Tourism: Five Steps for Success and Sustainability

Cultural Heritage Tourism: Five Steps for Success and Sustainability has a clear focus on the United States and reads as a how-to manual for cultural heritage tourism development. It provides very clear step-by-step instructions for and advice related to all steps of the heritage tourism planning process, and the addition of descriptive case studies at the end of each chapter which highlight the discussed aspects are particularly useful.

Related Papers

Journal of Sustainable Tourism

Cheryl Hargrove

Ellen McHale

International Journal of Tourism Research

Hilary du Cros

Sumira Bhatia

Chris Landorf

This paper considers the relationship between heritage tourism and sustainable development, with special reference to World Heritage Sites (WHSs). It notes that while WHS status is not necessarily linked to tourism growth, all WHSs must now develop and implement a management plan to mitigate tourism impacts and sustain site significance. The paper explores the concept of sustainable heritage tourism and identifies two key principles of sustainable practice – a planning process that is long term and holistic, and multiple stakeholder participation in that planning process. Qualitative content analysis is used to determine the extent to which these principles have been integrated into the tourism planning process at six WHSs. The study found that a formal goal-oriented planning process was in evidence at all six sites. However, the process lacked a comprehensive and holistic approach to the wider issues of sustainable development, and genuine engagement with local community stakeholders.

The ESACH Quarterly

Rebecca Friedel Juan

Sustainability has become a buzzword; everyone strives to be sustainable in some way or another nowadays. The United Nations has made it their overarching goal to lead the world to sustainability in all aspects of life. This, of course, includes those aspects of life related to heritage management and, ultimately, the tourism industry. Of issues related to sustainable heritage management and tourism, perhaps most salient is the fact that adjacent, indigenous, and vulnerable communities are often excluded from tourism development and because of tourism development.

Rui Alexandre Castanho

This book discusses the the integration between tourism and heritage and strategies to achieve sustainability in the tourism sector. The book adds innovative insights into the development of new practices solving challenges of sustainability in this sector and promoting responsible tourism. The book in hands also offers solutions and discusses sustainable tourism environment, social and economic impacts of tourism, and policies and mechanisms for heritage preservation. The primary audience of this book will be scholars, planners, architects, and stakeholders interested in sustainable tourism. This book is a culmination of selected research papers from IEREK’s third edition of the International Conference on Cultural Sustainable Tourism (CST) held online in collaboration with the University of Maya, Portugal (2021).

Brian Garrod

This article discusses the ®ndings of a Delphi survey of owners and managers of historic properties, of®cers of heritage-based organizations, consultants, and academics from across the United Kingdom. The purpose of the study was to investigate the major constraints and imperatives relating to the long-term management of built heritage attractions. Three related issues were assessed: the fundamental mission of heritage attractions; the factors which impact upon decisions relating to charging for tourist entry; and the perceptions of heritage managers as to the respective roles of such attractions and public agencies in funding tourism management and heritage conservation programs. The paper then considers the signi®cance of these issues in assessing potential strategies for moving heritage tourism toward sustainability. Re Âsume Â: La gestion du tourisme patrimonial. Cet article discute des re Âsultats d'une enque Ãte Delphi parmi des proprie Âtaires et ge Ârants des proprie Âte Âs historiques, des comite Âs directeurs d'organisations patrimoniales, des consultants et des universitaires de partout dans le Royaume-Uni. L'objet de l'e Âtude e Âtait d'examiner les contraintes et impe Âratifs lie Âs a Á la gestion a Á long terme des attractions patrimoniales construites. On e Âvalue trois questions apparente Âes: la mission fondamentale des attractions patrimoniales, les facteurs qui in¯uent sur la tari®cation et les perceptions des ge Ârants au sujet du ro Ãle des attractions et des organismes gouvernementaux pour le ®nancement de la gestion du tourisme et des programmes de sauvegarde. On conside Áre ensuite l'importance de ces questions pour e Âvaluer des strate Âgies e Âventuelles pour faire progresser le tourisme patrimonial vers la durabilite Â.

