Conceptualising Cultural EnvironmentsLecture Six: the rise of cultural tourism

Defining Tourism According to the World Tourism Organisation a tourist

can be be defined as a person “travelling to and staying in places outside their usual environment”

The word tourism stems from the latin word ‘tornare’ which essentially means circle

The WTO identifies three different forms of tourism Domestic tourism where people travel within their own

country Inbound tourism where non-residents travel into the

country Outbound tourism where people travel to another

country

The Importance of TourismTourism plays an increasingly important role in

post-industrial societyDespite the economic downturn, instability in the

Middle East and natural disasters in Japan international tourist arrivals grew by 4.4% in 2011 to a total of 980million

The tourist sector is responsible for 5% of the world’s GDP

In advanced and emerging economies one in every 12 people are employed in tourism related industries

Tourism in GlasgowAccording to Glasgow City Marketing Bureau

Glasgow attracts 2.3 million visitors per yearThis generates around £600 million for the

local economyThe majority of Glasgow’s overseas visitors

(12%) come from the USA In 2009/10 events supported by or managed by

GCMB achieved an economic impact of £28.4 million for the city

The Grand Tour Tourism has always existed in some shape or form although

previously it was only accessible to the very wealthy The Grand Tour refers to the travels of wealthy young men in

Europe This was seen as a rite of passage which was concerned with

exposing members of the nobility to the cultural legacy of classical antiquity and the Renaissance, and to the aristocratic and fashionably polite society of the European continent. ‘Tourists’ were often accompanied by a cicerone – a knowledgeable guide

A grand tour lasted anywhere between a few months to several years

Common places to visit on The Grand Tour included Paris, Switzerland, Barcelona, Turin, Florence, Venice and Rome

We Do Like to be Beside the Seaside…. The seaside had long been a popular tourist

destination with the upper and middle classes who visited spa towns such as Bath for their health benefits

The dirty, noisy and unhealthy environment of the industrial city meant that escaping to rural and seaside areas became increasingly attractive to the working classes

Thus, we saw the development of seaside resorts such as Blackpool

In Scotland, the Firth of Clyde offered an escape to workers in Glasgow who would go ‘Doon the Watter’

Thomas Cook and the Advent of the Package HolidayThe package holiday was first developed by

Thomas Cook who organised his first trip in 1841 where he arranged for a group of 540 campaigners to travel from Leicester to Loughborough

Essentially a package trip consists of travel and accomodation being sold as a package

Development of holiday camps such as Butlins

Foreign TravelWith the rise of the holiday resort in the UK the

middle and upper classes began to look further afield

The French Riviera and Spanish Costas became popular holiday destinations

The popularity of Nice as a holiday destination for the English led to its seafront being named the Promenade des Anglais

Mass TourismWith increases in disposable income, holiday

entitlement, advances in technology and the expansion of air travel travelling abroad became much more accessible to the mass population

As before, the working classes tended to follow in the footsteps of the upper and middle classes with destinations such as Spain becoming increasingly popular

This would mainly consist of the traditional package holiday

Tourism Today The world is getting smaller! Travel to almost anywhere

in the world is now a distinct possibility for many of us Rise of low cost airlines and short city breaks Decline of the package holiday We want to tailor our own experiences Rise of niche tourism We seek out increasingly exotic destinations

The student gap year

But we need to think about what we are looking for?

The Search for Authenticity? It could be suggested than we travel abroad we

are searching for an authentic experienceWe want to experience the ‘real’ cultureBut do we really? It could be suggested that we often want to

experience what we perceive to be an authentic experience

MacCannell (1973) refers to the notion of staged authenticity

Full Circle: the importance of tourism Many towns, cities and regions now rely on tourism as

a main driver of their economy The benefits of tourism can be both direct and

indirect Employment in hotels, restaurants, bars, etc Trickle down effect and support industries

But, following a tourism related development strategy can have its down sides Jobs are often seasonal and poorly paid Emergence of new destinations and increasing

competition Homogenisation of destinations?

Events: standing out from the crowdMany destinations play upon their history and

heritage to distinguish themselvesEvents can have an important role to play hereSimilarly, many cities such as Glasgow follow

an events led development strategy as a means of raising their profile on a global level and attracting tourism

More of this from John in Week 10!