ABSTRACT

Tourism in the Nordic countries has been dominated by nature. This chapter discusses two specific case studies in the Nordic and Norwegian context. The first case study consists of the pilot project the Taste of National Tourist Routes, which has a regional focus. The second case study is Atlungstad Distillery — the history of aquavit and the potato, which has a local focus in the county of Hedmark in Norway. These two various initiatives illustrate examples of destinations marketed through gastronomy both at regional and local levels. Local food and drink can be used to build a destination and its “sense of place” and identity through differentiation. Regions and tourism operators can organize and create the conditions necessary for tourism offerings to become unique and memorable experiences. Marketing destinations and regions through gastronomy have become increasingly important for many destinations in order to provide valuable tourism experiences.