Annals of Tourism Research, Vol. 41, pp.

195–214, 2013
0160-7383/$ - see front matter Ó 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Printed in Great Britain
www.elsevier.com/locate/atoures
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.annals.2013.01.002

AFRICAN AND WESTERN TOURISTS:

OBJECT AUTHENTICITY QUEST?
Muchazondida Mkono
Southern Cross University, Australia

Abstract: The study draws from netnography and participant observation to compare the
subjective importance of object authenticity between African and Western tourists, in their
encounters with staged culture in Zimbabwe. Thus it challenges the status quo, being one
of a few studies in which Africans are represented as tourists. The paper then argues that,
in its object-related sense, authenticity has limited usefulness for African tourists. It is sug-
gested that, for them, rather than authenticity, aesthetics and artistry are more meaningful
criteria for evaluating cultural performances. Therefore, object authenticity is not universally
relevant as a touristic quest. In contrast to African tourists, however, Western tourists were
preoccupied with evaluating object authenticity and uncovering ‘‘deceit’’ in staged culture.
Keywords: object authenticity, African tourists, Western tourists, netnography, Victoria
Falls. Ó 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

INTRODUCTION
Notwithstanding its critics, the subject of authenticity has created a
continuous flow of debate among tourism scholars since Dean Mac-
Cannell broached his theory of ‘‘staged authenticity’’, suggesting that
the ‘‘modern’’ man travelled in search of an authentic Other, in other
places, and other times (for example Belhassen & Caton, 2006; Cohen,
1988; Cole, 2007; Jamal & Hill, 2004; Olsen, 2002; Ryan, 1997, 2003;
Ryan & Aicken, 2005; Ryan & Crotts, 1997; Wang, 1999). This paper
adds to existing critiques of authenticity theory, arguing that, in its ob-
ject-related sense, the concept has limited usefulness for African tour-
ists in staged culture contexts. The paper also attempts to (partially)
address the lack of studies which explicitly focus on African tourists.
It examines their behaviour and responses in relation to the supposed
quest for authenticity, and concludes that, for them, alternative criteria
are required for understanding and reflecting on cultural touristic
experiences.
Based on the findings, it is suggested that, rather than authenticity,
aesthetics and artistry might be more meaningful dimensions for eval-

Muchazondida Mkono is a PhD student in the School of Tourism and Hospitality

Management, at Southern Cross University, Australia (Southern Cross University, P.O.
Box 157, Military Road, Lismore, New South Wales, Australia, 2480. <mmkon-
o10@scu.edu.au>). Her research focuses on netnographic methodology, African tourists
and cultural tourism experiences.

195
196 M. Mkono / Annals of Tourism Research 41 (2013) 195–214

uating cultural (performance) experiences for African tourists. An

important aspect of the study is its relatively novel approach, which
combines virtual (that is, online/Internet-based) and traditional tech-
niques to examine the subjective relevance of authenticity in the con-
text of ‘‘eatertainment’’ (Ritzer’s (1999) term for restaurant
entertainment), provided for tourists in Victoria Falls restaurants.
Eatertainment as a form of product and service augmentation is wide-
spread at the destination, in response to the predominantly Western
market. As a marketing tool, restaurants hire local groups to showcase
various vernacular traditions, commonly Shona, Ndebele, Zulu, Shan-
gani, or less discretely, African, music and dance. The performance
groups typically dress in animal skin, and perform with various props,
such as animal-like masks and horns. Restaurants at Victoria Falls also
feature local carvers demonstrating their art and selling souvenirs, hair-
braiders, storytellers, traditional clairvoyants, drummers, and ‘‘African
piano’’ players.
By comparing African and Western tourists’ perspectives, behaviours
and experiences, the study ensures a culturally multivocal format that
allows both ‘‘subaltern-host’’ and (Western) guest voices to be repre-
sented. The rationale for the present study therefore arises partly from
the realisation that the majority of studies on authenticity in tourism
have failed to distinguish the cultural relativity of the phenomenon
as a sensibility in tourists’ experience of traditional culture at destina-
tions around the world. For the most part, it has been the Western
tourist voice which has been represented. Indeed, in some cases, this
voice has been the implicit prototype of tourist thought. As Hazbun
(2009) argues, dominant Eurocentric knowledge creation in tourism
has continued to show disinterest in non-Western tourists, and even
to deny that tourists can be non-Western. Consistent with the above,
mainstream tourism discourse continues to cast Africans as ‘‘touree’’
(that is, the toured people; the hosts), yet increasingly they have also
taken on the role of ‘‘tourer’’. As such, studies taking the ‘‘African
as tourist’’ perspective are conspicuously scanty (Mkono, 2011a). As ex-
pressed by Hitchcott’s (2009, p. 149), ‘‘the traveller is generally as-
sumed to be white, Western and male’’.

CRITIQUES OF OBJECT AUTHENTICITY THEORY

Some authors have pointed out the inadequacies of (object) authen-
ticity as the primary quest in touristic (cultural) experiences (Kim &
Jamal, 2007; Olsen, 2002; Steiner & Reisinger, 2006; Wang, 1999).
For example, Ryan (1997, 2003) argues that in the case of showcases
of indigenous cultures for tourism, the central issue is not authenticity,
but rather, who authorises performances, so that ‘‘authorisation’’
should be the focus of analysis. Further, under cultural authorisation,
analysis is broadened to include examining whether performance is
within the control of indigenous people, where power lies, who re-
ceives income, and what the levels of income are. For Ryan (2003),
these questions are more meaningful than simply asking whether a
 M. Mkono / Annals of Tourism Research 41 (2013) 195–214 197

cultural performance is ‘‘authentic’’. Similarly, Wall and Xie (2005, p.

