Utrecht Through The Senses - Utrecht and its sensescapes, marketing and branding

Abstract

This thesis looks at the relationship between the senses and tourism in Utrecht. Content analysis shows that at present Utrecht is being branded around its intangible attributes (i.e.its churches, canals, and restaurants) and marketed as a primarliy visual experience. Walk-along interviews and auto-photography are used to investigate sensescapes within the tourist centre of Utrecht as perceived by city visitors and residents and the emotional responses to them. Findings suggest a more complex picture with experience of the city's tourist centre based upon an interplay of all the senses. Different aspects of the sensescape in each area were capable of producing feelings of both topophobia and topophilia. Explanations of how different sensescapes could be managed or planned for, and how descriptions of them could be used to enrich the marketing of the city are also given.