Vail, Colorado, as a Voluntary Culture Region

Abstract

Abstract. Geographers considering the subjects of tourism and tourist destinations have by in large focused on inherent environmental and economic impacts. Culturally, areas of leisure and recreation, termed "pleasuring places" by Wilbur Zelinsky, are often dismissed as artificial and being devoid of any real meaning. Precious little has been written that builds upon or is in response to Zelinsky's theory of voluntary culture regions. Contrary to the prevailing outlook, honest reflection reveals that such places have a great deal to say about current the attitudes and direction of modern society. Thus, areas centered upon pleasure and the therapeutic provide a critical lens for the examiner of culture, and are likewise, dynamic cultural phenomenon. Vail, Colorado, in particular, has transcended place into becoming a potent cultural icon, exemplifying the unique values of pleasuring places in its history, singularity in purpose and function, material culture, and sense of place.