Author Information

Sue Beeton, Sue BeetonFollow

Author Bios (50 Words for each Author)

For over a quarter of a century, Prof Beeton has conducted tourism-based research into community development and public land management, but is best known for her work in film-induced tourism and pop culture. She is a Visiting Professor at the University of Hokkaido, and in 2019 Prof Beeton was awarded the TTRA Lifetime Achievement Award for her contribution to tourism research and scholarship.

Abstract (150 Words)

I squatted down, knees and joints creaking, and felt the stone… My world started to spin as I was transported back, back, back and the misty rain of the day embraced me.

We have been here for ever, the people of the stones whispered …

Most of those who experience indigenous tourism are themselves non-indigenous, and may view their experience quite differently to the ways the community may expect, or even want. Often our experiences are deeply personal, even spiritual. How to understand these personal experiences is an ongoing issue and can only be met by using more controversial research approaches, such the story-telling style of evocative autoethnography. The truly powerful element of autoethnography is when the ‘subject’ reveals something deep and personal that cannot be told/uncovered by others, which is a challenge in itself, but in order to get to and understand the deeply personal tourist experience, particularly in the indigenous realm, autoethnography remains one of the most pertinent approaches.

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Autoethnography in the Indigenous Tourism Experience

I squatted down, knees and joints creaking, and felt the stone… My world started to spin as I was transported back, back, back and the misty rain of the day embraced me.

We have been here for ever, the people of the stones whispered …

Most of those who experience indigenous tourism are themselves non-indigenous, and may view their experience quite differently to the ways the community may expect, or even want. Often our experiences are deeply personal, even spiritual. How to understand these personal experiences is an ongoing issue and can only be met by using more controversial research approaches, such the story-telling style of evocative autoethnography. The truly powerful element of autoethnography is when the ‘subject’ reveals something deep and personal that cannot be told/uncovered by others, which is a challenge in itself, but in order to get to and understand the deeply personal tourist experience, particularly in the indigenous realm, autoethnography remains one of the most pertinent approaches.