Tourism and Sacred Sites

Abstract

What is the tourism of sacred sites? What sites are considered sacred and for what reasons? In the Australian psyche the tourism of sacred sites is readily identified with visits to Uluru or to locales where ancient rock paintings link tourists to the Dreamtime. In addition, we need to acknowledge other sacred sites which have developed their sacredness since 1788. These may include natural formations, architectural works and built environments such as sporting grounds and heritage sites. Diana’s death provoked people to lay wreaths at the gates of Buckingham Palace and her grave site has been developed as a tourist attraction are these sacred sites? What attracts tourists to these sites and what makes them sacred? Is it truly the experience of the numinous that flows from the encounter of the individual with the place? Do tourists add or detract from the sacredness of the site or do they leave it untouched? Are there forms of tourism that are more deleterious and/or more supportive of that sacredness? This paper is written and will be delivered as a dialectic dialogue.