Tourism and Churches: Profiling, Behaviour and Motivations of "Church Chasers" in South Africa
Churches in South Africa have a rich history. Church tourism is perfectly positioned to attract tourists to South Africa and forms part of heritage tourism. Church tourism involves tourists visiting sites of prayer and shrines for cultural, historical, and architectural reasons, but not specifically...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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AfricaJournals
2022-05-01
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| Series: | African Journal of Hospitality, Tourism and Leisure |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.ajhtl.com/uploads/7/1/6/3/7163688/1_11_se1_511-524_1_.pdf |
| _version_ | 1811305926645252096 |
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| author | Eben Proos Johan Hattingh |
| author_facet | Eben Proos Johan Hattingh |
| author_sort | Eben Proos |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Churches in South Africa have a rich history. Church tourism is perfectly positioned to attract tourists to South Africa and forms part of heritage tourism. Church tourism involves tourists visiting sites of prayer and shrines for cultural, historical, and architectural reasons, but not specifically due to any religious motivation. Well-known
church tourism attractions include the Notre Dame de Paris in Paris, the Rock-Hewn Churches of Lalibela, Ethiopia, and the Groot Kerk – Dutch Reformed Church in Graaf Reinet, South Africa. Data for the study was gathered through online questionnaires, resulting in the formulation of a new subdivision of church tourism, namely "church chasers". “Church chasers” generally do not travel specifically to visit churches. However, their decision to do so can be seen as secondary. They mostly spend time at churches during family holidays and weekend getaways. They find architecture, history, and sandstone buildings the most entertaining during a visit. The paper's main aim was to establish “church chasers” typical profile, behaviour, and motivation as a "new" kind of tourist pursuit by focusing on tourists visiting churches in South Africa. The broader aim was to determine whether “church chasers” as a subdivision of heritage tourism could revitalise small-town tourism in South Africa
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| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T08:34:07Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0a6c786d0057422090681edd871a9209 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2223-814X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T08:34:07Z |
| publishDate | 2022-05-01 |
| publisher | AfricaJournals |
| record_format | Article |
| series | African Journal of Hospitality, Tourism and Leisure |
| spelling | doaj.art-0a6c786d0057422090681edd871a92092022-12-22T02:54:08ZengAfricaJournalsAfrican Journal of Hospitality, Tourism and Leisure2223-814X2022-05-0111SE1511524https://doi.org/10.46222/ajhtl.19770720.239Tourism and Churches: Profiling, Behaviour and Motivations of "Church Chasers" in South Africa Eben Proos0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3448-3704Johan Hattingh1https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1804-2033Department of Tourism and Event Management, Central University of Technology, Free StateDepartment of Tourism and Event Management, Central University of Technology, Free StateChurches in South Africa have a rich history. Church tourism is perfectly positioned to attract tourists to South Africa and forms part of heritage tourism. Church tourism involves tourists visiting sites of prayer and shrines for cultural, historical, and architectural reasons, but not specifically due to any religious motivation. Well-known church tourism attractions include the Notre Dame de Paris in Paris, the Rock-Hewn Churches of Lalibela, Ethiopia, and the Groot Kerk – Dutch Reformed Church in Graaf Reinet, South Africa. Data for the study was gathered through online questionnaires, resulting in the formulation of a new subdivision of church tourism, namely "church chasers". “Church chasers” generally do not travel specifically to visit churches. However, their decision to do so can be seen as secondary. They mostly spend time at churches during family holidays and weekend getaways. They find architecture, history, and sandstone buildings the most entertaining during a visit. The paper's main aim was to establish “church chasers” typical profile, behaviour, and motivation as a "new" kind of tourist pursuit by focusing on tourists visiting churches in South Africa. The broader aim was to determine whether “church chasers” as a subdivision of heritage tourism could revitalise small-town tourism in South Africa https://www.ajhtl.com/uploads/7/1/6/3/7163688/1_11_se1_511-524_1_.pdfchurch tourismchurch chasersprofilingmotivationsheritage tourism |
| spellingShingle | Eben Proos Johan Hattingh Tourism and Churches: Profiling, Behaviour and Motivations of "Church Chasers" in South Africa African Journal of Hospitality, Tourism and Leisure church tourism church chasers profiling motivations heritage tourism |
| title | Tourism and Churches: Profiling, Behaviour and Motivations of "Church Chasers" in South Africa |
| title_full | Tourism and Churches: Profiling, Behaviour and Motivations of "Church Chasers" in South Africa |
| title_fullStr | Tourism and Churches: Profiling, Behaviour and Motivations of "Church Chasers" in South Africa |
| title_full_unstemmed | Tourism and Churches: Profiling, Behaviour and Motivations of "Church Chasers" in South Africa |
| title_short | Tourism and Churches: Profiling, Behaviour and Motivations of "Church Chasers" in South Africa |
| title_sort | tourism and churches profiling behaviour and motivations of church chasers in south africa |
| topic | church tourism church chasers profiling motivations heritage tourism |
| url | https://www.ajhtl.com/uploads/7/1/6/3/7163688/1_11_se1_511-524_1_.pdf |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT ebenproos tourismandchurchesprofilingbehaviourandmotivationsofchurchchasersinsouthafrica AT johanhattingh tourismandchurchesprofilingbehaviourandmotivationsofchurchchasersinsouthafrica |