Centers in Faith Tourism and the Interaction of Local People with These Centers: The Case of Kastamonu

Abstract

Individuals may turn to touristic trips for reasons such as ease of transportation, industrialization, increase in leisure time, education level and per capita income. In order to increase this orientation and to distance the individual from his monotonous life, it is necessary to pay attention to awareness studies about alternative tourism types that have emerged alongside traditional mass tourism. Among these alternative tourism types, the fact that it can be carried out throughout the year and at a lower cost increases the importance of faith tourism in particular. The aim of the research is to raise awareness about the mosques and social complexes in the central district, which are published on the Kastamonu Municipality official website, and to measure the visit rates of these elements by the people living in the Central district. After obtaining the permissions to reach the goal, a questionnaire was applied to the sample group consisting of 518 participants over the age of 20 who lived in the central district of Kastamonu for at least three years. The data were collected by convenience sampling method based on volunteering criteria via Google Forms. The data were collected by convenience sampling method based on volunteering criteria via Google Forms. The data obtained in the research was analyzed using the SPSS Statistical Analysis Program. During the analysis of the data, the Chi-Square Test was applied as well as the descriptive statistics. As a result, it was seen that the participants of the research did not have enough awareness about faith tourism centers. There is a significant difference between the participants' visits to faith tourism centers according to gender, marital status, education, occupation and monthly income. According to the participants, in order to make religious tourism centers the focus of attention in terms of tourism, it is necessary to benefit from the effectiveness of the media and social media, to organize various social and cultural events, to provide opportunities for faith tourism-related entrepreneurs, and to provide training on the subject.