Urban Explorers: Looking for the Real London in 2012
| Date: | 7 March 2012 |
| Time: | 6.00pm - . |
| Location: | The Old Cinema, 309 Regent Street, London W1B 2UW |
| Speakers: | Professor Robert Maitland |
Tourism is inextricably intertwined with place making. Mega-events are intended both to attract tourists and re-brand a city. London 2012, the organisers tell us, will be “unforgettable”. Yet for many visitors what matters most is not viewing branded events and attractions, but the everyday experience of the place and its intangible culture. It is the experience of ordinary life that is unforgettable – not the Aquatics Centre and the stadium. Involvement with everyday life satisfies the desire to experience the ‘real London’. It focuses on what makes the city a distinctive and memorable place – and provides the basis for a truly sustainable growth in tourism.
Professor Robert Maitland
Professor Robert Maitland is the Director of the Centre for Tourism Research at the University of Westminster. He is an urban economist with a longstanding focus on tourism in cities. His current research interests include tourism and everyday life, new tourist areas in London, world tourism cities, tourism in national capitals and social tourism. He is Director of the Centre for Tourism Research at the University of Westminster, where he holds a chair in City Tourism, Chair of the Association for Tourism in Higher Education, the subject association for tourism in the UK, and Co-Chair of the international ATLAS City Tourism and National Capitals Research Group.