2) write:
...rather than seeking to define the authentic, it is more appropriate
and useful to ask, ‘‘Who authenticates?’’ Answers to this question
involve the identification of key players (stakeholders) and the crite-
ria that they employ for making their assessments of authenticity. It
ultimately involves addressing issues of power and authority. Never-
theless, the attribution of authenticity is important because it involves
the conferment of status.
Cohen and Cohen (2012) have explored the politics of authorisation
or ‘‘authentication’’, wherein they propose two kinds, namely ‘‘cool’’
authentication (declarative acts which authenticate objects), and
‘‘hot’’ authentication (immanent, reiterative, informal performative
processes of creating, preserving and reinforcing an object’s, site’s or
event’s authenticity). Cohen (1979, 1988, 2002, 2004, 2007a, 2007b,
2010) also criticises the staged authenticity theory, which sees all mod-
ern tourists as searching for an authentic Other, in other places. Co-
hen states unequivocally that it is too ‘‘far-fetched’’ to accept
MacCannell’s argument that all tourists pursue ‘‘real’’ experiences,
but cannot succeed for the deceit of the commercial tourism industry
(Cohen, 1979). In his phenomenology of touristic experiences, he
warns that putting all tourists in one class and labelling them as
authenticity seekers is an oversimplification (Cohen, 1979). Within this
thesis, Cohen proceeds to distinguish five modes of touristic experi-
ence, namely the recreational mode; the diversionary mode; the expe-
riential mode; the experimental mode; and the existential mode.
These modes capture different touristic motivations, associated with
different kinds of quests, some of which do not include the search
for authenticity. He also dismisses the ‘‘modern-man-in-general’’ gen-
eralisation, and, in place of MacCannell’s staged authenticity, suggests
a constructionist perspective, which sees authenticity as socially con-
structed, and therefore emergent, negotiable, and mutable (Cohen,
1979, 1988, 1993, 2002, 2007a, 2010).
Another critic of MacCannell’s theory is Nyiri (2006), who contends
that the modern-man-in-general approach is really an embodiment of
modernity in Western society; and asserts that there is no basis for
assuming that the Western notion of authenticity is generalisable to
other cultures. Nyiri provides a context–specific interpretation of the
concept from a Chinese perspective, thus exposing the non-generalis-
ability of the Westerncentric view across different contexts. This cri-
tique is also echoed by Cole (2007) who also asserts that authenticity
is a Euro-centric concept which fails to recognise the interplay between
culture and power, as well as the strategic deployment of tourism by
less developed communities to empower themselves. But in spite of var-
ious criticisms, the predominant conception of the phenomenon of
authenticity in tourism has remained a Western-centric, modern-
man-in-general approach which sees tourists as searching for an
‘‘authentic Other’’. Indeed, most extant discourses of authenticity
can be seen as drawing from MacCannell’s ideas (Cohen, 1979, 1988,
198 M. Mkono / Annals of Tourism Research 41 (2013) 195–214

1993, 2002, 2007a, 2007b, 2010; Jones, 2010; MacCannell, 1973; Mac-
Cannell, 1976). As Hall (2007, p. 1139) argues, the search for authen-
ticity is a part of modern society, since ‘‘in traditional societies there
are no disputes about origins’’.
Postmodernists have also questioned the relevance of authenticity as
a quest in tourism, for the so-called ‘‘post-tourists’’, even going so far as
suggesting that some tourists may search for, and delight in, inauthen-
tic experiences (Beer, 2008; Belhassen, Caton, & Stewart, 2008; Feifer,
1985; Kim & Jamal, 2007; Lau, 2010; Reisinger & Steiner, 2006; Wang,
1999). However, as Wang (2000) notes, postmodernism is not a single,
unified, or well-integrated school of thought. Instead, there are diverse
views, although, with regards to authenticity, ‘‘the approaches of post-
modernism seem to be characterized by the deconstruction of authen-
ticity’’, wherein the basis of argument is frequently the untenability of
‘‘copy’’ and ‘‘original’’ separation, which possibility most object
authenticity theory depends on or assumes (p. 54). But what do tourists
have to say on this matter—that is, have they indeed lost all interest in
authenticity, or do some still care? By analysing (Western) tourists’ self-
interpretive recollections of their food experiences at Victoria Falls,
this paper attempts, among other things, to address this question.
Other authors have cited the lack of agreed definition of authenticity
as rendering the concept futile as an explanation of touristic quests.
These critiques emphasise that if authenticity meaning is so inconsis-
tent as to paralyse any meaningful dialectic, then it should be aban-
doned. However, some progress has been made in distinguishing
different kinds of authenticity, creating the opportunity for more pre-
cision in debates surrounding the concept. For example, Wang (1999,
2000) has unpacked authenticity into objectivist (or objective) authen-
ticity, constructive authenticity (these two constitute object-related
authenticity); and existential authenticity. In the critique presented
in this paper, it is object-related authenticity which is the focus of
the criticism.
Object-related authenticity, as the name hints, is concerned with
whether toured objects are ‘‘authentic’’, or perceived as such. In the
objectivist form, it is assumed that there is an objective measure of
the authenticity of an object. In its more moderate form, ‘‘constructive
authenticity’’, authenticity is a socially constructed phenomenon, as
highlighted above in reference to Cohen’s critique of MacCannell,
and as such, whether an object is authentic or not is a matter of percep-
tion. Existential authenticity, on the other hand, relates to a personal
experience of being ‘‘true to oneself’’, being happy and free from pre-
tensions and the need to conform to socially defined roles. Therefore,
it is independent of (the authenticity of) toured objects (Buchmann,
Moore, & Fisher, 2010; Kim & Jamal, 2007; Lau, 2010; Mkono,
2011b, c; Olsen, 2002; Reisinger & Steiner, 2006; Steiner & Reisinger,
2006; Wang, 1999, 2000). Existential authenticity is activated when
tourists are ‘‘having a good time’’ and when they are actively involved
in the tourism experience: it is a self oriented, activity authenticity
(Steiner & Reisinger, 2006; Wang, 2000). Given the focus of the paper,
 M. Mkono / Annals of Tourism Research 41 (2013) 195–214 199

however, a detailed discussion of existential authenticity falls outside

the scope.

