New Age Tourism Case Study

4.4 New Age tourism

In some ways New Age tourists appear very similar to regular tourists. Ways of transport, consumption of food and drinks at the site, and visiting archaeological and historical museums are all very much the same for both groups. However, Pernecky, (2006) argues that New Age tourism comprises many unique practices. New Age experiences are often different from those of regular tourists and may be difficult to understand by others. The practices undertaken by New Agers travellers are an important part of their lives and have specific purposes. Furthermore, New Age tourists can be seen as an individualistic group of people based on their distinctive needs and expectations. Similar as tourists, pilgrims can also be categorised as New Agers. According to Fedele (2014) the boundaries between New Age pilgrimage and tourism is blurred. Tourists are not just mindless people following the masses and pilgrims might not all be driven by spiritual motives. Digance (2003) argues that “every person visiting a sacred place is a possible pilgrim” (cited by Pernecky, 2006, p. 141). Ivakhiv (2003) argues that New Age travellers can be divided into two groups, that is, the ‘mere tourists’ and the ‘genuine pilgrims’. The ‘mere tourists’ in this case will always intend to return home within a relatively short period of time. For the ‘genuine pilgrim’, however, the journey is seen as a spiritual quest. Besides that, regular tourists are often content with just viewing the