Tourism hospitality management

Milena Filipova

Tourism as a world culture phenomenon furthers the discovery of various aspects and manifestations of culture. The cultural tourism allows the familiarization with and illustration of the historical development of various civilizations throughout the centuries and the achievements in the various fields of human activities. The tourist travel activates cognitive, informative, communicational and evaluating functions of perception of reality at the place of destination. Each travel brings a new knowledge and a touch to an alien social cultural environment; each tourist, even at a subconscious level, performs a comparative analysis of the alien and of their own culture. Cultural tourism furthers the knowledge, study and comparison of the cultural heritage. The more unique, authentic and valuable it is, the greater is the power of attraction of the corresponding tourism destination. Apart and independent from the expert’s evaluation of the cultural heritage qualities and features, its v...

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Through our community-based approach, we design tourism experiences to support tradition-bearers and to ensure their communities benefit from having their cultural heritage shared with the world.

The Cultural Heritage Tourism Initiative uses research and presentation methods from the Smithsonian Folklife Festival to curate engaging, inclusive, and sustainable community-based tourism experiences. We help hosts convey their heritage by working together to create extraordinary experiences—both immersive and unforgettable—instilling a sense of place and leaving travelers with enduring memories.

Our process prioritizes an equitable relationship in order to ensure communities directly benefit from sharing their cultural heritage worldwide. Our work in tourism leverages other synergistic initiatives, such as the Center’s work with artisans and the Festival. Activities include cultural heritage documentation, participatory community engagement, destination assessment and asset inventory, experience design and product development, workshops and trainings, enterprise development, market access and linkages, policy reform, and strategic planning.

By Rachel Barton

Layers of Armenia’s fascinating cultural heritage are embedded in the country’s pristine landscapes, which are dotted with ancient cave dwellings, mountain monasteries, fortresses, and Armenian  khatchkars  (cross-stones).

By Jackie Flanagan Pangelinan

Vahagn Hambardzumyan and Zara Gasparyan are the husband-and-wife team behind Sisian Ceramics. Founded in 2010, the studio they named for their hometown is located in Armenia’s Syunik Province.

By Tony Cohn

The oldest known evidence of winemaking was discovered in the Areni-1 cave complex. It’s this very site in southern Armenia that has had a major impact on how archeologists understand humanity’s earliest civilizations.

By Rebecca Wall

What makes a wine Armenian? Irina Ghaplanyan and Vahe Keushguerian emphasize the unique grape varietals indigenous to Armenia and the country’s exceptional  terroir .

By Halle Butvin

In October 2018, the My Armenian program hosted the second annual My Handmade Armenia Festival in Yerevan and celebrated the official launch of FestivAr Association of Armenian Festivals.

By Yuri Horowitz

In August 2020, Yerevan Magazine printed a special issue featuring opportunities to travel within Armenia, based on My Armenia research and collaborations.

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Halle Butvin 202.633.4015, [email protected]

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Cultural Heritage and Sustainable Tourism: Drivers of Poverty Eradication and Shared Prosperity

Joint message of Francesco Bandarin, Assistant Director-General for Culture, UNESCO; and Ede Ijjasz-Vasquez, Senior Director for the World Bank Group’s Social, Urban, Rural and Resilience Global Practice

Today, we celebrate the International Day for Monuments and Sites . This year, the day focuses on Cultural Heritage and Sustainable Tourism , which underlines the important linkage between culture and cities: Culture, identity, and a people-centered approach are central to building the urban future we want and ensuring sustainable urban development.

In relation to the United Nations International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development , and in the context of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the New Urban Agenda this day also presents a unique opportunity to celebrate the long-standing partnership between the World Bank and UNESCO in the area of culture and sustainable development. 

The recently-launched UNESCO Global Report on Culture for Sustainable Urban Development titled Culture: Urban Future has brought to the forefront of the global discussion the critical role that culture should play in achieving sustainable urbanization, especially over the coming years when one billion people are expected to move to cities by 2030.

Culture is an essential component of the safe, inclusive, resilient and sustainable urban settlements everybody wants to live in. Culture should be at the core of new approaches for people-centered cities, quality urban environments and integrated policy-making.

Specifically, culture contributes to urban development in four aspects, all of them linked to poverty eradication and shared prosperity in a sustainable manner:

·         Both the protection of cities’ identities and local cultures, and the promotion of cultural expressions, are crucial to ensure livability and to make cities become vibrant life-spaces, including the regeneration of natural heritage to create green areas for social use.