METHODOLOGY
The study combines traditional and online ethnography (netnogra-
phy) to explore Western and African tourist perspectives of their cul-
tural experiences in Victoria Falls restaurants, respectively. This way,
the shortcomings of netnography (for example, the inability to probe
participants) could be compensated by traditional ethnography, and
vice versa. However, the integration of netnographic and field data is
problematic, as there was no online data from African tourists. Not-
withstanding this limitation, though, African tourist narratives were
rich enough to warrant their juxtaposition with those of Western
tourists.

Online Ethnography (Netnography)

Netnography (online ethnography) is an adaptation of ethnography
for conducting research online. Originally developed by Robert Kozi-
nets for online consumer research, it is slowly gaining prominence as
a method for studying different issues associated with online commu-
nities, in tourism and other disciplines (Beaven & Laws, 2007; Björk
& Kauppinen-Räisänen, 2012; Dwivedi, 2009; Kozinets, 1997, 1998,
1999, 2002, 2006; Kozinets, Hemetsberger, & Schau, 2008; Mkono,
2011d; Woodside, Cruickshank, & Dehuang, 2007). With the growth
of so-called ‘‘web 2.0’’ applications, netnography is likely to become
more widespread across the social sciences. These technologies allow
users to interact via uploading text, videos, and pictures, making them
a rich source of highly personal exchanges occurring on a global scale.
Thus the Internet has become a fieldwork site in its own right.
Netnography involves gathering data from various online sources
such as social networking sites, chat forums, ‘‘vlogs’’, and blogs. Typi-
cally, researchers identify relevant data using search engines. They
may identify specific online communities of interest, join and partici-
pate in them, or simply, observe them (the ‘‘lurker’’ approach). How-
ever, it is the participative formats of netnography, (‘‘participant’’ and
‘‘spy’’ formats), where the researcher becomes a member of the rele-
vant online community, which are closer (albeit not equal, or congru-
ent) to traditional ethnographic standards of participant observation,
prolonged engagement, and deep immersion, compared to the passive
formats (‘‘lurker’’ and ‘‘observer’’ formats). In the case of non-partic-
ipative approaches, clearly, conceptualising netnography as ‘‘online
ethnography’’, is indeed, problematic, due to the limited immersion
on the part of the researcher.
By examining the text that flows between users, researchers can gain
insights which other methodologies might be incapable of capturing.
The increasing application of netnography since its conception can
200 M. Mkono / Annals of Tourism Research 41 (2013) 195–214

be explained in terms of its various merits. These include: the use of

data that are created by online users, without researcher direction;
the candour and richness of data, owing to the pseudonymity/anonym-
ity afforded to online community members (for example, they can use
avatars and pseudonyms to identify themselves); and it is relatively sim-
pler, faster and cheaper than traditional ethnography (for example,
data are already in transcribed mode).
However, netnography is also subject to several limitations: the
inability to probe participants (where the researcher is a ‘‘lurker’’);
the researcher cannot verify personal details of participants such as
age; the researcher has no access to nonverbal cues (although this is
partly overcome by the increasing popularity in the use of ‘‘emoticons’’
to convey emotions in online communications); the lack of contextual
details in most online commentary, and, in the case of Consumer-
Generated-Content relating to products and services, the possibility
of bogus reviews, which compromises the authenticity of data (Björk
& Kauppinen-Räisänen, 2012; Dwivedi, 2009; Janta & Ladkin, 2009;
Kozinets, 1997, 1998, 2002, 2006; Langer & Beckman, 2005; Mkono,
2011d; Schmallegger & Carson, 2009; Woodside et al., 2007).
For the present study, netnographic data took the form of
tourist-generated-content from Tripadvisor.com, created without the
direction of a researcher. The data can therefore be construed as rep-
resenting tourists’ self-interpretive meanings of their experiences.
Since the data were already in the public domain, the need to seek
individual, informed consent did not apply (Eysenbach & Till, 2001).
The ethical issues associated with of online research however remain
contentious. Tripadvisor was selected as it is the most popular travel
reviews site, and so it offered a large volume of reviews pertaining to
tourists’ Victoria Falls restaurant experiences. A total of 678 reviews
were downloaded through the website’s search function, through
which information on all Victoria Falls restaurants that have been re-
viewed, as well as the number reviews there are, can be accessed quickly
and easily.
The majority of reviewers, based on their profile information, origi-
nated in Western countries, particularly the United States, United
Kingdom, and Australia. There was insufficient content authored by
(indigenous) African tourists online, so that it was not possible to ex-
tract any significant patterns of meaning from them. This can be ex-
plained partly by the relatively low usage of online technologies
among African communities, compared to their counterparts in the
developed world. The reviews used in the study pertain to the following
tourism enterprises: Boma Place of Eating (Victoria Falls Safari Lodge),
the Jungle Junction (Victoria Falls Hotel), the White Waters Restaurant
(Kingdom Hotel), the Amulonga Restaurant (A’Zambezi River Lodge),
and Mama Africa Eating House. These restaurants were selected as they
are among the most popular, culturally coded, tourist-oriented estab-
lishments at the destination. As such, a high number of reviews are
posted about them online. The reviews were printed and analysed man-
ually, as explained in thematic analysis.
 M. Mkono / Annals of Tourism Research 41 (2013) 195–214 201

