Hreyfingar ferðaþjónustu: Skipun þróunarverkefnis í ferðaþjónustu á Vestfjörðum

In the discourse on regional and economic development, tourism frequently features as a possible coping strategy. This is not the least the case in regard to peripheral areas, both in international context and within single nation states as Iceland. The growing importance of tourism raises questions about how the trajectories of tourism development may be approached and understood. In this article a possible approach is discussed in relation to the ordering process of a particular tourism development project that is underway in the village of Þingeyri that is situated in the Westfjords. It is based on one of the Icelandic Sagas, Gísla saga Súrssonar, and is carried out by a non-profit organization called Víkingar á Vestfjörðum (Westvikings). The approach in question is based on relational materialism and makes use of actor–network theory as an analytical framework. The paper emphasizes description of the ordering and translation process of the project, that is how it is placed in the area. It contends that actor-network theory is able to trace and cast light on the complex relations that lie behind tourism development in peripheral areas.