Tourism and religion: issues and implications

The book examines the number of issues arising from and beyond the interaction between tourism and religion from both historical and contemporary perspectives in the present-day context. The volume contains three parts: Part I “Faiths and Tourism” represents the issues stemming from tourism–religion performance; Part II “Issues and Problems” stresses the conflicts arising between tourism and religion; and Part 3 “Secular Tourism in Sacred Places” presents the hybrid nature of many religious sites.

out at three religious sites in Israel. Once again, a geographical and complex context emerges, although in this case, authors develop a framework for dispute resolution that can be applied to other religious sites beset by conflict. Further attention on conflict at religious tourist sites alludes to varying political realities, which are presented through different viewpoints. For instance, in one case, emphasis is placed on the problems and opportunities of the tourist market in Palestine. As expected, the text is quite critical and, of course, with politically implicit references. On the contrary, in the second case the difficulties in implementing tourist policies in Myanmar are explicit and clearly refer to the fragile political situation. Of course, in both cases political stability and investments would be effective drivers for tourist developments. In the last chapter of this second part, the authors identify key aspects and challenges that academics and tourists might face when operating 'outside their comfort zone ' (p. 194), as in the case of religious tourism and pilgrimage in Russia.
'Secular Tourism in Sacred Places' is the title of the third and final part (Ch. 14-19), which is a suitable completion to this volume. Authors explore the unquestionable process of secularization that is affecting several sacred sites. One of the main emerging concerns is the viability of coexistence and planning at these changing sites. Reflections in this sense are made possible thanks to the admirable conceptual review on spiritual tourism, which is common to many contributions to the volume. Indeed, although presented in three parts, contributions are at some points 'cross-referential', thus proving the coherence of the edited volume. A common theme raised in Tourism and Religion: Issues and implications concerns tourist transformation of historical and cultural routes, turning into post-contemporary pilgrimage itineraries. This contemporary adaptation of heritage also impacts English cathedrals, whose original liturgical function coexists with social, commercial and cultural ones, as demonstrated in the discussion of Salt Lake City and its branding for tourism as Cultural Heritage of Mormons where churches have become bona fide tourist attractions.
Contributors to Tourism and Religion: Issues and implications raise soul-searching questions about the necessity for different and complementary foci on tourism and religion. Consequently, the result is a clear and invaluable comparative overview of evident problems and potentialities at sacred and secular sites. The detailed and exhaustive treatment in the case studies presented highlight good practices that can be applied to other similar contexts. Thus, this book is important for tourism research, education and practice as its authors offer practical solutions, and embraces relevant vision for the futureuseful for tourism research, education and practice.
One of the key merits of Tourism and Religion: Issues and implications is the emphasis on interdisciplinarity that the management of religious destinations requires. Additionally, it introduces tourism scholars to new conceptual frameworks that, apart from culture and economics, evoke geopolitics, heritage and environmental studies. Following this argument, the coexistence of both positive and negative perceptions towards tourist transformations confirms that it is a delicate issue that requires planning (especially where geopolitical conflicts are apparent).
For all that, the book is a must read for students and academics within the tourism field. Its merits lie in making a valuable contribution to local and territorial stakeholder understandings as it fosters the opportunities of religious tourism beyond economic development only. Tourism and Religion: Issues and implications stimulates and suggests development strategies for effective management of religious tourism sites. In conclusion, there is nothing to complain about with this work, although at some points the use of more maps to assist readers with their bearings within the different geographical contexts would have been helpful.  (2019) have probably integrated the first book ever published to illuminate the under-researched field of pilgrimages and religious travels related to contemporary Christian practices. This work provides a very insightful and strong foundational basis to guide the highly implicit and often fragmented nature of research concerning Christian travel to date. Across nine chapters, the authors present an overview of Christian travel from ancient history to the present day, the forces influencing their form and substance over time, and provide relevant exemplars to show the diversity and complex motives underpinning such mobilities.

Lucrezia Lopez
In the opening chapter, the authors describe the backdrop of religion and spirituality to draw links to early tourists. This is an important milestone for the book, as the authors indicate how early travel was often associated with religious pilgrimages. The authors articulate the key distinction that Christian travel is not always akin to pilgrimage. Instead, through depicting religious tourism across a continuum of highly pious beliefs (through pilgrimages) and for pure tourism motives, the first chapter provides a useful building block to conceptualize what is arguably a multi-faceted concept. While the Introductory chapter suggests that Christian travel is largely demand-oriented, it should also be noted that the supply-side is equally as important. Tourism is often associated with the term hospitality, and in its origins, hospitality was already exemplified in providing a duty of care to strangers (O'Connor, 2005).
Chapter two turns towards the evolving patterns of Christian travel through the lens of denominational and geographical contexts. This chapter highlights the diversity of Christian travel to date and presents some interesting contrasts of East-West typologies of such tourists. However, the chapter does not discuss the potential risks associated with contemporary forms of Christian travel, where travelers may be subject to persecution by local authorities. For instance, Burrows and Xiao (2018) reported the government crackdown on churches under a communist regime whereby crosses were removed and portraits of Jesus were replaced with that of political leaders. As such, Christian travels to such destinations can expose religious tourists to heightened elements of physical safety risks due to persecution.
In Chapter three, authors address the notion of commoditization of Christian travel and its corresponding commercial practices. As the authors note, the concept of theming in the context of contemporary Christian travel is not too dissimilar with how other tourism experiences have been designed. Almost all tours and religious events discussed in