Ethnography
Ethnography is a research method that has often been used in re-
search to enable in-depth exploration of communities and culture,
with a view to discern their worldview and lived experiences of a spec-
ified phenomenon (Collingridge & Gantt, 2008; Frohlick & Harrison,
2008; Zheng, 2011). Through prolonged interaction with communi-
ties, via participant observation, the researcher collects data in natu-
rally occurring settings. For the present study, to gain a detailed
understanding of African and Western tourist experiences, I immersed
myself into the Victoria Falls (Zimbabwean side) touristic space for a
period of six months, between October 2011 and April 2012, observing
and interviewing African and Western tourists. Access was facilitated by
my previous work at the Boma restaurant, as a hospitality management
intern, during which period I established professional networks with
industry practitioners in the area. Being an indigenous Zimbabwean,
my positionality at the time could be described as a ‘‘cultural insider’’,
in respect of the host community and the accompanying cultural
context.
I interviewed a total of 57 adult tourists, the majority of whom were
indigenous Africans (54%), while the rest were Western. I conducted
the interviews at various venues around Victoria Falls, including in res-
taurants, hotel lobbies, at the entrance to the Victoria Falls Park, on riv-
er cruises, and on the streets. As tourists travel to the destination on a
time-limited itinerary, it was important to be flexible with the time and
place of interviews. All tourists interviewed had travelled to the destina-
tion primarily to tour the Victoria Falls, as part of a larger tour of
Southern Africa. No other personal information was collected, as there
was no direct relevance to the research questions. As Victoria Falls is a
relatively expensive, long haul destination (for tourists travelling from
outside Africa), it may be assumed that this sample comprised individ-
uals of medium to high discretionary income.
The participants were selected purposively, based on their having
dined at the restaurants relevant to the study. I disclosed my identity
as a researcher whenever I engaged in sustained conversations/inter-
views, or when I asked very specific questions pertaining to the re-
search. Although the interviews were conducted using an interview
guide, they were largely unstructured, allowing the participants to
guide the content towards their own interpretations of the destination
experience. The interviews varied from short, ‘‘chit-chat’’ style inter-
views, to more sustained, in-depth probing, depending on the interest
which participants demonstrated, as well as the time they could spare.
As most tourists visit Victoria Falls for very short holidays (the destina-
tion is renowned as a very expensive place to visit), they are not always
available for lengthy interviews.
The unstructured and informal nature of interviews was particularly
important as the goal of the study was partly to establish the ways in
which tourists conceived of their experiences, on their own terms, as
far as possible. There was always the risk of leading questions, and of
projecting authenticity assumptions onto participants, which could
202 M. Mkono / Annals of Tourism Research 41 (2013) 195–214

alter their own reflections of the restaurant experiences. Thus ques-

tions were left open-ended and broad, so that participants could frame
their own narratives with minimum guidance as to the criteria of eval-
uating their experiences (for example ‘‘What was the experience like
for you?’’, ‘‘what do you value the most about an experience such as
this one?’’; rather than ‘‘Was it authentic for you?’’).
I also engaged in participant observation for about 80 hours, to
gain an insider perspective of the restaurant experience. Restaurants
were selected as in the netnography, so that five restaurants were in-
cluded, namely, the Boma Place of Eating (Victoria Falls Safari
Lodge), the Jungle Junction (Victoria Falls Hotel), the White Waters
Restaurant (Kingdom Hotel), the Amulonga Restaurant (A’Zambezi
River Lodge), and Mama Africa Eating House. These restaurants were
appropriate for the sample as they also purported to offer tourists a
taste of African/Zimbabwean culture. Their appeal was carefully
crafted in the elaborate staging of an African cultural dining experi-
ence, as indicated earlier. Observation in restaurants involved watch-
ing, listening to, and talking to, tourists; participating in tourist
activities in the restaurants, as in dancing when invited to do so by
the performance groups. The observations were recorded in a field
notes journal, as an account of what I experienced, as well as my
reflection of the experience.

Thematic Analysis
Thematic analysis is a widely used tool in qualitative research (Braun
& Clarke, 2006; Gupta & Levenburg, 2010; Woodhouse, 2006). It is use-
ful for identifying patterns of meaning and experience in qualitative
data. In this study, online reviews, fieldwork notes, and transcripts were
read through several times to gain an overall perspective of the data in
relation to the research goal (to compare African and Western touristic
quests). Next, the sections of data which answered the research ques-
tions were coded for more detailed and nuanced analysis. This was fol-
lowed by another round of coding, checking to see that all relevant text
had been coded. Similar codes were grouped to highlight recurrent
patterns, representing emergent themes. The themes were then ana-
lysed, focusing on how African tourist and Western tourists differed.
Exemplary excerpts were then extracted for illustrating the identified
themes.

KEY DIFFERENCES BETWEEN AFRICAN AND WESTERN TOUR-

ISTS
In relation to the role and importance of object-related authenticity,
several attitudinal and behavioural differences were noted between Afri-
can and Western tourists. It should however be emphasised that due to
the small scale of the study, the comparison is a tentative one, subject to
further research.
 M. Mkono / Annals of Tourism Research 41 (2013) 195–214 203

