Landscape, Culture and Place Marketing—The International Dance Festival in Kalamata, Greece

Abstract

This paper aims to analyse the interaction of landscape, culture and special events and the impact of this intangible relationship to a tangible level in a place. The paper begins with a theoretical analysis of the concepts of landscape, culture, special events, place marketing and cultural tourism that are relevant to the topic of this research. The theoretical framework is followed by the case study of the International Dance Festival in Kalamata. Special events, as place demonstration action, allow a place to promote its comparative advantages and upgrade its tourist product. Thus, special events influence landscape. The International Dance Festival in Kalamata, which has been going on for 22 years, has shaped city’s cultural identity and therefore its landscape. This paper provides a new perspective regarding the way that culture and place marketing can influence landscape. © 2017, Springer International Publishing AG.