·         Culture is also a platform for social and economic development as well as competitiveness . Historic centers are assets for the development of urban communities, promotion of cultural and creative industries, and enhancement of sustainable tourism. These activities contribute to poverty reduction by generating income and creating employment for local communities.

·         Inclusion and recognition of cultural identities is an important factor to address poverty and boost shared prosperity. Safeguarding cultural diversity is a way to promote social interaction and cohesion in the context of both internal and international migration to cities.

·         Finally, creating urban resilience from culture is possible through traditional knowledge systems, culture-based strategies to reduce cities’ vulnerability to hazards and cultural programs for post-disaster recovery. The protection of world heritage sites and cultural heritage in all its forms as a global legacy helps to promote international peace efforts.

The World Bank and UNESCO have been working together for many years to bring expertise from these four areas to build sustainable cities and communities. Our two organizations are also committed to fostering cooperation across nations and communities; strengthening national and local capacities; providing policy advice at global, national and local levels; and supporting innovation.

For the World Bank, the linkage of culture and urban development has been part of the implementation of our urban strategy , through financing of projects in China , Lebanon , Georgia , and many others, that bring together the preservation of cultural and environmental assets for future generations together with urban renewal, private sector development, and community empowerment. Equally important, our analytical work and policy advice has highlighted the economic value of culture and heritage.

UNESCO’s long-standing operational programs and advocacy involving its six Culture Conventions on cultural heritage and creativity , have brought the safeguarding of cultural heritage and the promotion of creativity to the forefront of international debates as integral preconditions for communities around the globe to attain the Sustainable Development Goals. UNESCO’s work to protect culture in emergencies, including in conflict and disaster situations, has raised international awareness of the need to consider culture as a security and humanitarian imperative to strengthen resilience and promote peaceful and inclusive societies.

The World Bank and UNESCO share a common vision on the role of culture and sustainable tourism for the future of our cities. Today, in renewing and strengthening our partnership, we go a step further—we commit to enhance our joint cooperation to further integrate culture in the urban agenda.

More on this subject

Other recent news

Culture and heritage tourism – a driver of global tourism

Culture and heritage tourism is an essential pillar of global leisure tourism and unwto estimated that almost 40% of international tourists take part in cultural activities globally..

30 Jun 2020

By Bruno Trenchard

• International exposure and promotion of the Arab World’s heritage
• Diversion of outbound tourism into domestic tourism
• Increased recognition and appreciation of heritage and culture with local populations
• Diversification of current tourism offering aiming to increase visitor numbers, length of stay and tourism spend
• Edge against seasonality of other types of tourism
• Investment boost and economic impact across several sectors

Implications for the Hospitality industry

• Induced demand for hospitality accommodation translating into higher occupancy rates for existing hotels
• Rate premiums for hotels in vicinity of culture and heritage sites or generally during cultural events
• Creation of investment opportunities in existing and upcoming destinations
• Improved profitability through better amortization of fixed costs
• Increase spend on F&B, retail and entertainment both inside and outside of the hotels
• Increased employment opportunities for local populations.

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Cultural Heritage and Tourism

An introduction.

• Dallen J. Timothy
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• Language: English
• Publisher: Channel View Publications
• Copyright year: 2020
• Edition: 2nd edition
• Audience: College/higher education;
• Main content: 608
• Keywords: Cultural studies ; MUSEUMS & MUSEOLOGY ; Tourism industry
• Published: February 25, 2021
• ISBN: 9781845417727

