Sacral heritage in cultural and geographical trans-boundary space of Europe

Boundary zones are areas of mutual penetration of social, economic and cultural elements. They are conveyor belts of some kind, carriers of information, thoughts, actions, also in the context of broadly understood cultural heritage (including faith and religion). What is important - such regions are the clear nodal points (or even zones), focusing and targeting (or blocking) the transfer of many ideological, religious and cultural elements, often different from each other. The purpose of this article is to show the diversity of religious heritage in the area of influence of several cultures, faiths and religions, and also an attempt to interpret it in terms of the development of religious tourism in Europe. Based on the studies of valuation of the cultural landscape and directions of influence of cross-border ties, the categorisation of regions in terms of their potential and cultural and touristic attractiveness has also been attempted

Sacral landscape and its influence on the tourism space development in the region (based on the example of Western Pomerania region NW Poland)

Formed through the centuries, cultural landscape of the region includes not only the material realm in the form of numerous historical buildings, monuments and other evidences of local society’s development, but also significant immaterial realm, which manifests itself in the form of spiritual heritage, faith, tradition, customs and language. Interesting, often unique in terms of religious and historical point of view, religious buildings, as well as traditional pilgrimage routes and local shrines are now undeniable qualities, shaping the touristic space of the region. The study of the tourism movement and a detailed valuation analysis of sacred objects showed that the wide ranging cultural tourism (with the significant participation of religious tourism) is a great alternative to still popular, although in many places it is already too saturated, leisure tourism. The historical values and a multitude of interesting, often unique objects with proper promotional activity may contribute to the tourist interest of places that often have been overlooked. The main aim of this article is to show the spatial diversity of the phenomenon of religious tourism and valuation of the landscape in terms of its usefulness as an area of cultural tourism in the region, so far perceived through the prism of seaside leisure tourism. Valuation of facilities and pilgrim routes by way of grading point while enhancing statistical information on tourism, led to create an image (a map) of the spatial diversity of the religious tourism phenomenon and its juxtaposition with other forms of tourism in the region. Thanks to this type of observations, in the future it will be possible to create a model showing the possibilities of alternative forms of tourism (including religious and cultural tourism) to formulate the touristic space. This, for example, will allow to eliminate the problems associated with the seasonality of coastal and leisure tourism, offering a new, often overlooked spaces of interest in the region

Between the Sacrum and Profanum. Geographical Determinants of Development of the Sacral Landscape and Religious Tourism Space in Areas of High Cultural and Transformations (Western Pomerania, NW Poland)

The aim of this article is to present the role of geographic factors (elements of the natural, social and geopolitical environment) in shaping the broadly construed sacral landscape, with particular emphasis on its impact on the development of religious tourism space. The individual determinant of the development of the sacral landscape of the region is its individual and symbolic perception of sacrum but its final form and spatial and materialistic organization are influenced by numerous factors of non-religious nature (profanum). Geological considerations, relief, vegetation, and even climatic and weather phenomena largely determine the image of the cultural landscape and delimit its extent. The role of individual features is very difficult to estimate. The sacral landscape, or its materialistic form of a religious landscape, enjoys a great interest in tourism activity, not only in the context of pilgrimage and religious tourism, but also as widely understood cultural tourism. In such context of construal of the cultural landscape development, the selection of Western Pomerania region (NW Poland) seems justified, as an example of the specific area that links sacrum and profanum. This region, with its rich and complicated history, has repeatedly experienced diametric changes of a spatial, social, cultural and religious nature. Due to the geographical location and the relief formed during the last glaciation, also a characteristic natural landscape has developed here, which significantly influenced the specificity of the Pomeranian community

Religious Tourism vs. Sacred Space Experience: Conflict or complementary interaction?

Contemporary religious tourism, which in many cases is incorrectly identified with the phenomenon of pilgrimage, has developed in recent years as a separate form of migration and activity in the tourism space. However, in the literature of the subject, there is a large variety of problem perspectives, depending on the viewpoint chosen by the given author and the scientific discipline that he/she represents. The most frequently occurring problem is the terminological ambiguity regarding the concepts of ‘religious tourism’ and ‘pilgrimage’. The aim of this article is to draw attention to the diversity of understanding of the sacred space presented by its users, as well as the relations between non-religious aspects (profanum) of a sacred place and the essence thereof – the sacrum. The authors have attempted to answer the questions of whether the contemporary experience of sacred spaces affects (and how) the experience of the sacrum and whether or not the elements of profanum stand in opposition to the perception of sanctity of the pilgrimage site; as well as to attempt forming an analytical look at the importance of the terms in question in light of the contemporary research on traveling to sacred sites, and to draw attention to the manner of perceiving such a site through the form of migration and stay in the given place

The local community perception of tourism development. The case study of Gryfino County - Western Pomerania, Poland

An increasing number of people from various countries have seen tourism as a chance to develop local economy and quality of life. The article presents the results of the analysis of tourism potential of Gryfino County in Western Pomerania in Poland and confronts them with how it is perceived by the residents. Although the county abounds in great tourist attractions, both of natural and cultural nature and is favourably located in geographic terms, tourism is developing very slowly. In order to examine the reasons for the current situation, an attempt to survey the opinion of the local community on this subject was made by applying the method of Focus Group Interviews. The results emphasise the significance of local community for tourism development in a region

Hospitality on the Camino de Santiago: Clues from Interviews with Hospitaleros During the Pandemic

The practice of making the pilgrimage along the Camino de Santiago (the Way of Saint James), one of the three most important medieval pilgrimage routes in Europe, has undergone various transformations related to religious, cultural and political considerations. In 2019, the Pilgrim’s Reception Office in Santiago de Compostela recorded 327,378 pilgrims from all over the world. The aim of this research was to understand the impact of the pandemic on hospitaleros – the individuals who host pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago – and perform a comparative analysis against the hotel industry. In particular, it was noted that in a majority of studies and papers on the tourism and hotel industry, the primary criteria of evaluation were economic issues and the impact of the pandemic on the economy in terms of supply–demand and seller–buyer relationships. The study examined the characteristics of hospitality, which – in an etymological sense – is understood as cordiality and selfless kindness shown to strangers and is regarded in culture as one of the most valuable attitudes towards other human beings. In public discourse, the term most frequently appears in reference to travels, pilgrimages, tourism and other forms of intercultural contact, including diplomacy and migration policy

How to present a marginal destination? Comparative studies on tour-guiding methodology in under-tourism areas

PURPOSE: The purpose of the article is to show the role of the guide (interpreter) in the new tourism reality. Particularly important seem to be the challenges that await the tourist guide in marginal regions.DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: The paper uses social research methods based on expert interviews and surveys among users of the narrative process in the Western Baltic Sea Region. Thanks to this combination of methods, a complete picture of the challenges faced by contemporary tourism and the interpretation of tourist destinations was obtained.FINDINGS: The research showed relationships between the interpretation tools used and the level of understanding of the destination by its users. Particularly valuable are the results of studies indicating such relationships.PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: Research has a very strong translation into practical application. With such indications, further interpretive activities can be planned, especially in places that need additional attention, are less well known and face the problem of undertourism.ORIGINALITY/VALUE: The article presents the results of own desk research. The issue presented has not previously been addressed in discussions published internationally.The project is financed within the framework of the program of the Minister of Science and Higher Education under the name “Regional Excellence Initiative” in the years 2019 – 2022; project number 001/RID/2018/19; the amount of financing PLN 10,684,000.00.peer-reviewe