The sacred and the profane: A Tourist Typology

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0160-7383(01)00088-3Get rights and content

Abstract

Much writing treats the tourist as a unitary type, confined to a touristic bubble. Attempts have been made to subdivide the tourist by developing various typologies. These approaches neglect the tourists' voice. By contrast, this paper's case study from Chalkidiki, Greece, indicates that different tourist types experience the same host community in different ways. Analysis of qualitative data from 86 British holidaymakers has led to the identification of five micro-types. Each is characterized by the dominant themes identified for their choice of holiday, types of activities, and views about the host community.

Résumé

Le sacré et le profane: une typologie de touristes. Beaucoup de littérature traite le touriste comme un genre unitaire, enfermé dans une bulle touristique. On a essayé de subdiviser le touriste en développant différentes typologies. Ces approches ne tiennent pas compte de la voix des touristes. Par contraste, l'étude de cas de Chalkidiki (Grèce) de cet article indique que différents types de touristes font l'expérience de la même communauté d'accueil de façon différente. Une analyse des données qualitatives de 86 vacanciers britanniques a mené à l'identification de cinq microtypes. Chacun se caractérise par le motif principal qu'ils identifient pour leur choix de vacances, les sortes d'activités et leur perception de la communauté d'accueil.

Introduction

Although much writing on tourism treats the tourist as a unitary type, some analysts have recognized that an understanding of the touristic experience requires constructing typologies (Cohen 1972). It is argued that focusing on the tourists themselves and their typological forms helps explain why people are attracted to specific destinations (Jafari 1989:26–27).

Following a brief review of the literature on typologies of roles and experiences, this paper presents a case study from Chalkidiki, a region in Northern Greece, which shows that different tourist types experience the same host community in different ways. Analysis of qualitative data obtained from 86 British participants has led to the identification of five types: the Cultural Heritage, the Raver, the Shirley Valentine, the Heliolatrous, and the Lord Byron. Each category brackets off a set of respondents who exhibit similarities in their enactment of a particular role (Goffman 1967). Using Goffman's theoretical heritage, together with ethnographic evidence from Chalkidiki, this paper suggests that, while tourists commit themselves to play the institutionalized role (Cohen 1972), they may also choose an additional role by entering into one of five scenarios observed in Kalimeria.

Kalimeria (a pseudonym) is a coastal village/resort in Kassandra, Chalkidiki. The region is a fast developing tourism area and is evolving into one of the largest destinations in Northern Greece. Chalkidiki has a plethora of attractions, including long golden beaches, traditional villages, and the ancient site of Stagira, the birth place of Aristotle. Like other holiday regions in Greece, it can “guarantee” the sun. Therefore, it is not surprising that Chalkidiki becomes congested during the summer months with both foreign and domestic tourists. Extreme peaks occur between mid-July and mid-August. Most arrivals originate from northern European countries, particularly the United Kingdom, Germany, and Austria. A high proportion are drawn from the lower income brackets.

Section snippets

The Sacred and the Profane

The literature demonstrates that some analysts have felt the need to subdivide tourists into categories (Cohen 1972, 1974; Pearce 1982). Cohen was one of the first sociologists to propose a typology to conceptually clarify the term “tourist”. His four-fold typology—the drifter, the explorer, the individual mass, and the organized mass—is based on the degree of institutionalization of the tourist. This classification is often cited in academic studies, and attempts have been made to develop and

Conclusion

This paper presented evidence that participants on an organized package holiday to Chalkidiki commit themselves into Cohen's individual mass tourist role. An understanding of this commitment is developed in terms of three feeling states or motivating forces: the wish to escape from everyday life, the pursuit of pleasure, and ontological security. In addition, this paper has argued that, despite an individual's commitment to play the part assigned to him/her by the industry, an individual also

Eugenia Wickens is Senior Lecturer in Tourism, and Faculty Research Student Tutor in the Faculty of Leisure and Tourism, Buckinghamshire Chilterns University College (Wellesbourne Campus, Kingshill Road, High Wycombe HP13 5BB, UK. Email <[email protected]>). Her current research interests are in coastal and heritage tourism, tourists' experiences and behavior, motivation, and particularly in the sociocultural impacts of tourism.

References (27)

  • A. Giddens

    Modernity and Self-identity

    (1991)
  • A. Giddens

    The Consequences of Modernity

    (1992)
  • A. Giddens

    Encounters: Two Studies in the Sociology of Interaction

    (1961)
  • Cited by (220)

    • On-site animosity and national identity: Business travelers on stage

      2021, Annals of Tourism Research
      Citation Excerpt :

      The travelers' transition from one strategy to another (as illustrated in Fig. 1) supported Goffman's notion of role performances (1961) and the perspective of performativity (Edensor, 2000, 2001), according to which travelers have some degree of freedom in performing their roles. As noted, this point of view has been supported empirically by studies on leisure travelers (e.g., Edensor, 2000, 2001; Jacobsen, 2000; Wickens, 2002). The findings of the present study revealed that Israeli business travelers may also choose to some extent whether to embrace a social role (their national identity) or distance themselves from it.

    • Tourist experiences: Insights from psychology

      2024, Tourist Experiences: Insights from Psychology
    View all citing articles on Scopus

    Eugenia Wickens is Senior Lecturer in Tourism, and Faculty Research Student Tutor in the Faculty of Leisure and Tourism, Buckinghamshire Chilterns University College (Wellesbourne Campus, Kingshill Road, High Wycombe HP13 5BB, UK. Email <[email protected]>). Her current research interests are in coastal and heritage tourism, tourists' experiences and behavior, motivation, and particularly in the sociocultural impacts of tourism.

    View full text