Ease of Communicating/Translating Authenticity Questions in Interviews

During interviews and informal conversations, it was much easier to
communicate the idea of authenticity to Western tourists, than it was
with African tourists. Indeed, in the case of (indigenous) Zimbabwean
tourists, who formed the majority of African tourists, it was particularly
difficult because there is no vernacular (Shona and Ndebele) equiva-
lent term for authenticity. Thus for example, several sentences were re-
quired just to attempt a translation of the phrase ‘‘cultural
authenticity’’. This linguistic difference alone might be sufficient basis
for arguing that for African tourists, authenticity is a foreign concept.
One could suggest that if it was of any considerable importance, if it
formed part of everyday conversation (in vernacular), among the indig-
enous Zimbabwean population, for example, then there would be a
term for it. For a few African tourists (especially Zimbabweans), in fact,
the subject of authenticity seemed so foreign and perplexing to them
even after several attempts to explain it in simple terms, including in
vernacular. As a Zimbabwean tourist responded:
I’m not sure I know what you are talking about, I’m trying to under-
stand what you are asking, but I’m still not quite clear [Interview
transcripts].
Western tourists, on the other hand, could immediately understand
and relate to the term. While they plausibly tried to avoid causing of-
fence during interviews, by saying very positive and approving com-
ments about the ‘‘local culture’’, they frequently made reference to a
search for authentic cultural experience in one way or another. The
difference between African and Western tourists illustrated here sug-
gests, albeit not conclusively, that, as other authors have already argued
(Nyiri, 2006; Ryan, 2003), authenticity is not a universally relevant con-
cept, and different cultures have different criteria (and language) for
evaluating and appreciating cultural experiences.
However, the translation challenges arising from interlingual com-
munication in qualitative studies, illustrated above, have been dis-
cussed extensively in research (for example Croot, Lees, & Grant,
2011; Herdman, Fox-Rushby, & Badia, 1997, 1998; Kashgary, 2011; Lar-
kin, Dierckx de Casterlé, & Schotsmans, 2007; Squires, 2009; Van Nes,
Abma, Jonsson, & Deeg, 2010). This has created a vast body of litera-
ture and theoretical models. Within translation theory, in relation to
the English-to-Shona/Ndebele translation of ‘‘authenticity’’ and its
synonyms, the issue of ‘‘conceptual equivalence’’ is particularly rele-
vant. Conceptual equivalence is a central issue in translation, and refers
to a technically and conceptually accurate translated communication
of a concept spoken by a participant (Croot et al., 2011; Kashgary,
2011; Larkin et al., 2007; Squires, 2009). Researchers cannot assume
that constructs (in this case, ‘‘authenticity’’) will exist or be interpreted
the same across cultures.
Associated with this is the concept of ‘‘semantic equivalence’’, which
is concerned with the transfer of meaning across languages, and with
achieving a similar effect on respondents in different languages. Put
204 M. Mkono / Annals of Tourism Research 41 (2013) 195–214

differently, research is not ‘‘language free’’, and meanings in the

source language cannot always be transferred successfully to all target
languages. Languages influence what can be expressed, and from this
follows that social reality as experienced is unique to one’s own lan-
guage, and those who speak different languages would therefore per-
ceive the world differently (van Nes et al., 2010). Languages not only
organise the world according to existing categories, they also articulate
their own (Kashgary, 2011). Therefore, ‘‘untranslatability’’ issues will
arise whenever the categories of socio-semiotic meaning conveyed by
a source expression do not coincide exactly with those of a comparable
expression in the target language (Kashgary, 2011; Ping, 1999).
As a result, there was a challenge for both myself as researcher, and
for participants, in trying to ensure conceptual and semantic equiva-
lence when probing, and responding in non-English interviews, respec-
tively, on matters relating to (possible) authenticity quests. There was
always the risk, as Squires (2009) points out, that a poor translation
would occur, leading to the alteration or loss of intended meanings.
The different ways of seeing the world constructed by the different lan-
guages therefore introduced challenges at both the ontological and
epistemological levels, especially because the achievement of the study
goal was highly dependent on the flow of meanings.

Unguided Direct Reference to Authenticity or Related Ideas

It was also important to consider, related and overlapping with the
above, whether or not the participants referred, unguided by myself
as researcher, to authenticity. I asked tourists to reflect on their restau-
rant experience, and describe it in terms of what it meant to them, and
what was significant about it to them. The goal here was to let partici-
pants compose their own narratives freely, and in terms that mattered
to them, rather than leading them towards judgements of authenticity,
or imposing authenticity onto those accounts. Interestingly, it was ob-
served that during these interviews, none of the African tourists
broached the subject of authenticity (directly or using related termi-
nologies such as ‘‘real’’ or ‘‘original’’ culture) on their own, when
asked to describe their experience in the restaurants. In contrast, Wes-
tern tourists did refer in different ways to authenticity, either directly
or with related terms or phrases. Also, in particular, in Western tour-
ists’ netnographic reviews, which represent tourists’ unguided accounts
and interpretations of the cultural restaurant experiences at Victoria
Falls, reference to authenticity was abundant. In addition, online re-
views also expressed perceptions of inauthenticity, using terms such
as ‘‘hokey’’, or ‘‘contrived’’, (the categorisation of online reviews here
as Western is based on their profiles which include their countries of
origin, as indicated earlier):
. . . the ‘‘show’’ was very loud and not authentic. We had just spent 12
days in the bush and had seen the real thing.
At your table you order appetizers immediately as well as drinks, and
are given a traditional (and authentic) beer-type beverage.
 M. Mkono / Annals of Tourism Research 41 (2013) 195–214 205

Various hawkers approached the tables while we were dining offering

different services: fortune telling, selling traditional drinks and the
like. It all seemed fake and contrived. All in all, it was a contrived
‘‘tourist trap’’ type of experience.
It was interesting but a little hokey. The food was supposed to be typ-
ically African, but generally it was over cooked and blah! We saw Afri-
can dancing at other lodges and hotels, and they didn’t have the
Disney feel this place had. Would not go back [Tripadvisor.com].
These online reviews demonstrate clearly that authenticity, whatever
it means to them, is very much a part of the Western psyche in cultural
tourism contexts. The reviews also provide a very strong basis for refut-
ing the postmodernist view that (object) authenticity has become
redundant as a concept in tourism; that tourists no longer care about
authenticity; or that authenticity should no longer be referred to in
relation to objects (Kim & Jamal, 2007; Mkono, 2011b; Olsen, 2002;
Reisinger & Steiner, 2006; Steiner & Reisinger, 2006; Wang, 1999,
2000). Clearly, tourists still think about authenticity. What is suggested
in this study is that claims about authenticity should not be made with-
out due regard to the nuances brought on by different cultures and
their concomitant frames of references. In other words, object authen-
ticity matters for some groups more than it does for others.

