“Playing tourist” in a divided city

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to investigate the social and affective impacts of inviting residents of a socially divided, post-war city to “play tourist” for a day, exploring their own backyards with a new intentionality and perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

This qualitative research within a transformative worldview uses a creative, place-based approach of role-playing based upon principles of participatory action research.

Findings

While each tour was unique, participants’ insights reflected three common themes: shifts in observations and perceptions of place arising from the intentionality of the “tourist” lens, a sense of freedom created by the touristic research opportunity, and the varying abilities of tourism experiences to help build empathy or awareness in a post-conflict setting.

Originality/value

The inventive research approach allows for a unique examination of local tourism-styled explorations, a subject of growing interest that has largely been overlooked in literature, while paying special attention to ways in which a history of conflict may manifest in contemporary urban tourism experiences.

Citation

Lindblom, J. and Vogt, C. (2024), "“Playing tourist” in a divided city", International Journal of Tourism Cities, Vol. 10 No. 1, pp. 23-38. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJTC-05-2022-0129