Heritage tourists’ experiences of ‘struggle heritage’ at Liliesleaf Farm Museum and the Hector Pieterson Memorial & Museum South Africa.

Abstract

Heritage tourism has emerged as an important part of tourism growth in the new South Africa, with a growing interest in ‘struggle heritage’. Heritage tourism contributes significantly in demonstrating the diverse cultural offerings that the country has to offer. Struggle heritage is one of the elements within this niche of cultural tourism, which attract tourists to visit South African museums. Using a mixed methods approach of quantitative and qualitative data, this paper explored a comparative study of the motivations, experiences and understanding of heritage amongst 100 local tourists at Liliesleaf Farm Museum (50 respondents) and the Hector Pieterson Memorial & Museum (50 respondents), both based in Johannesburg, South Africa. This research adds to the debates on how people perceive heritage and how important heritage is to them. The findings suggest that South Africans desire to visit heritage sites but due to the unavailability of information and inadequate communication between museum marketers, local authorities and the public, local tourists are less likely to visit these heritage sites. Overall, this paper suggests that although creating memorable and unique visitor experiences is essential, being in regular contact with repeat and prospective visitors is paramount for the growth and sustainability of the museum and the continued dialogue of ‘the struggle’, as well as the development and advancement of heritage tourism in South Africa.