Page 114 - Volcano and Geothermal Tourism

On the Economics and Social Typology of Volcano Tourism with Special Reference to Montserrat, West Indies 91

Volcanoes as sites Dark tourism, although first recorded as being
of ‘dark’ tourism attributable to D. Dunlap (McFedries, 2007) in
1982 in the New York Times when he referred to ‘a
Dark tourism refers to products and places that dark tourist attraction’, and was first cited in 1997
draw visitors interested in disasters, sites of atrocities by James Hall of Scotland on Sunday, 10 August
and other macabre events (Seaton, 1996; Stone, 1997 (McFedries, 2007), when referring to JFK as
2006). Recent examples broadly include a tourist attraction, is more recently attributed to
sightseeing in New Orleans post Hurricane Stone (2006) when he suggested that there are
Katrina and visits to Aceh, Indonesia, site of the different shades of darkness according to the
devastating Boxing Day tsunami. It is undeniable nature of the event and argued that other factors
that certain aspects of volcano tourism involve such as entertainment versus education, and
visits to sites of disaster and death. Pompeii is a heritage versus history, all help explain the level of
prime example of this, where visitors can darkness involved. The passage of time, although
photograph former residents in their death throws included in Stone’s analysis as an element, is
(Figure 6.3a). Compare this with a more recent possibly one of the most significant determinants
site of destruction but one that did not result in of just how dark an incident/event is in many
loss of life (Figure 6.3b). cases. For instance, if the agonizing death

Figure 6.3b Plymouth, former capital of Montserrat destroyed in the 1995 eruption
Note: The former town is currently within the exclusion zone (Zone W, Figure 6.2) but is in effect a modern-day Pompeii minus human casualties. In
Stone’s (2006) dark spectrum classification, the site is authentic, likely to become history concentric (conservation/commemorative), but while
spectacular, is not a site of death and suffering.

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