Abstract
Recently, in line with the increased attention paid to cultural tourism in general and to religious tourism in particular, researchers and practitioners have become increasingly interested in the analysis of various aspects related to cultural heritage in order to capitalize on its value by means of its interpretation, thus providing beneficial effects both for tourists and for tourism’s sustainable development. The aim of this research is to analyze the extent to which the methods of interpretation of the religious cultural heritage: guiding tours, quality reception, and relic worship influence the satisfaction of tourists participating in the “Saint Parascheva” pilgrimage, held annually by the Metropolitan Cathedral in Iasi. The data were collected by means of a survey (N = 932) and the information was processed by using the SPSS version 25 program. Our results indicate the significant influence that the potential to worship relics has on pilgrims’ satisfaction compared to other interpretation methods, such as the relationship with the Cathedral’s staff or the possibility of participating in guided tours. Pilgrims’ satisfaction is also perceived differently depending on certain aspects of their socio-demographic profile, i.e., their age and the perceived faith level. This study is relevant for researchers, managers, and students interested in the field of cultural heritage interpretation in genera, and in the field of religious heritage in particular, and could significantly contribute to improving pilgrims’ satisfaction as well as cultural heritage preservation.
Highlights
IntroductionIn 2017, the revenue from traveling to national and international religious sites was above USD 18 billion at the global level [2]
As part of cultural tourism and one of the oldest types of traveling, religious tourism has developed extensively, the number of people traveling for this purpose reaching 330 million
It is stated that, in terms of sustainability, the pilgrimage is more important than religious tourism because, in the first case, it is the profound experience itself that matters the most, while religious tourism is limited to scenic externality [11]
Summary
In 2017, the revenue from traveling to national and international religious sites was above USD 18 billion at the global level [2] Such an evolution has occurred as a consequence of the increased interest in religious heritage as well as in finding an appropriate location for manifesting religious feelings and for exploring the spiritual dimension deeply ingrained in the human being. Religious sites, including churches, temples, and mosques, are endowed with extremely powerful intangible values For this reason, they may be regarded as pilgrimage recollection and concentration sites [6]. They may be regarded as pilgrimage recollection and concentration sites [6] In this context, definitions provided by geographers include the term “space”, understood as a “sacred or saint” place [3,7].
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