Evaluation and Descriptive Criteria for Cultural Eatertainment

In their descriptions, as already emphasised, African tourists de-
scribed and/or evaluated the experience in terms other than authen-
ticity. Instead, they were particularly interested in the aesthetic and
artistic aspects of the performance, by which I refer predominantly
to the audio-visual appeal of various aspects of the eatertainment show-
case. As such, their commentary in interviews was centred on how the
restaurant experience was presented visually and aurally, whether it
looked and sounded ‘‘good’’ or ‘‘bad’’, and whether it was creative,
interesting, and innovative:
I think it’s beautiful art, the costumes and everything, the animal
skins. It’s very creative.
These groups are innovative, creative, they bring in new elements into
the dances each time. Every year that I have been here, I see they keep
spicing it up, keep it interesting. They infuse a little bit of modern
sound, like a modern interpretation. There is no problem with that.
Oh, the entertainment, they have really good dancers. I enjoyed it.
They have better outfits in this restaurant. They should look present-
able, you know. It’s not proper when their outfits are tattered. Some-
times you can see the dancers have not been practising, or they are
not really good at what they do. At the end of the day, they are artists
[Interview transcripts].
Meeting these aesthetic criteria was, for African tourists, sufficient to
make the experience worthwhile. Performers were, for them, artists,
whose primary responsibility was to entertain with beautiful art that
is pleasing to watch. Although the performers emphasised this in
206 M. Mkono / Annals of Tourism Research 41 (2013) 195–214

introducing their dances and songs, (for example, before each song, a
narrator would explain the context in which it was traditionally per-
formed: ‘‘this is a dance of our forefathers, which they used to perform
at rainmaking ceremonies’’), connections with past traditions and
primitive indigenous heritage were neither acknowledged nor sought
in any explicit form. Related to this, and also notable, African tourists
viewed the cultural performance primarily as entertainemt (for
‘‘fun’’), rather than as a showcase of traditional culture. As one tourist
put it simply:
The most important thing is to be entertained [Interview transcripts].
This simple approach to eatertainment also demonstrates, for Afri-
can tourists, a reluctance to see cultural representations in this context
as more than just a show for a ‘‘good time’’; a refusal to see the perfor-
mances as a depiction of ‘‘Africanness’’, or, in postcolonial terms, a
representation of the African Other (Molz, 2007; Wood, 1997). In-
deed, on closer reflection, this comment might be deceptive in its
apparent simplicity. However, a detailed discussion of Othering and
Otherness falls beyond the scope of this study, and is tackled elsewhere
(for example Mkono, 2011d). It is also possible that African tourists’
view of performing as primarily entertainment makes them more likely
to seek more existential, as opposed to object-related, forms of authen-
ticity in their experience. In other words, they would rather just enjoy
themselves without reading too deeply into what they encounter as
staged culture. If they see cultural performances as representations
of themselves, then, focusing only on the ‘‘fun’’ dimension offers an
escape from contemplating what might be uncomfortable or stereotyp-
ical caricatures of their very African identity. Or, alternatively, African
tourists are simply more hedonistic than Western tourists? These possi-
bilities requires further investigation.
In contrast, and as already stated above, for Western tourists,
‘‘authenticity’’ was an important criterion in reflecting on and describ-
ing their experiences in Victoria Falls restaurants:
The breakfast buffet was outstanding (one of the best I have experi-
enced at a hotel) and the evening dinner at Jungle Junction was tre-
mendous. We had gone to the Boma the night prior, and while fun in
a juvenile way, Jungle Junction’s entertainment was far more authen-
tic and the quality of the food far surpassed what was offered at the
Boma. I highly recommend dinner at Jungle Junction
[Tripadvisor.com]
Restaurant experiences were judged subjectively by Western tourists
as either authentic or inauthentic. What was perceived by some to be
authentic, was perceived by others to be inauthentic, and vice versa,
highlighting, even more clearly, the constructive nature of object-re-
lated authenticity. It is not an external, fixed reality, as most authors
agree (Cohen, 1988, 1993, 2007a, 2007b, 2010). However, the frequent
perception of inauthenticity among Western tourists also highlights
the elusiveness of authenticity as a quest in tourist experience (whether
or not it is realisable is another matter), corroborating the view that
 M. Mkono / Annals of Tourism Research 41 (2013) 195–214 207

tourists are doomed to staged authenticity in ‘‘front stages’’ (Goffman,

1959; MacCannell, 1976). But even though these Western tourists are
continually thwarted in the search for authenticity, they still think that
authenticity still exists elsewhere:
The restaurant at the hotel was good and plentiful, but if you want a
more authentic African experience, walk 5 minutes just across the
railway tracks and visit Mama Africa’s for great food. It is also worth-
while to walk down and see the Victoria Falls Hotel for the best of old
colonial England [Tripadvisor.com].
What is clear and relevant to the research question in this study, how-
ever, is the difference in descriptives used by African and Western tour-
ists; how Africans were interested in the ‘‘beauty’’ of the art, rather
than its authenticity. It is proposed therefore, based on the above dif-
ferences, that for African tourists, the authenticity criterion for evaluat-
ing cultural performances is substituted by ‘‘aesthetics’’ and ‘‘artistry’’.
These two alternatives, it is clear, are more meaningful and relatable
for African tourists. It appears that authenticity is not in their psyche,
at least not in the present context.
However, given that this study was exploratory, the suggestions made
are only tentative. Much more, larger-scale research is required to
ascertain the veracity of these characterisations of African tourists. Fur-
ther, because African tourists were touring in their cultural domain,
the relatively leaner cultural distance relative to their own cultural
backgrounds meant that they were less disposed to conceptualise the
experience in ‘‘us-and-them’’ terms, compared to Westerners. There-
fore, to ensure greater symmetry of comparison, it would be expedient
in future to conduct a similar study of African tourists in a nonAfrican
context.

