The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) recently highlighted the impact of tourism to religious and/or spiritual sites.
The organization states in a news release issued this month:
According to UNWTO estimates, 300 to 330 million tourists visit the world´s key religious sites every year, with approximately 600 million national and international religious voyages in the world, 40% of which take place in Europe. Being key tourism destinations, religious heritage sites not only drive international tourism and economic growth, but also provide important meeting grounds for visitors and host communities, making vital contributions to tolerance, respect and mutual understanding between different cultures.
The UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai opened the International Conference on Religious Heritage and Tourism: Types, trends and challenges, which was jointly organized in Elche, Spain at the end of November by UNWTO, the Ministry of Industry, Energy and Tourism of Spain and the Elche City Hall.
In his opening address he stated:
Among the many motivations for travelling, visiting cultural or religious sites ranks high on travelers’ wish lists. Leveraging the growing interest for religious tourism worldwide is not only beneficial for the tourism sector, but crucial in building cultural dialogue and peace. Religious tourism can also be a powerful instrument for raising awareness regarding the importance of safeguarding one´s heritage and that of humanity, and help preserve these important sites for future generations.”
The stated aim of the Conference was “to raise awareness of the importance of religious heritage in tourism development and to discuss best practices in developing them sustainably for tourism purposes, with a view to fulfilling their enormous potential for local stakeholders and visitors alike.”
It highlighted tourism to religious sites in general, but some speakers presented case studies regarding specific places. And the sessions dealt with many general issues that are applicable when thinking about the preservation, promotion and management of Jewish built heritage.
One panel, for example discussed “how to realize this immense potential of the use of religious and cultural heritage for tourism purposes, how to foster effective and equitable partnerships between stakeholders, and ultimately how to safeguard all forms of heritage.”
See the program of the conference here.
Some of the presentations and videos can be seen here.
3 comments on “Impact of tourism to religious heritage highlighted”
I’m as interested in finding out about my genetic past as much as I am interested in finding out about my faith, Judaism, from its inception. Basically, it is the things that I greatly identify with that interests me in visiting places I travel to. I don’t think that this, if personal interests are the motivators of tourists to do their traveling, will make any differences in tolerance. What I do see, instead, is the strengthening of one’s self-identity as their family’s pasts and origins.
Quite honestly, as long as the purposes for one’s travels are met, personal gain will result from it, positive or negative. When I went to Poland to seek information of my ancestors, which was my intention, I found little of what I was seeking to find out, so that purpose wasn’t met, but I did find out about the Jewish culture as it once was in the regions of Poland where my ancestors are from, so one purpose was met.
I found the people I met in Poland to be quite welcoming. They knew I was an American, but not a Jew. If they did that might have caused tension, but that remains to be learned. In all candor, when I took my trips to my family’s ancestral towns, to find out about what they specifically did and how the lived that was distinct in their region, I was there on serious business, not for all leisure. While focusing on my family’s past I couldn’t care less about other people who might have been tourists, too, including my travel mates. I was already enjoying my trip, from what I gained from it, without them.
I’m a bit puzzled by this article. I don’t doubt its accuracy, but what seems lacking are the many reasons for visiting religious sites. The term ‘religious tourism’ implies that the tourists are themselves automatically religious, which I dispute. When I travel, I often visit churches, mosques, temples, synagogues and other places of worship. I do so to gain insights into other cultures and to see and admire examples of interesting architectural, and sometimes artistically decorated, buildings. As a Jewish atheist I’m not there for spiritual uplift, except in the broadest possible terms.
Thanks for your comment. I suggest you follow the links to read the full news release and see the program of the conference. I think it’s pretty clear that while many people visit these sites for “religious reasons”, many others, in many if not most cases probably the majority, visit — like you — sites of religious heritage (churches, synagogues, cemeteries, monasteries, shrines, etc) as part of general tourism to historic and cultural sites and attractions. Here again is the link to the news release http://media.unwto.org/press-release/2014-12-10/tourism-can-protect-and-promote-religious-heritage