Riley and Van Doren’s (1992) claim that film tourism, when comparing it to hallmark
events, is of limited duration and limited means of sustaining tourism in destinations
due to the limited duration of interest in film, TV and related sites, which results in a disadvantage
in strategic planning. Yet, Beeton (2005) compares film tourism to pilgrimage,
which has more potential for longevity, particularly in the case of televised drama (see for
example Coronation Street in Couldry, 2004). Whereas most film tourism activity reaches
its peak during or following the launch of the film, other film and TV outputs have lasting
appeal with the potential of drawing visitors for many years. Due to cult status, a production
such as The Sound of Music released in (1965) still attracts American tourists to
Austria (East and Luger, 2002, in Connell and Meyer, 2009). This leads to the last
point being made here with regard to tourist motivation. Not only do we encounter
layers of motivations (see Figure 3), but attention has to be paid to the level of impact
that the film has on tourism motivation. Dedicated fans of particular themes or the
influence that literature-adaptations have can vary the influence of the film on tourist
motivation and tourist behaviour, thus changing the position of tourists on the stakeholder
map and the role of these tourists in the planning process. Accordingly, grasping first-time
visits and transforming these into repeat visits will create a legacy of film tourism (Connell
and Meyer, 2009).