A Glimpse into Cemetery Tourism
Cemeteries have always been considered as morbid places with no element of attractiveness to it. All that is changing now and cemetery tourism is picking steam. It a category of niche tourism that gives visitors a unique glimpse into the past history of a place. Further, it also opens the door to get a better understanding and knowledge of the local culture, the local heroes of the town who have sacrificed their life for others and even some interesting family history.
A look back at history shows that cemetery tourism has had precedence during the medieval times. Tourists have thronged to many burial grounds either in search of their ancestry or to pay respect to the people who lived in that time. The burial sites in the Roman Empire were a testimony to this practice. However, during the last few centuries, the idea of cemetery tourism was lost because of many reasons such as fear and lack of interest. Today, burial sites have become attractive places for tourists again, thanks to the efforts taken by the city councils and the different burial sites' property management. This revival stems from the need for old burial sites to reinvent themselves as attractive tourist destinations because they have run out of space. Therefore, these burial sites are spruced and turned into relaxing oasis of greenery and entertainment.
The different ways by which these burial sites have adapted themselves is unique. For example, the Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Massachusetts is a national historic landmark today. Founded in 1831, this cemetery is the burial site for many famous people such as Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Louis Agassiz, George Cabot, Mary Baker Henry and so much more. This place alone has more than 93,000 burials as of 2003. The most attractive aspect of this cemetery is the garden that surrounds each burial site. The sheer number of plants and shrubs that grow here make it a horticultural haven for garden lovers. This vast amount of green space attracts many birds thereby making it one of the best spots for bird watching in this part of the country.
Another popular cemetery that has brought in tourists is the Pere Lachaise in Paris. In fact, this cemetery is the heart of Paris and one of the must-see place for any tourist. This cemetery is much more than a mere burial ground. Contrary to popular opinion about this cemetery, it is never empty of life, rather there is constant movement here in the form of tourists and locals who keep plying in and out of this place. For this reasons, Pere Lachaise is as important as Eiffel Tower or the Notre Dame and contributes in a big way to the local tourism industry.
Besides acting as cultural identities of a place, graveyards can also help one to trace his or her ancestry. This kind of cemetery tourism is best seen in places like India where there are many European colonist graveyards. Visitors who travel to this part of the world are curious to find the graves of their ancestors, so they end up visiting more than one graveyard. A good chunk of cemetery tourism takes places in the state of Himachal Pradesh in India where there are more than 42 cemeteries that have the remains of British colonists who died here. This place has spurred a big interest among the British nationals during the last few years because of the current boom in genealogy. As a result of these cemeteries, the state saw more than seven million tourists in 2012 alone and this amounted to almost eight percent of the state's total GDP.
Irrespective of the reason for visit, cemetery tourism represents the “dark tourism destinations” filled with spookiness, fear and other negative emotions associated with death. To help visitors truly experience these emotions, many cemeteries offer night walks or tours. A good example of such a tour is the one offered at Presbitero Matias Maestro Museum Cemetery in Lima, Peru. These night tours even come with different themes to suit the preferences of different groups of travelers. Popular themes include romance, patriotism, revenge, national leaders, presidents and even death. For some visitors, it is like watching a horror movie while for others it is a look into Peruvian history. The money that comes from these tours helps to maintain the facility and to provide employment for the locals who work here.
These examples show that cemetery tourism has caught on in a big way among travelers. The best part is that it is not restricted to a certain geographical area and is spread around the world. This is heartening in many ways because it not only gives a boost to the local regions, but it also gives a varied perspective to the idea of sightseeing.
In short, cemetery tourism is becoming popular and this goes to show how the industry has matured to entertain travelers with a localized flavor. The new dark tourism sites to enjoy dark tourism holidays!