• Frontiers in Sustainable Tourism
• Social Impact of Tourism
• Research Topics

Tourism, Community, and Cultural Resilience: Evolving Narratives and Practices

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About this Research Topic

Tourism communities often face unique challenges that test their social and cultural fabric. Rapid tourism growth can lead to cultural commodification, social inequality, and loss of identity, while crises such as pandemics or natural disasters can disrupt livelihoods and community cohesion. Understanding social and cultural resilience involves exploring how these communities engage in participatory planning, preserve their heritage, and leverage social networks for support. By examining these dynamics, researchers can identify strategies to enhance resilience, ensuring that tourism contributes positively to the community's cultural and social sustainability. The goal of this Research Topic is to address the multifaceted challenges that tourism communities face in maintaining and enhancing their social and cultural resilience. This issue intends to bring together a collection of studies that will explore the cases from various world regions. Submissions from the Global South will be particularly welcome, as these regions often experience the most intense pressures from tourism development and crises, yet also offer rich insights into resilient practices and innovative solutions. These cases will examine, amongst others, various participatory approaches to tourism planning that involve local communities in the decision-making processes; strategies for preserving cultural heritage rather than those that undermine local traditions and customs; mechanisms that help strengthen social networks and support systems within tourism communities as robust social bonds are crucial for resilience. Insights from the collection of these cases in the special issue will help us develop and suggest coping mechanisms and resilience-building strategies that can help communities recover from disruptions. By understanding these dynamics, we can also develop effective policies and practices that enhance the well-being and stability of tourism communities, ensuring sustainable and resilient tourism development. Furthermore, the comprehensive special issue will help gain valuable insights and propose actionable strategies for fostering social and cultural resilience in tourism-dependent regions from across the world. This Research Topic aims to explore the social and cultural resilience of tourism communities, emphasizing the need to sustain and enhance their unique characteristics amidst various challenges. We would invite submissions that address the following themes: 1. Community Engagement: Strategies and outcomes of involving local communities in tourism planning and decision-making processes. 2. Cultural Heritage Management: Effective practices for preserving and promoting local culture without leading to commodification. 3. Social Networks and Support Systems: Analysis of the role of social bonds and community support in enhancing resilience. 4. Coping and Adaptation: Innovative ways in which communities respond to tourism-related disruptions and crises. 5. Sustainability Practices: Sustainable tourism models that align with local priorities and enhance social cohesion. We would welcome original research articles, case studies, review articles, and perspective pieces that offer new insights or comprehensive overviews. Contributions should focus on empirical data, theoretical frameworks, or detailed case studies that contribute to the broader understanding of resilience in tourism communities.

Keywords : Community engagement, cultural heritage preservation, social cohesion, tourism sustainability, resilience strategies

Important Note : All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

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Vladikavkaz city, Russia

The capital city of North Ossetia republic .

Vladikavkaz - Overview

Vladikavkaz is a city located in the south of European Russia, in the central part of the North Caucasus. It is the capital of the Republic of North Ossetia - Alania.

The population of Vladikavkaz is about 298,800 (2022), the area - 291 sq. km.

The phone code - +7 8672, the postal codes - 362000-362911.

Vladikavkaz city coat of arms

Vladikavkaz city map, Russia

Vladikavkaz city latest news and posts from our blog:.

13 April, 2021 / Mountain Landscapes of the Republic of North Ossetia - Alania .

6 October, 2020 / The City of the Dead in Dargavs .

Brief History of Vladikavkaz

Foundation of vladikavkaz.

The history of the fortress and the city of Vladikavkaz began in 1784, in connection with the signing of the Treaty of Georgievsk (1783), according to which Georgia passed under the protectorate of the Russian Empire. To establish communication with Georgia, it was necessary to organize transport links and build a line of fortresses in the North Caucasus. Therefore, by order of Empress Catherine II, several fortified outposts were erected on the right bank of the Terek River.

One of them, located near the Darial Gorge, was named Vladikavkaz (“The Ruler of the Caucasus”). The Ossetian settlement of Dzaug was situated next to the fortification. Soon this name also passed to the new fortress, and later to the town founded here. Local residents began to call it Dzaudzhikau (“Dzaug settlement”). An Orthodox church was founded inside and the fortress itself was equipped with twelve cannons.

The first years of the fortress cannot be called successful. New Russian fortresses prevented the Caucasian highlanders from getting slaves in Georgia and reselling them. In 1785, there were several raids on the fortress, which the Russian military garrison could not resist. In 1788, it was decided to withdraw the troops and to destroy the fortress.

More Historical Facts…

Vladikavkaz in the 19th - early 20th centuries

The fortress of Vladikavkaz was rebuilt in 1803. One year later, the authorities formed a specially trained garrison to fight the highlanders. Communication with Georgia was finally established. In 1850, the population of Vladikavkaz was about 3,600 people.

