Rediscovering a sense of wonder: geoheritage, geotourism and cultural landscape experiences

Traditional approaches to geological interpretation have a strong didactic focus, whereas the early development of tourism had a strong experiential basis in the Romantic notions of sublime and picturesque landscapes. This article examines the links between geodiversity, landscape, literature, art and geotourism in Scotland using historical case studies from the Falls of Clyde and Staffa, and modern case studies from the North West Highlands Geopark and the Dumfries and Galloway area. Enabling people to rediscover their geoheritage through new and memorable experiences can help the geoconservation community to engage with a wider audience and to develop a broader constituency of interest and support.