Fostering Interculturality in Urban Ethnic Neighbourhoods: Opportunities and Limits of the Responsible Tourism Approach

Abstract

In the last decades, new forms of interculturality are emerging as a consequence of economic and cultural globalisation. Within these experiences, tourism in ethnic neighbourhoods can represent an innovative way to create new spaces for intercultural encounter in western cities. The aim of this paper is to analyse this new social phenomenon thanks to the results emerging from an exploratory ethnographic research focused on Mygrantour, an intercultural network which aims to create new forms of intercultural encounter between migrant communities and tourists in some Mediterranean cities. Adopting a responsible tourism approach, this paper will analyse the social and cultural consequences of this growing phenomenon in terms of social integration and inter-cultural encounter.