Identity and community—Reflections on the development of mining heritage tourism in Southern Spain

Abstract

The aim of this article is to highlight the effect of social identities and the role of the symbolic community in the development of heritage tourism. This perspective expands on the classic relationship between identity and tourism, going beyond the accepted influence of tourism on identities. Here, special emphasis is placed on the effect of community identities on heritage tourism. Research was carried out in four mining areas in Southern Spain where there has been little or no development of the heritage tourism industry. The results obtained are of interest for two reasons: on the one hand, they provide in-depth insight into the nature of industrial heritage tourism; and on the other, they have a clearly practical dimension that recommends the inclusion of indicators relating to community identity in the assessment, planning and management of this type of tourism.