Interest regimes as a basis for meaningful tourism and leisure experiences

This chapter presents and discusses a theoretical approach to understanding what meaningful tourism and leisure experiences are. The understanding is based on the concept of the interest regime, which is sociological by nature. People have special interests such as football, jazz music or gastronomy and they practice these interests in social contexts - the interest regimes - which give them social status and recognition. They seek tourism and leisure experiences within the interest regimes and are, as tourists, very dedicated and willing to travel and experience outside high seasons and also to pay a high price for the experiences. This is a beneficial basis for tourism enterprises and institutions to increase turnover and develop their business. Examples of how actors in tourism and leisure industries can better utilize the phenomenon of interest regimes are presented.