Storytelling and its effects on tourist experience

This research explores the effects storytelling has on tourists experience and ways it can be utilized to enrich and enhance such experience. Existing literature about storytelling, tourist experience, place identity and attachment were aggregated and synthesized, with a conceptualization framework independently contrived. Literary definitions of narrative structure and general creative writing guidelines were also introduced. To arrive at the research aim, the author wrote a fictional story depicting a given place, embedded the story in an experiential walk at the same place and conducted focus group interview with a group of participants to collect empirical data. The author adopted thematic analysis as data analysis method, grouping data with similar codes or key words and conceptualize them under headings that are relevant to existing literature. Findings were further selected based on significance to research questions and data richness. The results revealed that storytelling was conceived as plots which follow a conventional dramatic frame, that it created immersion and emotional arousal and that it self-implies the presence of a narrating voice. Another group of findings concerned with the effects storytelling has on experience of place, namely, enhanced memorability, perceived singularity which induces meaning and purpose for visit and deepened experience of place. The last group of findings presented important factors for a continuous storytelling, which were the importance of readability in language and structure of narrative, a narrating voice as a transposing medium and restrain from use of technology. These findings confirm and support existing literature on positive effects of storytelling and suggest that storytelling can enrich and enhance tourist experience by create a unique place identity and strengthen place attachment. The study also proposes ways to utilize storytelling to create desired effects. Aspects of constructing a fictional narrative such as structure, content, language and medium were consolidated into practical recommendations for future experience designers. The study gives foundation and inspiration for multi-disciplinary collaboration between practitioners from tourism and creative writing to adopt storytelling for a rich and immersive tourist experience. It also shows application in how to utilize storytelling to bring about the desired effects, while arguing for the value of originality over commercial, over-simplified story-writing guidelines. Directions for future research might include exploring different effects evoked by storytelling when the form and content of the narrative changes. It was also stressed that future studies about storytelling should clarify how the narrative in question is constructed, what form it takes and through what medium it is conveyed, in order to better explain the resulting effects.Keywords: Storytelling, tourist experience, place attachment, place identity, narrative, destination