Benefits of visiting a 'dark tourism' site: The case of the Jeju April 3rd Peace Park, Korea

Eun-Jung Kang; Noel Scott; Timothy J Lee; Roy Ballantyne

doi:10.1016/j.tourman.2011.03.004

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Benefits of visiting a 'dark tourism' site: The case of the Jeju April 3rd Peace Park, Korea

Journal article

Peer reviewed

Benefits of visiting a 'dark tourism' site: The case of the Jeju April 3rd Peace Park, Korea

Eun-Jung Kang, Noel Scott, Timothy J Lee and Roy Ballantyne

Tourism Management, Vol.33(2), pp.257-265

2012

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2011.03.004

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Abstract

dark tourism

benefits-based approach

destination management

visitor study

thanatourism

This research examines visitor experiences at a contemporary dark tourism site: the April 3rd Peace Park on Jeju Island, South Korea, a site commemorating and memorializing one of the most destructive episodes in modern Korean history. The study employed quantitative and qualitative research methods, with 46 semi-structured interviews forming the basis of a questionnaire, and 407 valid questionnaires obtained for data analysis. The implications of the findings are firstly that 'obligation' remains a key motivation for a visit, with a number of subsequent visitor benefits also identified. Secondly, that a benefit-based approach provides an effective framework for comprehending visitor experiences in dark tourism contexts. And thirdly, that a 'hot interpretation' of visitor experiences in dark tourism contexts remains particularly valid for comprehending visitor experiences, and in turn, for effectively designing and managing dark tourism sites within Asia and more generally.

Details

Title: Benefits of visiting a 'dark tourism' site: The case of the Jeju April 3rd Peace Park, Korea
Authors: Eun-Jung Kang (Author) - University of Queensland
Noel Scott (Author) - University of Queensland
Timothy J Lee (Author) - University of Queensland
Roy Ballantyne (Author) - University of Queensland
Publication details: Tourism Management, Vol.33(2), pp.257-265
Publisher: Pergamon
DOI: 10.1016/j.tourman.2011.03.004
ISSN: 0261-5177
Organisation Unit: University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; Sustainability Research Centre
Language: English
Record Identifier: 99450657602621
Output Type: Journal article

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