The Parkes Elvis Festival: Attendee and host community perspectives

Schlenker, K; Foley, CT; Carroll-Dwyer, E

The Parkes Elvis Festival: Attendee and host community perspectives

Schlenker, K

Foley, CT

Carroll-Dwyer, E

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Publisher:: Goodfellow Publishers Limited
Publication Type:: Chapter
Citation:: Focus on World Festivals Contemporary Case Studies and Perspectives, 2016, pp. 299 - 308
Issue Date:: 2016-02-29

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Schlenker, K https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9917-8973	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Foley, CT https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8851-9119	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Carroll-Dwyer, E	en_US
dc.contributor.editor	Newbold, C	en_US
dc.contributor.editor	Jordan, J	en_US
dc.date.issued	2016-02-29	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	Focus on World Festivals Contemporary Case Studies and Perspectives, 2016, pp. 299 - 308	en_US
dc.identifier.isbn	1910158569	en_US
dc.identifier.isbn	9781910158562	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/68135
dc.description.abstract	Each year, up to 20,000 people descend upon the rural town of Parkes, 365km west of Sydney, to attend the Parkes Elvis Festival. Initiated in 1993 by a group of locals who were Elvis Presley fans, the annual festival has grown from the humble beginnings of a one-day event with a few hundred attendees to a five day festival. In a bid to assist the festival organisers to understand the impacts of the Parkes Elvis Festival on both attendees and the host community, researchers designed a set of survey instruments to deliver a comprehensive evaluation of the social and economic impacts of the festival. Research was carried out in 2010 and separate surveys were conducted for festival organisers, attendees and local residents. After a brief explanation of the festival, and the man it is inspired by, this chapter explores the methods used to collect data before outlining the results. The results are divided into two key sections, attendees’ perceptions, and host community perceptions. First we profile the demographics, motivations and experience of festival attendees. Second, we profile the perceptions of the host community with respect to both the economic and social impacts of the festival. The surveys demonstrate the overwhelming goodwill and enthusiasm for the festival, by both the host community and attendees. Results show that the festival attracts a mix of first time and repeat visitors, and that many of the returning attendees do so to catch up with friends made at previous festivals. For residents, regardless of whether they attend or not, the large majority understand the economic, tourism and community benefits generated by the festival.	en_US
dc.publisher	Goodfellow Publishers Limited	en_US
dc.relation.ispartof	Focus on World Festivals Contemporary Case Studies and Perspectives	en_US
dc.title	The Parkes Elvis Festival: Attendee and host community perspectives	en_US
dc.type	Chapter
utslib.location	Oxford	en_US
utslib.for	150404 Sport and Leisure Management	en_US
utslib.for	150601 Impacts of Tourism	en_US
utslib.for	150603 Tourism Management	en_US
pubs.embargo.period	Not known	en_US
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Business
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Business/Management Discipline
utslib.copyright.status	open_access
pubs.consider-herdc	true	en_US
pubs.place-of-publication	Oxford	en_US
pubs.publication-status	Published	en_US

Abstract:

Each year, up to 20,000 people descend upon the rural town of Parkes, 365km west of Sydney, to attend the Parkes Elvis Festival. Initiated in 1993 by a group of locals who were Elvis Presley fans, the annual festival has grown from the humble beginnings of a one-day event with a few hundred attendees to a five day festival. In a bid to assist the festival organisers to understand the impacts of the Parkes Elvis Festival on both attendees and the host community, researchers designed a set of survey instruments to deliver a comprehensive evaluation of the social and economic impacts of the festival. Research was carried out in 2010 and separate surveys were conducted for festival organisers, attendees and local residents. After a brief explanation of the festival, and the man it is inspired by, this chapter explores the methods used to collect data before outlining the results. The results are divided into two key sections, attendees’ perceptions, and host community perceptions. First we profile the demographics, motivations and experience of festival attendees. Second, we profile the perceptions of the host community with respect to both the economic and social impacts of the festival. The surveys demonstrate the overwhelming goodwill and enthusiasm for the festival, by both the host community and attendees. Results show that the festival attracts a mix of first time and repeat visitors, and that many of the returning attendees do so to catch up with friends made at previous festivals. For residents, regardless of whether they attend or not, the large majority understand the economic, tourism and community benefits generated by the festival.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/68135