Experiences of valuistic journeys: motivation and behaviour
LTReikšminiai žodžiai: Turizmas; Piligrimystė; Kelionės; Vertybinės kelionės; Tourism; Piligrimage; Valuistic journeys; Experience of journeys.
ENWe live in a globalised, mobile and continuously changing world. At present, the most acceptable and popular form of mobility amongst people is tourism. According to the UN World Tourism Organization, over 900 million international arrivals were recorded in 2008 (World Tourism Organization 2009), a figure that rose to 940 million in 2010. However, it remains extremely difficult to analyse tourism as a homogeneous phenomenon because journeys differ from each other with regard to their motivation, objectives, means and forms. This chapter focuses upon and analyses the experience of so-called valuistic journeys. The term valuistic journey involves the concepts of both traditional religious and modern secular pilgrimage, and such journeys may be seen as a means of demonstrating the values of their participants as well as revealing their personal and social identity. For the purposes of this chapter, valuistic journeys are considered a separate and identifiable group of journeys or form of tourism. The earliest known form of valuistic journey was the religious pilgrimage. However, according to Coleman and Elsner (1995), despite transformations in society in general and in the perception and construction of self-identity in particular, as well as advances in communication technologies, the religious pilgrimage has proved its ability to adapt to the innovations of secular modernity and even to appropriate them.Indeed, contemporary changes in society, such as globalisation and virtualisation, are increasingly enabling the blending of the sacrum and profanum, of the valuistic and consumeristic spheres. Pilgrimage is turning into a modern valuistic journey, its purpose being not only to travel to or visit a sacred place but also, in so doing, to achieve a sense of value, worthiness or identity from the place or event. Therefore, we define a pilgrimage or valuistic journey as a journey undertaken with the purpose of seeking or, indeed, expressing a valuistic ideal. During a pilgrimage, travellers/tourists go through different physical, emotional and spiritual experiences; the pilgrimage offers its participants the opportunity to consider the meaning of life or their own lives, their values and their relationships with other individuals. During the journey, their identity, outlook on the world and values are therefore expressed, demonstrated and consolidated. [Extract, p. 38]
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