Kandovan Troglodyte Village

Abstract

Sculpted by the elements and inhabited by an established corpus of local families, Kandovan Village is a rare example of functioning cultural heritage largely overlooked by international tourists. Within this context, this chapter demonstrates how heritage sites can use their inherent sociocultural characteristics to stimulate tourism. Leveraging this encourages site managers to draw upon less tangible elements, such as the sincerity of local inhabitants and the potential for their site to serve as a platform for social interaction, in order to engage tourists, stimulate memorable experiences, and encourage repeated visits and recommendations to others. In doing so, this chapter highlights the importance of prior knowledge, word of mouth, and co-creation in crafting cultural heritage tourism experiences.

Citation

Gannon, M.J., Cordina, R., Lochrie, S., Taheri, B. and Okumus, F. (2019), "Kandovan Troglodyte Village", Experiencing Persian Heritage (Bridging Tourism Theory and Practice, Vol. 10), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 117-134. https://doi.org/10.1108/S2042-144320190000010008