Fostering Cultural Tourism Through Festivals: An In-Depth Investigation of the Relationship Between Cultural Cascades and Cultural Celebrations

Abstract

The goal of this mater’s research project was to investigate the relationship between festivals and a regional marketing initiative geared toward cultural tourism. By examining the Cultural Cascades initiative and its relationship to select festivals I set out to understand how issues such as theme selection, economic impact, regional identity, community building, authenticity, and sustainability are considered when marketing a region as a cultural tourism destination. My research used an extensive literature review, document analysis, case study, questionnaires and in-depth interviews. The findings of this research provide a set of recommendations for tourism and festival practitioners that may be useful when planning for regional cultural tourism initiatives.