Form Of Cultural Tourism Research Articles

Budapest: from socialist heritage to cultural capital?

As observed by Hughes and Allen (2005). [Cultural tourism in Central and Eastern Europe: The views of ‘induced image formation agents’. Tourism Management, 26(2), 173–183], cultural tourism in Hungary appears to be almost inseparable from general tourism, therefore Budapest has traditionally promoted itself as a cultural capital. However, the emphasis has mainly been on heritage tourism [Smith, M.K., & Puczkó, L. (2010). Out with the old, in with the New? 20 years of post-socialist marketing in Budapest. Journal of City Marketing, 1(3), 288–299] and in the first few years following 1989, socialist heritage was particularly important [Rátz, T. (2004). European tourism. Székesfehérvár: Kodolányi János University College; Young, C., & Light, D. (2006). ‘Communist heritage tourism’: Between economic development and European integration. In D. Hassenpflug, B. Kolbmüller, & S. Schröder-Esch (Eds.), Heritage and media in Europe – contributing towards integration and regional development (pp. 249–263). Weimar: Bauhaus Universität]. Several years later, the globalisation of Budapest means that the city is gradually changing its image to incorporate not only heritage (including that of pre-socialist regimes), but also more diverse forms of cultural tourism to compete with many other destinations worldwide. A combination of methods are used to show the development of heritage and cultural tourism in Budapest, including over 4000 surveys collected in 2009 in conjunction with the Budapest Cultural Work Group on the cultural habits of tourists in Budapest and a content analysis of 20 years of city marketing materials (1989–2009). Evidence suggests that although some creative approaches to packaging and marketing cultural tourism exist in Budapest, the product is still mainly heritage-focused. The authors discuss the extent to which this is the most appropriate form of development for the Hungarian capital. The changing cultural image and identity of Budapest will also be explored in relation to national, regional, and global developments. One of the other key questions is how far the focus of cultural tourism should remain on the national capital in a country where other cities and towns are relatively under-visited.

Re-branding the Levant: contested heritage and colonial modernities in Amman and Damascus

Western understandings of ‘heritage’ have long-shaped efforts to promote historical conservation and forms of cultural tourism in the Middle East and North Africa. In recent years, however, new localised ‘rediscovereries’ of urban heritage and a restorative building boom have emerged across many formerly colonised regions and the cities of the Eastern Mediterranean. These efforts are now engaging with, and beginning to compete against, Western imaginations of non-Western history and culture. This article examines projects of urban restoration in two very different cities: Damascus – often presented as the oldest continually inhabited city in the world – and Amman – a recently settled urban space with no significant history at all. While noting the dominance of interpretations of heritage shaped by Western (post)colonial discourses, the article argues that such readings cannot adequately explain how understandings of heritage develop when more localised views come into play. Although equally imbued with notions of (colonial) nostalgia and romance, these new local efforts use a different positionality to articulate and express their understanding and appreciation of the (more recent) past.

Pilgrimage tourism and english cathedrals: The role of religion in travel

Visiting cathedrals is one form of cultural tourism. The motivations of these visits are of worldly nature. Cultural heritage and architecture are the main points of attraction. However, on the spot visitors are usually touched by religious feelings.