Developing and managing rock art tourism: The importance of site histories, visitor centres, visitor books and visitor experience

Abstract

Archaeotourism is a major global industry that takes many forms, from onsite visitation to museum visits and, increasingly, various sorts of virtual experience. Of the different types of places people like to visit those with rock art can be particularly powerful. Rock art consists of paintings, prints, stencils, petroglyphs, bas relief and other human-made marks in caves and rock shelters, as well as on boulders and rock platforms. Worldwide there is growing public interest in visiting rock art sites or replicas of important sites closed to the public. Across Southeast Asia there are a range of sites open for public visitation with widely variable infrastructure, management strategies, custodial arrangements and funding. Management and conservation plans are rare as are long-term monitoring programme. However, sites remain popular with tourists and often are a source of national pride. In this paper, these issues are explored with examples from various Southeast Asian countries, especially Malaysia. Lessons from new research into Australian rock art tourism is also referred to. Among other things, the importance of site histories, visitor books and visitor centres for rock art sites open for tourism is emphasised, as well as the nature of visitor information and experience. It is concluded that rock art site visits should be grounded in other sorts of archaeological tourism as well as experiences of nature wherever possible. Also, we need to make sure sites are well looked after and not 'loved to death'. Lastly, these sorts of tourism experiences can be promoted as a way of enhancing personal health and well-being given recent happiness' research results from many parts of the world.