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Managing Dark Tourism Attractions & Exhibitions

Copyright: Philip R.Stone – Editor, The Dark Tourism Forum (2005)

Death, Disaster & the Macabre – Discover more about the ‘darker side’ of tourism by visiting The Dark Tourism Forum at www.dark-tourism.org.uk

Shades of Dark Tourism - Exploring the Dark Tourism Product -

Part One

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Agenda

Briefly examine dark tourism products from ‘yesteryear’.

Discuss dark tourism as ‘black spots’ attractions and sites.

Evaluate the various ‘shades’ and ‘divisions’ of dark tourism production.

Shades of Dark Tourism I

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Allegedly, the first guided tour of England had a ‘dark side’…

‘[The tour] was arranged in 1838 to take people of Wadebridge by special train to the nearby town of Bodmin. There theywitnessed the hanging of two murderers. Since the Bodmin

gallows were in clear sight of the uncovered station, excursionists had their fun without even leaving the open

railway carriages.’

Boorstin (1987)

The Dark Side of Tourism Yesterday

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The Dark Side of Tourism Yesterday

Other tours in the early 1900’s also had a dark side.

Paris tours took in abattoirs and morgues…

‘This final display of working class stiffs illustrates, as wellas any other example, how the display of even a

horrible object normalizes it.’

MacCannell (1989)

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The Dark Side of Tourism Today

Dark tourism is becoming a pervasive cultural activity within contemporary society…

‘Fatality is a striking feature in the landscape of postmodernism.’

Rojeck (1993)

Fatality and the commodification of death raises the notion of ‘black spots’ and ‘milking the macabre’…

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Divisions of the Dark

Important to begin to categorize dark tourism in order to understand production (& consumption)….

Perilous Places

Houses of Horror

Fields of Fatality

Tours of Torment

Themed Thanatos

Dann (1988)

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Perilous Places - Towns of Terror -

Towns of terror is about preserving dark ‘place and space’ for the touristic present….

Bodie, California Tombstone, Arizona

‘..a town of arrested decay..’ ‘..ghost stories of Tombstone..’

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Perilous Places - Dangerous Destinations -

The distinction between ‘adventure tourism & ‘dark tourism’ is becoming increasingly blurred…

The Favelas of Rio de Janeiro

‘..gazing upon the underclass’

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Houses of Horror - Murder Mecca's -

Houses of murder and abuse are becoming increasingly popular as ‘rubbernecking becomes a recreational activity’….

Grief Tourists & the Soham Murders

‘..signs of genuine caring orconspicuous compassion..?’

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Houses of Horror - Dungeons of Death -

Tourism can appropriate and alter the use of a building to suit its own purpose….

Alcatraz, Sans Francisco Robben Island, South Africa

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Houses of Horror - Heinous Hotels -

Hotels with a ‘past’ often market their dark side for the present…

Intercontinental Resort Berchtesgaden

‘.. this ‘heinous hotel’ providesguests with an account of Nazi doctrine in the form of a ‘Deadly Utopia’…

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Fields of Fatality - Bloody Battlegrounds -

War attractions are key sites within dark tourism, where ‘organised violence is brought back to life’ …

Battlefield Tours

‘.. the smoke, the sound, the smell and the sense of history all combine to make your images of past battles more vivid…”

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Fields of Fatality - Hell of Holocaust -

Often referred to as ‘Schindler tourism’, the Holocaust offers permanent memorials to scenes of atrocity…

Auschwitz-Birkenau

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Fields of Fatality - Cemeteries & Celebrities -

Cemeteries (& dead Celebrities) are becoming tourist attractions as ‘tombstones are polished for public display’…

The Killing FieldsDeath of a Princess

‘.. The dead have become ‘attractive’ for the rest of us left behind..’

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Grave Line Tours

Tours of Torment - Mayhem & Murder -

Tours with the theme of murder and dark deeds are becoming increasingly popular…

Jack the Ripper Tours

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Themed Thanatos - Morbid Museums -

Here, concern is less with historical accuracy and more with commercial exploitation…

The Dungeons Serial Killers at Madame Tussauds

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Themed Thanatos - Monuments to Morality -

‘Wages of Sin’ attractions attempt to provide moral commentary upon an ever increasing fragmented & fractious world…

Hell Houses‘.. ‘customers’ are treated to Fundamentalist images and exhibitions of eternal damnation, complete with moans, groans and gnashing of teeth (just like it says in the Bible)…’

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Some Concluding Thoughts…

In the words of one event coordinator about dark tourism….

‘…if we started worrying about upsetting people or givingkids nightmares, we would have to pack up and take uptiddlywinks…. Let’s face it, 99% of people go to Grand

Prix racing hoping there’s going to be a crash…’

This raises the notion of ‘consumption’…. (see you next time…)

Cited in Dann (1988:11)

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Seminar Session

Please refer to the Seminar task sheet

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Directed Reading

• Dann G.M.S (1988) The Dark Side of Tourism Serie L, Vol 14, Aix-en-Provence: Centre International de Recherches et d’Etudes Touristiques.

• Sharpley R (2005) Travels to the edge of darkness: towards a typology of dark tourism in Chris Ryan et al (eds) Taking Tourism to the Limits London: Elsevier (Section Four)