During the Caucasian War of 1817-1864, the fortress was greatly expanded. In 1858, Vladikavkaz was surrounded by a stone wall with loopholes and towers. By the middle of the 19th century, it also became an important regional industrial and trade center. In 1860, Vladikavkaz received the status of a town. In 1863, it became the administrative center of Terek Oblast.

In 1875, the railway to Rostov-on-Don was constructed, which facilitated the rapid development of Vladikavkaz. The town had a favorable geographical position and was the closest place for the sale of goods of local residents - cheese, homespun cloth, grain, furs, livestock, handicrafts, and various products. From here, trains carried a huge amount of wheat, corn and other products to Rostov-on-Don, while the highlanders, in turn, bought the necessary things in the Vladikavkaz markets.

Vladikavkaz also became an important cultural center. It was visited by such famous Russian cultural figures as Pushkin, Lermontov, Chaliapin, Tolstoy, Chekhov, Griboyedov. In 1895, a library was opened in Vladikavkaz, the first in the North Caucasus. At the beginning of the 20th century, a large number of buildings in the Art Nouveau style appeared in the city. In 1914, the population of Vladikavkaz was 79,343 people.

Vladikavkaz during and after Soviet times

From January 20, 1921 to November 7, 1924, Vladikavkaz was the capital of Gorskaya ASSR (The Mountain Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic). By 1924, only North Ossetia and Ingushetia remained in the Mountain Republic. After the final abolition of the Mountain Republic, the North Ossetian and Ingush autonomous oblasts were created. Vladikavkaz became the capital of both regions, in the status of an autonomous city.

On September 2, 1931, the city of Vladikavkaz was renamed Ordzhonikidze, in honor of Grigory Ordzhonikidze, a Georgian Bolshevik and prominent Soviet politician. On January 15, 1934, the city became the capital of the North Ossetian Autonomous Oblast. The Ingush Autonomous Oblast was merged with the Chechen Autonomous Oblast into the Chechen-Ingush Autonomous Oblast. In 1939, the population of the city was about 130,000 people.

In the fall of 1942, during the Second World War, in the area of Ordzhonikidze, Soviet troops managed to conduct a successful defensive operation and prevent the last attempt of the Germans to break through to the Grozny and Baku oil-bearing regions and to the Transcaucasus. On February 28, 1944, the city of Ordzhonikidze was renamed into Dzaudzhikau.

On February 24, 1954, Dzaudzhikau was renamed back to Ordzhonikidze. In 1984, the population of the city exceeded 300,000 people. On July 20, 1990, the historical name was returned to the city - Vladikavkaz.

In 2007, Vladikavkaz was awarded the honorary title “The City of Military Glory”.

Streets of Vladikavkaz

On the street in Vladikavkaz

Author: Radion Hohti

Sculptures of Caucasian leopards on Olginsky (Chugunnyy) Bridge in Vladikavkaz

Author: Kiyanovsky Dmitry

Tram on Mira Avenue - the main street of Vladikavkaz

Author: Golodnyak Alexander

Vladikavkaz - Features

The name of Vladikavkaz literally means “The Ruler of the Caucasus”. It is located on the banks of the Terek River at the foot of the Caucasus Mountains, which are perfectly visible from the city. The height of the city center is about 700 m above sea level.

The climate in Vladikavkaz is rather mild. Summers are usually cool and humid, winters are rather warm and dry. The same climate is typical, for example, for cities at the northern foothills of the Alps. The weather is comfortable almost all year round (although, like other southern cities, from May to September Vladikavkaz looks livelier), so the time of a trip to this city should be tied to your plans in the mountains. The average January temperature is minus 0.7 degrees Celsius, in July - plus 22.5 degrees Celsius.

According to the 2010 all-Russian census, the ethnic composition of the population of Vladikavkaz is following: Ossetians (63.03%), Russians (25.01%), Armenians (3.67%), Georgians (1.94%), Ingush (1.02%).

The local industry is represented by enterprises in the food and light industries, machine building, nonferrous metallurgy, and others. There are two large metallurgical plants and a number of enterprises producing alcoholic beverages in Vladikavkaz.

