Religious tourism in Malta between politics, policies and private enterprise

Abstract

Malta has a cultural heritage of about 8,000 years, still possessing tangible, intangible and visible traces of that rich past, including religion, pilgrimage and at present, faith-based tourism. Although Malta has this massive cultural, tangible religious heritage, one may wonder why Malta has never become a pilgrimage destination or a magnet for faith-based tourism. The theoretical framework of this chapter is based on evidence-based policy making (EBPM) and policy analytics. The chapter analyses and discusses the trajectory of the phenomenon of faith-based tourism and the various attempts to create a niche market by policy makers and stakeholders in Malta. There is an ongoing struggle whether to force faith-based tourism into the summer mass tourism segment or to decide on a quality-based shoulder and low season special interest market. The politics, policies and the private enterprise structure of the islands will be also discussed. This will lead to identifying several areas where improvements are probable, if not possible, depending on how far new insights are reaching, the severity of the resistance against change and the power of evidence.