Towards a visitor taxonomy at (film-induced) heritage attractions

Film-induced tourism at heritage attractions (HAs) is a growing industry of international relevance. It can influence visitors’ expectations of the site and further their preferences for interpretation to include a degree of reference to the film(s). Drawing upon in-depth interviews with visitors at a UK HA further popularised through book and film, this paper explores visitors’ preferences for heritage interpretation. The paper identifies four visitor taxonomies – vigorous followers, curious investigators, versatile explorers and purposeful avoiders. It ultimately highlights the value of data-driven visitor taxonomies, providing an in-depth insight into heritage tourism in general and film-induced tourism at this heritage site in particular. Thus, this paper contributes to a greater understanding of the popular media products’ influence on visitor preferences for on-site heritage interpretation.