Interest and Participation in the Cultural Show

It was observed that African tourists seemed to focus more on other
aspects of the restaurant experience, apart from the cultural show.
Most of their attention was directed at the food and at conversation,
and so they spent more time eating and talking, than watching what
was happening around them. On the other hand, Westerners exhibited
markedly different behaviours, paying a lot of attention to the show,
laughing, singing along, leaving their tables and going closer to the
stage, and standing up to dance of their own volition. When invited
by performers to join the ‘‘party’’ towards the end of the show, wherein
they came down from their tables to the stage, and took turns to dance
to an African drumbeat at the centre, the majority of Western tourists
responded enthusiastically, while African tourists, with the exception of
a few, appeared indifferent. As I noted in my fieldwork notes:
Most African tourists (the few who are here tonight) are ignoring calls
to join the party on the stage. Western tourists are much more
excited, and many are making their way to the party already.
[Fieldnotes]
208 M. Mkono / Annals of Tourism Research 41 (2013) 195–214

Of course, one way of explaining this observation would be taking

into account that for Western tourists, the cultural show held more
novelty than it did for African tourists, who were more likely to be
familiar with some of the dances and songs. However, on this point,
it may also be argued that African culture does not exist as a fixed,
homogeneous reality. Instead, individual countries and communities
within them have widely varying cultures and traditions, so that dance
styles, foods, and other cultural elements differ markedly from one
country or community to the next. For example, Zimbabwean Shona
dances are quite different from the war-like dances of the Zulu and
Shangani. Further, the dances performed are drawn from Zimbabwe’s
historic past, and are generally not part of the contemporary culture in
Zimbabwe. Therefore, for Zimbabwean and other African tourists
alike, the cultural eatertaiment held some novelty, so that the relative
lack of interest cannot be explained solely in terms of novelty or lack
of it.
Not only was there clear indifference, but indeed, some African tour-
ists actively distanced themselves from the show, arguing that it con-
tradicted their personal, religious belief systems. In some cases, they
expressed resentment at what they saw as a stereotypical portrayal of
‘‘Africanness’’ in the show, as the following interview narratives
highlight:
It’s an uncomfortable stereotypical show for me. I hate to think that
some will assume that I pray to ancestors for rain, for example .
For myself, my religion does not approve of traditions like ancestral
worship. I detest the whole thing. It’s against my religion. For those
who are happy with what goes on, well, that is their preference. But
I don’t want to be a part of it [Interview transcripts].
Again, such discomfort might be more explicable in the context of
Other theorisations (Molz, 2007; Wood, 1997), which allow the
exploration of how Otherness is constructed, and how the Other
(the African subaltern, in this sense), responds to a representation
of ‘‘Africanness’’ which might be perceived as denigrating or even
insulting, given that in most modern African communities, people
now dress in the Western tradition, and there are no animal skins
worn in normal, daily life, for instance. If African communities no
longer wear animal skins in back stages, it might be asked, why
should front stages continue to suggest otherwise? This could be
where the discomfort voiced in the above quotes comes from, poten-
tially. However, Other participants in tourism, in their various capac-
ities, have seldom had the opportunity to respond to how they are
portrayed. This study is therefore a step towards revealing how
Africans react when they confront cultural representations that pur-
port to depict their ‘‘authentic’’ traditions. These issues as areas of
inquiry would be expedient for future studies that investigate African
tourists further, in the context of depictions of the authentic African
Other.
 M. Mkono / Annals of Tourism Research 41 (2013) 195–214 209

Efforts to Uncover ‘‘Deceit’’ in Front Stages

Unlike African tourists, a significant proportion of Western tourists
went out of their way to expose possible ‘‘deceit’’ and verify the ‘‘authen-
ticity’’ of certain elements of cultural eatertainment that were presented
for their benefit in Victoria Falls restaurants. There was therefore a sus-
picion on their part that they were being deceived, and a reactionary at-
tempt to prove that they were not easily fooled. This is not to suggest
though that whatever means they used to uncover potential deceit were
efficacious. Still, it is notable that they tried, as I noted in my fieldnotes:
A young German tourist told me how he tested the fortune teller’s
authenticity. She deliberately went to have her fortune read twice
on the same night. On the first occasion she had her hair down.
On the second she had tied it in a ponytail and altered her outfit
somewhat, so that the fortune teller would not recognise her from
the first encounter. The fortune teller looked at her with a suspicious
eye, and asked her if she had visited him earlier, to which she said
‘‘No’’. He then proceeded to throw his bones and predict what was
very similar to what he had told her earlier. She could not make up
her mind whether or not to believe any of the fortune teller’s predic-
tion, and she admitted that her authenticity test was flawed
[Fieldnotes].
One white tourist asked me whether the fortune teller is ‘‘for real’’, to
which I responded ‘‘I don’t know’’. A couple told me of how they
attempted to establish the fortune teller’s authenticity. The wife went
in and had her fortune told. She made a point to ask how many chil-
dren she would have. The husband then did the same. Their logic was
that if their fortunes regarding children matched, as they were hus-
band and wife, then there was a good chance the fortune teller was
‘‘for real’’. Apparently, the fortune teller’s insights matched, and
for this, to them, he was not ‘‘fake’’ [Fieldnotes].
Clearly, tourists are tricksters in their own right. The tourism industry
might contrive to deceive them with overtly staged culture, claiming it to
be ‘‘authentic’’, but tourists are simultaneously and constantly trying to
expose the fakery, if any. Oakes, 2006 observed comparable attempts by
tourists to verify the authenticity of ethnic cultural representations con-
sumed by tourists in southwestern China. Obviously, the tricks employed
in the above examples are not sophisticated enough to detect deceit,
granting that aspects of the eatertainment performances are indeed
crafted to deceive tourists in some form or other. For example, in the
example quoted above, the husband and wife’s fortunes might match
purely out of coincidence, or the fortuneteller tells the same fortune
to virtually all tourists who consult him, as the following tourist suspects:
Speaking of the fortune teller–don’t expect an authentic ‘‘throwing
of the bones’’–the same fortune was told, with only very slight varia-
tion, to four of us. The face painter, on the other hand, was brilliant!
[Tripadvisor.com].
However, the argument being brought out here is that, while tourists
might be doomed in their attempts to prove the authenticity or other-
wise of the fortuneteller, or of other aspects of staged culture, their
210 M. Mkono / Annals of Tourism Research 41 (2013) 195–214

