Under the Spell of Media Tourism

Abstract

A phenomenon that for a while has been considered niche tourism, has now become more widespread and popular: media tourism and in the case of this dissertation, Harry Potter tourism. Almost everyone knows the narrative about the young wizard and his friends, many have read the books and seen the films and it has become more mainstream to also visit places that are connected to the series. In this research, the focus has been put on places of imagination, which as the name suggests are physical points of reference which help tourists to immerse themselves in a fictional universe. This theory has been broadened by the notions of souvenirs and photographs and their materialization of the visited places. In this thesis, the offer of Harry Potter related tourists sites in London has been analyzed in connection to the effects of places and objects of imagination. The focus has mainly been put on Platform 9¾ and Harry Potter related tours, which are a combination of feeling the emotional connection to the series and acquiring new information, which can de-mystify the visited places. The significance of the phenomenon and its importance within the academic field of tourism studies has furthermore been analyzed.