ABSTRACT
235Cultural heritage is the essence of tourism in many destination areas worldwide. Every year, millions of people travel to view the Acropolis of Athens, the Colosseum in Rome and many other historic sites of international renown. These sites are of general interest to visitors, even though the visitors probably have no significant ties to the heritage sites that they visit. Although world heritage attractions draw large numbers of international and domestic tourists, for most foreign tourists these sites consist only a small part of a more extensive travel package. These attractions can evoke feelings of admiration, but they probably do not evoke feelings of personal attachment. Visits to historic sites are mostly motivated by the belief that such places (and the objects at these places) are linked to the remote past. In addition, millions of other people engage in travel to experience heritage of a more personal nature; most of the world's historic sites are not internationally known and only relatively few ever attract international tourists, except perhaps in combination with other relevant attractions. For every world- renowned cultural attraction, there are hundreds of other – not famous – sites that are appreciated at a more local basis.
