For millennia people have travelled to religious sites for worship, initiatory, and even leisure purposes. Today there are hundreds, if not thousands, of religious pilgrimage routes and trails around the world that are used by pilgrims as well as tourists. Indeed, many religious pilgrimage routes and trails are today being used as themes by tourism marketers in an effort to promote regional economic development.
This is the first book to provide a holistic approach with case studies drawn from different regions across the world. The first section includes the introductory chapter to the book as well as four chapters that highlight the conceptual themes including:
- Sustainable Local Development
- Regional Economic Development
- Heritage Identity and Management
- Environment and Sustainability
The second section of the book includes case study pilgrimage route/trails from different world regions. Each chapter will focus on a specific case study route/trail found within that region and include a discussion of the route/trail revolving around the four themes covered in section one.
This book will be of significant interest to academics and policy-makers within heritage tourism and regional development, as well as those interested in religious tourism and pilgrimage.