What is it about?
This study investigates the role of tour guides as co-creators of heritage tourism experiences at the Royal Mosque of Isfahan, with a particular focus on their interpretive strategies. Drawing on Weiler and Black’s Experience Broker Theory, the research explores how tour guides facilitate tourists’ cognitive, emotional, and even spiritual engagement with sacred heritage spaces. Using a qualitative approach that includes in-depth interviews with ten tour guides and direct observations of guided tours, the study analyzes the stages through which guides act as empathy brokers—ranging from cultural mediation to fostering profound spiritual encounters, particularly during emotionally charged moments such as the call to prayer.
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Why is it important?
This research contributes to both tourism theory and practice by highlighting the critical, yet often underexplored, role of tour guides in co-creating personalized and meaningful experiences for tourists. It expands the conceptual boundaries of co-creation theory to include not only tangible heritage interpretation but also affective and spiritual dimensions. The findings underscore the necessity of culturally sensitive and empathetic guiding practices that resonate with diverse tourist motivations—especially in sacred or emotionally charged settings. From a managerial perspective, the study offers valuable insights into training and designing interpretive services that foster deeper engagement, inclusivity, and respect for spiritual and cultural complexity in heritage tourism.
Perspectives
This study offers a fresh perspective on religious heritage tourism by centering the experiences of non-believing tourists and the empathetic role of tour guides. It broadens the concept of co-creation beyond consumer-provider dynamics to include introspective, spiritual, and emotional engagement with sacred spaces. In doing so, it challenges the binary of religious vs. secular tourism and invites further research into how sacred sites can serve as inclusive environments for diverse visitor profiles. The study also shows the interpretive power of tour guides, who act as facilitators and as cultural and emotional brokers, opening up new opportunities for training and heritage management. Future work could explore how these dynamics unfold across other religious contexts or examine the tensions between spiritual tourism and heritage preservation.
Dr. María Dolores De-Juan-Vigaray
Universitat d'Alacant
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Guides’ Interpretive Techniques in Cocreation Combined with the Experience Broker Theory, Tourism Review International, July 2024, Cognizant Communication Corporation,
DOI: 10.3727/194344224x17065495994387.
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