The Vladikavkaz Airport, located 25 km north of Vladikavkaz, on the eastern outskirts of Beslan, offers regular flights to Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Sochi. The easiest way to get to Vladikavkaz is to fly from Moscow.

The highway R217 “Caucasus”, the main transport artery of the North Caucasus, passes through Beslan, about 20 km north of Vladikavkaz. The Georgian Military Highway, which starts from Vladikavkaz, passes through the Main Caucasian ridge, and connects Vladikavkaz and Tbilisi (Georgia). The entire North Caucasus, major southern cities of Russia (Krasnodar, Stavropol, Volgograd, etc.), as well as Armenia and Georgia have a bus connection with Vladikavkaz. Public transport is represented by trams (since August 1904) and buses.

In Vladikavkaz, a wonderful location at the foot of high mountains on the banks of the turbulent Terek River is combined with well-preserved pre-revolutionary architecture, and the Caucasian traditions - with a cosmopolitan atmosphere. In addition, it stands on the way to Georgia, to the Ossetian mountains, to Chechnya and Ingushetia.

Vladikavkaz is one of the most beautiful cities in the North Caucasus. In general, this city is quite compact. Pre-revolutionary buildings can be found on both banks of the Terek River. Vladikavkaz is a good starting point for trips to mountainous regions of North Ossetia. Their main attractions are available year-round, but mountain climbs are possible only in the summer.

Main Attractions of Vladikavkaz

Mira Avenue - the historic central street of Vladikavkaz starting at Svobody Square and stretching to Kirov Street. Here you can see beautiful mansions with mountains in the background. In the past, most of these buildings belonged to famous merchants or city institutions. Today, almost all of them are architectural monuments.

The only transport on the avenue is a tram. This is a good place for walking and resting, where you can enjoy old architecture, visit museums, and taste Ossetian cuisine.

Park of Culture and Rest named after Kosta Khetagurov - the oldest and one of the best parks in the North Caucasus. The territory of this park, named after the poet, playwright, and founder of Ossetian literature, is divided into upper and lower terraces. The latter rests on the bank of the Terek River, from where magnificent views of the mountain landscapes open.

The upper terrace consists of quiet old avenues with tall trees planted almost 150 years ago, benches, and sculptures. The lower terrace has ponds with picturesque islets and bridges, among which you can ride a boat. There is a Chinese gazebo and a fountain. If you go to the right from the fountain, the modern part of the park begins, which has rides, a Ferris wheel, and a cafe. The terraces are connected by two staircases - one wide and the other more like a forest path with stone steps. Mira Avenue, 2.

National Museum of the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania . The expositions of this museum tell about the history of Alania from ancient times to the present day, the culture and life of the Ossetian people, the flora and fauna of the republic. Here you can see archaeological finds, old tools, jewelry, dishes, furniture, wooden household items, national costumes, weapons, coins, and unique photographs. Mira Avenue, 11.

Art Museum named after Maharbek Tuganov . The picturesque building of this museum was built in the Art Nouveau style in 1903. The main expositions: Russian portrait of the 18th - early 20th centuries, Russian fine art of the late 19th - early 20th centuries, Founders of Ossetian professional art, Naive sculpture of the late 19th - early 20th centuries - Ossetian primitivism, Contemporary fine arts of North Ossetia. Mira Avenue, 12.

Sunni Mosque of Mukhtarov (1900-1908) - one of the most beautiful buildings in Vladikavkaz, striking with the elegance of the exterior and the splendor of the facade decoration. The construction of the mosque cost 80 thousand rubles, of which more than 50 thousand were donated by Murtuza Mukhtarov, the Azerbaijani millionaire-oil industrialist, a prominent patron of arts in the Caucasus. The mosque is located on the left bank of the Terek River and is one of the main symbols of Vladikavkaz, an architectural monument of federal significance. Kotsoyeva Street, 62.

Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (1823) - the oldest Orthodox church in Vladikavkaz, an object of cultural heritage of the peoples of Russia, a cultural monument of federal significance. Tourists come here to look at the classical architecture of the building and admire the amazing views that open from the territory of the church. Nearby there is a necropolis with the graves of many famous residents of Vladikavkaz. Rozhdestvenskaya Street, 20.

