Understanding participation patterns and trends in tourism cultural attractions

Previous studies have collectively suggested that most cultural tourists are “up-scaled” (high income earnings, high education, and mature aged). This simplistic profile of cultural tourists, however, does not seem to reflect the increasingly diversified group of cultural tourist attractions. This study examined the effects of socioeconomic and demographic traits of tourists on visitation patterns to 29 different types of cultural attractions using data from a national scale survey (conducted in 2000) of 6405 US respondents. The cultural attractions were grouped as four main types: Festival and Musical Attractions, Commercial Recreation Parks, Local Festivals and Fairs, and Knowledge/Aesthetic Seeking Attractions. The results showed that the participation patterns for diverse cultural attractions were determined by socioeconomic/demographic characteristics as well as the number/distance of trips. The effects of such traits on participation patterns by cultural tourists were different in accordance with the unique nature of each cultural attraction.