1. PETER ROBINSON MICHAEL LÜCK STEPHEN L. J. SMITH
TOURISM
PETER ROBINSON MICHAEL LÜCK STEPHEN L. J. SMITH

2. 9
Visitor Attractions

3. Learning Objectives
To understand the importance of attractions for the tourism industry
To describe and classify different types of attractions
To understand different ownership and management of different types of attractions
To appreciate the role of events as attraction

4. Classification Four main types (Swarbrooke, 2002)
1. Features within the natural environment
2. Human-made buildings, structures and sites that were designed for a purpose other than attracting visitors, such as religious worship, but which now attract substantial numbers of visitors who use them as leisure amenities
3. Human-made buildings, structures and sites that are designed to attract visitors and are purpose- built to accommodate their needs, such as theme parks
4. Special events

5. Classification Another frequent typology is based on Natural features
Man-made features
Cultural features
Any combination of these three

6. resource, catering, interpretation, retailing, events, conferences,
Classification
PRODUCT
resource, catering, interpretation, retailing, events, conferences,
activities
FREE
PAID
BUILT
NATURAL
LOCAL MARKET
REGIONAL MARKET
NATIONAL
INTERNATIONAL
OWNERSHIP
(Leask, 2003, p. 7)

7. Ownership Public Central government Government agencies
Local authorities
State industries
Voluntary organizations
Charitable trusts
Private clubs and associations
Private
Individuals and partnerships
Private companies
Corporations

8. Attraction Attributes (Weaver and Lawton, 2010)
Ownership and orientation
Spatial configuration
Authenticity
Scarcity
Status
Carrying capacity
Accessibility
Market
Context

9. Non-purpose-built Attractions
Created for different purpose, but evolved into an attraction
Churches (e.g. Notre Dame in Paris)
Shopping malls (e.g. West Edmonton Mall, Canada)
Factories (e.g. Coca Cola in Atlanta)
Industrial sites (e.g. Waihi Gold Mine, New Zealand)
Modern buildings (e.g. Sydney Opera House)
Superstructures (e.g. Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco)

10. World Heritage
Identified and declared by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
Three categories
Outstanding natural heritage
Outstanding cultural heritage
Outstanding natural and cultural heritage

11. World Heritage Issues/challenges
Managing access (access versus conservation)
‘Edutainment’
Ownership

12. Events as Attraction MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Events)
Event types
Festivals
Tournaments
Other

13. Events as Attraction Mega-events Legacies Opportunities
Infrastructure improvements
Community involvement/development

14. Visitor Interpretation
Various techniques
Signs and plates
Audio tours
Video screenings
Guidebooks/brochures
Personal interpretation (by tour guide)
The role of the Tourist Information Centre

15. References
Leask, A. (2003) The nature and purpose of visitor attarctions. In: Fyall, A., Garrod, B. and Leask, A. (eds) Managing Visitor Attractions: New Directions. Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann, Amsterdam, pp. 5–15.
Swarbrooke, J. (2002) The Development & Management of Visitor Attractions, 2nd edn. Butterworth Heinemann, Oxford, UK.
Weaver, D. and Lawton, L. (2010) Tourism Management, 4th edn. Wiley and Sons, Milton, Australia.