Festivalisation and its effects on the urban space

Abstract

In this chapter, the basic conceptions and definitions related to festivalisation, the main impacts of festivals on space, the concept of festival tourism and the most important types of festivalisation spaces are characterised. The description of the basic conceptions and definitions related to festivalisation includes concepts such as geographical space and its types, or urban space. This is the theoretical basis for the analysis developed further in the book. The concept of festivalisation and its main features are investigated in this chapter as well. In the next subchapter, the most important impacts of festivals on urban space, divided into tangible, intangible, positive, and negative ones, are described. Further on, the reader can find references to festival tourism, first to the understanding of the concept of tourism and its classifications. The definitions of tourism, tourists and tourist assets are given here as well. Later the definition of festival tourism as one of the tourism types is formulated, and its influence on tourism space is briefly presented. The last subchapter presents festivalisation spaces. They are urban spaces which festivals influence most strongly: e.g. festival centres as spaces of permanent festivalisation, or theatres, museums, streets and squares, occupied temporarily for festival purposes. The theoretical characteristic of different festivalisation spaces is supplemented with many practical examples.