Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
cities as places of diversity rather than monumental enclaves …
That means paying more attention to the 'spaces in-between'
where much of the social life takes place for both the visitor and
resident alike. (Lumsdon, 2004, p6)
The 'spaces in-between' are the spaces where walking takes place, where the
feel of a place can be ascertained through the range of senses available to us.
There is, however, a different experience reported by those walking in the
countryside, where the spatial geography, landscape form, smells and sights
contrast with the more compact urban historic core or tourist enclave
(Bianchini and Schwengel, 1991). Kay and Moxham (1996) argue that walk-
ing, in this context, is a means to complex ends and a range of experiences.
Chettri et al (2007), for example, reported a quantitative research exercise
with a group of walkers in the Grampian Mountains in Australia to determine
the nature, magnitude and characteristics of walkers' experiences in natural
landscapes. They concluded that the feelings of the 25 respondents in the study
could be distilled into the following four principal components:
•
desirable experience such as great views
•
impelling experience (i.e. the urge to see, move on, to explore more)
•
apprehensive experience reflecting trepidation about the walk
•
social interaction experience that reflects divergent feelings, such as being
crowded to sense of isolation.
The authors also noted that the experience is about 'knowing, believing and
recognising. These processes are cognitive and are based on background
knowledge, learning and reasoning capabilities of individuals' (Chettri et al,
2007, p33). Lee and Mouldon (2006) report that those walking for recreation
(in contrast to utility walkers) like hills, so as to improve physical activity and
to enjoy views, and these factors have also been identified by Anderson (2005)
and Roberson and Babic (2009). Several researchers, however, have noted that
the experience is not a static, nor a homogenous one, it is a sequential flow of
relaxation interspersed with high points of excitement during periods of
immersion. This may happen part-way through the walking tour or on a walk-
ing route (Borrie and Roggenback, 2001; Hull et al, 1992). In contrast, Den
Breejen (2007) reports the findings of a qualitative study on a long-distance
trail in Scotland, where the 25 respondents noted a high point towards or at
the end of their walk. The level of satisfaction or derived benefit has been
referred to by Wallace (1993) as the walking cure, reflecting an improved
physical and psychological state as a result of the physical activity, space and
time for reflection.
There is a small literature on the segmentation of walkers. Kay and
Moxham (1996) divide the market into four segments: walkers who like to
saunter on shorter distance walks; ramblers who stride out more; trekkers who
walk longer distances at a pace, otherwise known as trail walkers; and back
packers who seek challenging and esoteric walks. The English Tourist Board
(1999) commissioned qualitative research on profiles of people seeking to take
