This thesis focuses on the tension between cultural heritage and tourism development. A case study was carried out in Grythyttan, a cultural-historical place, located in the municipality of Hällefors in Bergslagen. The central aim of the study is to explore, understand and interpret the tensions between cultural heritage and tourism. The ambition has been to focus upon the consequences of the increased interest from the tourism industry in cultural heritage and the increased interest from the cultural heritage sector in tourism and on creating heritage-based experiences. Grythyttan represents the place where the complex of problems is illustrated. The aim involves a description of characteristics of cultural heritage and tourism and how they are experienced with regards to a historical-geographical perspective. This is considered in contrast to the increased commercialization in society. The method has been to study how the place, cultural heritage and tourism are experienced by different actors, those who live, work and visit the place. The three actor groups who were studied were producers, consumers/visitors and locals. The producers were representatives of both the tourism and cultural heritage sector and from the municipality.

What has happened at the place is characteristic of our time, i.e. the commercialization of places and an adjustment to the tourism market. Grythyttan has been transformed into a tourism destination with a profile of meal. The whole municipality has purposely erased an old identity associated with the history of coalmining and ironworks. This has contributed to a clear distinction between a ‘place’ and a ‘destination’. This also highlights two different perspectives of the actors, those who bring out the importance of the heritage and those who look upon the heritage and the place from a commercial perspective. Visitors are offered a commercial place and an experience of the meal destination but are not offered the story of ‘the place’.

The concluding remarks are that the ‘place’ Grythyttan is associated with a strong identity anchored in its historical-geographical context and strongly associated with locals and the heritage sector. The cultural heritage gives way to tourism and meal. Heritage is not a part of and not ‘given place’ in the tourism destination of meal.