Church of St. Gregory the Enlightener (1864-1868) - a picturesque red-brick Armenian church located on the right bank of the Terek River near Olginsky (Chugunnyy) Bridge. This is one of the few churches where services continued in Soviet times. In 1960, the church received the status of a monument protected by the state. Armyanskaya Street, 1.

Monument to Issa Pliev . This majestic equestrian monument, 10 meters high, depicts the hero of the Soviet Union, Ossetian General Issa Pliev. The monument was installed in the city center on the bank of the Terek River near Olginsky (Chugunnyy) Bridge in 1997. General Pliev Square.

Stolovaya (Table) Mountain - a rather rare mountain for Russia, which is visible from the windows of the buildings of the capitals of two republics at once - North Ossetia-Alania and Ingushetia. It is depicted on the coat of arms of Vladikavkaz. The height of this mountain with a flat top is about 3,000 meters. Remains of sanctuaries of the 4th-18th centuries have been preserved here. To ascend, no special preparation is needed, a convenient path for climbing to the top is located on the side of Ingushetia. The trip from Vladikavkaz will take about 40 minutes.

Monument to Uastyrdzhi . At the entrance to the Alagir Gorge, about 40 km west of Vladikavkaz, you can see a stunningly picturesque sculpture of Uastyrdzhi - the patron saint of men, travelers and warriors, the defender of the weak. One of the largest equestrian monuments in the world, it is located at a height of 22 meters and is literally floating in the air. The monument is attached to the rock with only a part of the stone cloak. Locals believe that if you make a wish while standing right under the sculpture, it will certainly come true.

The City of the Dead (Dargavs) - one of the most famous historical sites of the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania. This monument of culture and history of the 18th century is located on the slope of the Caucasus Mountains about 1 km from the village of Dargavs, 37 km south-west of Vladikavkaz. From a distance, the necropolis resembles an ordinary village. In total, there are more than 90 crypts on its territory. This place is also called “the city of the dead” because in the past whole families with children and old people, who were infected with the plague, came here to die to save their neighbors and loved ones.

Vladikavkaz city of Russia photos

Vladikavkaz views.

The embankment of the Terek River in Vladikavkaz

Author: Svetlana Apaeva

Monument to Dzaug Bugulov - the founder of the Ossetian settlement of Dzaudzhikau

Fountain in Vladikavkaz

Author: Murat Tskhovrebov

Pictures of Vladikavkaz

Memorial to soldiers, who died in the Soviet-Afghan War of 1979-1989

Author: Maritsa Strukova

Memorial of Glory in Vladikavkaz

Author: A.Albegov

Monument to Lenin in Vladikavkaz

Author: Kudinov D.M.

Sights of Vladikavkaz

View of the Caucasus Mountains from Vladikavkaz

Church of St. Gregory the Enlightener in Vladikavkaz

Sunni Mosque of Mukhtarov in Vladikavkaz

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As SA inches to World Tourism Day, Northern Cape set to showcase rich cultural heritage

Throughout Tourism Month, the department hosted a series of events aimed at promoting sustainable tourism practices.

• Department of Tourism
• Northern Cape

FILE: Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille officially launched Tourism Month in the Northern Cape on 20 August 2024. Picture: @PatriciaDeLille/X

JOHANNESBURG - As the country inches closer to World Tourism Day on Friday, the Northern Cape is set to showcase its unique offerings and rich cultural heritage.

Minister of Tourism Patricia de Lille said this underscored government's commitment to boosting both astro and domestic tourism.

The Northern Cape is the country's largest province, and its stunning skies have been taking centre stage this Tourism Month.

World Tourism Day will be a celebration of the diverse cultural and historical heritage that continues to foster peace in South Africa.

World Tourism Day offers a unique opportunity for the Northern Cape to shine on the global stage.

Eyewitness News spoke to the director-general of the Department of Tourism, Victor Tharage, who outlined the key areas of focus this fiscal year to grow and boost tourism in the country.

"Most of the things that actually make things work well aren’t things that we do in the eyes of the people, they are things that we do in the background, and we are busy with those kinds of things. It’s work that we are doing with regards to how we ensure that we increase aviation capacity in terms of the seats coming to the country."