Advocating community integrated destination marketing planning in heritage destinations: the case of York

ABSTRACT

Tourist destinations are complex, with a mix of political and commercial activity that, to varying extents, involves or employs different methods of participation in the tourism decision-making process. More specifically, within the context of heritage tourism, planning and development should respond to the values that host communities place upon their heritage. The building of partnerships between destination management organisations and host communities could enable authentic collaboration in the design and development of heritage tourism. The purpose of this paper is to highlight and explore the challenges and opportunities of facilitating community engagement in heritage destination management. Through examining an approach adopted in York, this paper explores the extent to which participation in tourism planning and development allows community members to take ownership of their heritage and result in more positive community attitudes towards tourism. The study concludes by suggesting that the approach adopted in York facilitated positive community engagement with stakeholder involvement in destination decision-making achieved through a focused and well-considered programme of activity.

KEYWORDS:

• Heritage
• destination branding
• community engagement
• strategy

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Brendan Paddison

Brendan Paddison is a senior lecturer in Business and Management at York Business School, York St John University, UK. He recently completed his PhD titled Governance and Community Advocacy in Tourism Development: An International Comparison awarded by the University of Leeds. His main research interests include tourism, urban geography, destination governance, public policy and public sector management. Brendan also leads the Heritage and Arts Visitor Research Collaborative (HAVRC) research group at York St John University.

Rebecca Biggins

Rebecca Biggins is a lecturer in Marketing and Tourism at York Business School, York St John University, UK. Her main research interests include tourism, marketing and heritage management. Rebecca recently completed her PhD in the marketing of heritage tourism destinations and stakeholder dynamics awarded by the University of Leeds.