2.1 Cultural Heritage Tourism
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Pao Yue-kong Library, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong http://www.lib.polyu.edu.hk AN EXPERIENCESCAPE APPROACH TO TOURIST EXPERIENCES OF INTANGIBLE CULTURAL HERITAGE – THE CASE OF MACAU CHEN ZHAOYU PhD The Hong Kong Polytechnic University 2018 The Hong Kong Polytechnic University School of Hotel and Tourism Management An experiencescape approach to tourist experiences of intangible cultural heritage - the case of Macau CHEN ZHAOYU A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy April 2018 CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY I hereby declare that this thesis is my own work and that, to the best of my knowledge and belief, it reproduces no material previously published or written, nor material that has been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma, except where due acknowledgement has been made in the text. __________________ CHEN ZHAOYU ABSTRACT If destinations are to become and remain competitive in the global tourism industry, destination management organizations (DMOs) should understand the experiences that tourists are seeking when engaging with key attractions (Willson & McIntosh, 2007). Attractions which are reflective of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) provide an avenue for authentic experiences and may offer positioning, which reflects the cultural diversity of a place and its people. At the same time, it offers new experiences to meet tourists’ needs. Experiencescapes are spaces of pleasure, enjoyment and entertainment, which are sought by both producers and consumers. The examination of experiencescapes and the roles that different stakeholders play within them can lead to meaningful tourist experiences. This study examines perspectives towards Macau’s tourist experiencescapes with a particular reference to the ICH dimension. An experiencescape approach has been adopted because Macau is a World Heritage City with strengths in cultural tourism, which can potentially contribute to the economy. The study investigates how ICH in a tourism-dependent World Heritage City provides a resource for enhancing tourist experiencescapes. It also explores processes of constructing tourist experiencescapes within the context of ICH. A qualitative approach is applied to explore the various components of tourist experiencescapes that are associated with ICH in Macau. Using three typical ICH events (A-Ma Festival, Feast of Drunken Dragon, Feast of Na Tcha) in the research scope, this study investigated tourist participants on their evolving event experience process in three continuous stages (pre-event, on-site, post- event stages). Various stakeholders’ subjective perspectives were collected. Given the complexity of ICH experiencescapes, the proposed framework is confined to outlining tourist perspectives of their evolving event experience in a i dynamic process. Detailed elaborations of other stakeholder perspectives were highlighted within their sphere. Various managerial implications were eventually raised to the key stakeholders for better delivering the ICH event experiences to tourists, particularly the DMO in Macau. The results of this study provide a holistic view of the construction of tourist experiencescapes in the ICH context in Macau. The study offers a preliminary step towards the application of experiencescapes in the field of ICH and encourages the further exploration of this concept in other destination contexts or similar contexts. Keywords: experiencescapes, intangible cultural heritage, cultural heritage tourism, DMO, Macau ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Thanks for the finishing touches on my thesis. It has been a period of intense learning for me, not only in the research process, but also on my personal research skills. This thesis presents the lessons learned in school and it is a good test to check my comprehensive learning outcomes in my educational path. I am a lucky person who always meets the nicest people around. I would like to reflect on the countless people who have supported and helped me every step throughout my PhD study. First, I would like to offer my sincere gratitude to my PhD supervisors, Dr. Wantanee Suntikul and Prof. Brian King of the School of Hotel & Tourism Management at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University for their valuable guidance throughout my thesis with their patience and knowledge. I would also like to thank the organizers, performers and representatives from MGTO and IC and those anonymous tourists who were involved in the interview for data collection. Without their passionate participation and input, the survey could not have been successfully conducted. I also recognize the support from those research helpers who assisted me greatly in conducting the survey onsite. I would particularly like to single out Associate Professor Dr. Lee Ho Yin at The University of Hong Kong (HKU) who has offered me wise counsel. He always has time to listen to my confusion about the research. I am grateful to have him for his unconditional support. With a special mention to my alma mater – the Institute For Tourism Studies in Macau (IFT), where I have fond attachment. Thanks for those IFT teaching and research staff who always give generous assistance to my research. I have special friends to thank, my previous colleagues in HKU where I met amazing people while having learnt much from them in many ways. They encouraged, supported and took care of me all the time from the beginning. I iii have nothing but heartfelt appreciation and deep respect for them. I am also grateful to my HKhICON friends who gave me the moral support along the way. Finally, I must express my very profound gratitude to my parents for providing me with unfailing support and continuous encouragement throughout my years of study. I am also grateful to my friends who have always trusted me from the very start of my PhD journey. This accomplishment would not have been possible without all support from the above, especially their moral support. All of you are my most valuable treasure worth remembering my whole life. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ........................................................................................ i ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ............................................................... iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................... v LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................. x LIST OF FIGURES......................................................................... xii CHAPTER ONE – INTRODUCTION .............................................. 1 1.1 Background to the study ........................................................................ 1 1.1.1 Background of Macau .................................................................... 5 1.1.2 Experiencescapes ........................................................................... 7 1.2 Problem statement ............................................................................... 10 1.3 Research questions .............................................................................. 15 1.4 Research objectives ............................................................................. 16 1.5 Significance of study ........................................................................... 16 1.6 Scope of research ................................................................................. 19 1.7 Limitations ........................................................................................... 21 1.8 Structure of study ................................................................................ 22 CHAPTER TWO - LITERATURE REVIEW ................................. 24 2.1 Cultural heritage tourism ..................................................................... 24 2.1.1 Cultural heritage ........................................................................... 24 2.1.2 Cultural heritage tourism.............................................................. 25 2.1.3 Relationship between cultural heritage and tourism .................... 28 2.1.4 Balancing the interests of tourism and cultural heritage .............. 29 2.1.5 Trends in tourism and cultural heritage ....................................... 32 2.1.6 Issues in cultural heritage and tourism ......................................... 34 2.2 Intangible cultural heritage (ICH) ....................................................... 35 2.2.1 Issue of ICH in general ...............................................................