attempts are enough to suggest that (Western) tourists are not always
gullible; instead they are always questioning the veracity of claims made
about authenticity by tourism suppliers. More importantly, the at-
tempts suggest beyond doubt that they are actively concerned about
authenticity, contrary to what some postmodernists have argued. They
are conscious of, although they cannot prevent, deceit in front stages
of commercial tourism enterprise (Taylor, 2001). It is therefore impor-
tant for tourism suppliers who cater to Western tourists, to manage
authenticity perceptions in relation to cultural augmentations they
might make to their products and services for the benefit of tourists.

CONCLUSION
It has been argued in this paper that authenticity does not form the
primary evaluative and descriptive criteria for cultural tourism experi-
ences among African tourists. In its place, aesthetics and artistry are
suggested as more appropriate alternatives to authenticity for them.
Their commentary on cultural performances at Victoria Falls therefore
centred on how performers looked, sounded, dressed, danced, as ar-
tists, rather than as performers of ‘‘authentic’’ culture. This has impor-
tant implications for cultural tourism suppliers who cater to a
predominantly African tourist market: marketing messages need to
emphasise the aesthetic and artistic aspects of cultural showcases,
rather than ‘‘authenticity’’. Western tourists, in contrast, particularly
in their online reviews, where they recounted and reflected on their
experiences, frequently referred to authenticity and inauthenticity.
They expressed concerns of the shows being fake, contrived, or hokey.
However, the above characterisations of African tourists, being de-
rived from an exploratory study, are tentative. To verify them, and
understand African tourists further, future studies could explore in
more depth how they negotiate their encounters with representations
of the authentic African Other. Such a project would also require more
critical approaches which question dominant power structures in tour-
istic host-guest relations. While in the past Africans have been studied
as hosts, future studies need to continue to challenge this status quo by
positioning them as tourists, as this study has attempted. It might add
further insights if African tourists are investigated in a nonAfrican con-
text, where they experience the staging of cultures other than their
own. Their evaluative and descriptive criteria in those contexts would
make possible a more symmetrical comparison of African and Western
touristic quests, particularly in relation to Othering and Otherness
tendencies.
Even more interesting, studying African tourists living in the Western
diaspora, where they are exposed to Western discourses such as
authenticity, might help to uncover even richer meanings in relation
to the role of acculturation and socialisation in shaping touristic
quests. What is of particular significance is that differences observed
between Western and African tourists further call into question the
validity of non-context-specific claims about the search for authenticity
 M. Mkono / Annals of Tourism Research 41 (2013) 195–214 211

in tourism, while building the case for (socio-culturally) situated the-

ory, and for the possible relevance of more existentialist theoretical
frameworks. Also, as other authors have suggested, authenticity is often
too limiting when researchers focus only on its perceptions, failing to
take into account other pertinent issues such as authentication and
authorisation (Ryan, 2003; Wall & Xie, 2005). In this relation, as al-
ready noted, however, Cohen and Cohen (2012) have made an impor-
tant contribution. It would be expedient for future researchers to
substantiate their work on ‘‘hot’’ and ‘‘cool’’ authentication further.
Further, this study has demonstrated that postmodern theory dis-
misses object authenticity prematurely, as online reviews demonstrate
that the sensibility remains firmly embedded in the Western tourist psy-
che. Therefore, even studies of authenticity perceptions are still rele-
vant to understanding (Western) touristic quests. In sum, object-
related authenticity is not universally relevant to touristic quests; but,
it is not universally redundant either. There has to be specificity about
the cultural background of tourists, when ascribing the search for
authenticity as a key motivation in travel. Therefore, for future studies
where various cultural groups of tourists are included, an existentialist
theoretical framework might be the most expedient choice. However,
it should be emphasised, this suggestion requires further empirical re-
search. Constructivist and objectivist orientations would be less appro-
priate as they implicitly impose the assumption that object authenticity
necessarily matters to all tourists. In addition, future studies could en-
gage netnography to examine authenticity within other contexts in
Africa and beyond, with a view to adding to context-specific analyses
based on tourists’ own ‘‘word-of-mouse’’ (electronic/online reviews).
This study has already demonstrated the richness of such data, in its
capacity to reveal touristic mindsets, and to an extent which few other
methods can claim.

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Submitted 25th May 2012. Resubmitted 1st September 2012. Resubmitted 29th November
2012. Final Version 3rd January 2013. Accepted 8th January 2013. Refereed Anonymously.
Coordinating Editor: Erik Cohen