Events and tourism

The chapter examines the strategic, complex, and multifaceted relationship between planned events and the tourism sector. The development of modern event tourism is deeply rooted in the technological and social transformations of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, which fundamentally reshaped human mobility and leisure patterns. Today, events are intentionally designed and leveraged by destination managers for tourism promotion, economic development, and to achieve wider policy, social, and cultural objectives. The analysis establishes the necessity of understanding event typology, classifying events comprehensively according to purpose, scale (from mega-events to local community gatherings), frequency, ownership, and format. The discussion highlights the growing importance of new formats, including hybrid and fully online events such as esports, which underscore how technology is reshaping accessibility and participation. Adopting a critical events angle, the chapter emphasizes the shift away from defining success solely in economic terms toward maximizing social sustainability and event leveraging. Focusing on festivals, the chapter discusses how events function as critical platforms for strengthening local cultural heritage, enhancing social cohesion, and building a community’s social capital by creating a "symbolic social space". The case study of the Galo da Madrugada carnival in Recife, Brazil, exemplifies this critical perspective. It demonstrates how a recurring event can generate long-term sustainable impacts by fostering co-creation practices, stimulating local creative industries, generating know-how, and providing practical lessons in environmental sustainability through material reuse. Ultimately, the chapter argues that a critical lens is essential for interrogating the ethics, politics, and power dynamics of event tourism, ensuring practice is equitable and socially responsible.