New Forms Of Tourism Research Articles

Herbal tourism - A new approach to special-interest eco-travels: Lessons and initiative from Serbia

In contrast to mass tourism where the sun, sand and sea constitute the only tourism resource, nature-based tourism activities respond to people's desire to participate in tours with different aims such as relaxation, discovery, learning and escaping to nature, and getting away from the routine of everyday life. As one of nature-friendly tourism forms, herbal tourism, could be defined as provision of sustainable and responsible collecting of curative, aromatic, edible and seasoning plants to general public and organised groups, supported by interpretative and educational services and facilities, based on ethnopharmacological tradition. Thus, the purpose of this research is to introduce a new form of tourism, focused on presentation, education and sustainable use of autochthon plants – preliminarily named herbal tourism. Also, this study will give insight into properties of herbal species and their distribution in Serbia, which could further develop herbal tourism sites and routes. Proposed herbal tourism destinations could further support scientific research of plants and enhance rural areas, with numerous environmental and financial problems that are evident in developing countries, such as Serbia.

Analysis of Relationship of Environmental Geo-Technology and Urban Eco-Tourism Development

Environmental Geo-technology involves not only the ecology but also the basic theory of environmental economics, management, control and monitoring aspects, so it is the ultimate goal that closes to the service the strategic policy of sustainable development of human economic system. Eco-tourism is a new form of tourism which is using a sustainable development as its guiding ideology, and it is the construction of ecological city of Shenyang is an important aspect. The paper combined with the request of Shenyang’s detailed condition, and then given some suggestions to improve the protection measures of Ecological environment by using geo-technology so that it can lead eco-tourism of Shenyang to the road of sustainable development.

Dark tourism jako element innowacyjności biur podróży

Travelling, both in a history of the world and or even more in the present times, is far from commonly accepted ways to do leisure activities. Tourism has evolved from the traditional “3 x S” (Sea, Sun, Sand) to “3 x E” (Entertainment, Excitement, Education). Desire to enjoy new experiences, feel unique emotions and take certain actions, it is what prevails now. A relatively new form of tourism – dark tourism, provides such an opportunity. Traveling through trails of disasters, accidents, visiting places associated with calamities and death are the best examples of such tourism. The tourism market, which is represented by, among others, the mass media, provides all sorts of information to potential tourists. Natural curiosity and desire to explore the world drives people to see a phenomenon, which is in the centre of attention of everyone. Some travel agencies are introducing innovative tourism products associated with it and by means of that they become more competitive on the tourist market. Yet the question remains whether such trips are a great idea or perhaps they are immoral. On one hand they educate and sensitize people to the plight of others, but on the other hand the human misery is becoming a sort of tourist attraction, therefore one should consider the existence and creation of such innovative offers.

Developing Sustainable Tourism in a Changing Environment: Issues for the Tourism Enterprises (Travel Agencies and Hospitality Enterprises)

The awareness of the problem of mass tourism led researchers on tourism and the environment to attack past methods and policies of tourism development and to recommend their replacement with alternative forms of tourism. Due to conflicts between mass tourism and the environment, managers researchers, academicians, planners, tour operators and international bodies, such as the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) and the World Tourism Organization (WTO), are all working towards the development of new forms of tourism that will diminish impacts on the environment as well as maintain the national and local benefits of the tourism. The problem is that some favor small scale approaches and others see that there is no solution due to inherent problems of pollution related enterprises. This paper presents how sustainable tourism theory can be ‘operationalized’ putting on the tourism firm especially the micro tourism enterprises (travel agents and tour operators, hotels and other hospitality establishments etc) certain issues regarding opportunities and treats with this form of tourism.

Religious tourism and sacred places in Spain: old practices, new forms of tourism

Heritage, images, shrines, beliefs and devotions are related to culture, identity, religious feeling and faith, but also to the consumption of a tourism product. Religious tourism is an important type of cultural tourism that is now firmly established within the range of tourism products available in Spain. The article aims to demonstrate that religious tourism and cultural tourism form a joint trend that is an expression of the commercialisation of culture or, more exactly, of religion and popular devotion. Based on this hypothesis, the authors examine the cases of Montserrat monastery, the Road to Santiago and Holy Week in Granada that have in common a link between religious heritage and tourism. They emerge as examples of cultural and religious expression that have become multi-motivated tourism products, albeit with a significant religious base.

SOBRE AFETOS E FOTOS: VOLUNTURISTAS EM UMA FAVELA CARIOCA

O artigo trata de uma forma de turismo bastante recente e ainda pouco estudada: o chamado volunturismo. Seu foco reside na interação entre três volunturistas estrangeiras e um grupo de crianças em uma favela carioca. É nossa intenção apreender o fluxo de emoções construído por meio da produção de imagens fotográficas, cuja dinâmica nos desafia a repensar o que tem sido dito sobre as relações entre fotografia e práticas turísticas. A metodologia de pesquisa envolveu onze meses de observação participante, bem como entrevistas em profundidade com agentes qualificados (lideranças locais, volunturistas e agentes promotores), aplicação de questionários semiestruturados e realização de um grupo focal. Tanto as fotografias que compõem nosso acervo fotoetnográfico quanto as observações de campo colocam os jogos e brincadeiras como atividades centrais desenvolvidas pelas personagens apresentadas neste artigo. Se, por um lado, estávamos em busca de um entendimento das complexidades e nuances que o volunturismo envolve, por outro, destacou-se a posição ambígua na qual nós, pesquisadoras, nos encontramos ao longo da pesquisa.

LAS NUEVAS FORMAS DE TURISMO: CAUSAS Y CARACTERÍSTICAS

O turismo internacional passou por grandes mudanças, dentre as quais a acontecida em meados do século XX que resultaram nas formas conhecidas de turismo. No entanto, nas últimas duas décadas as mudanças parecem ter se acelerado. O surgimento das chamadas “novas formas de turismo” nos anos 1990 mudou as regras, tanto em sentido quanto em perspectiva, abrindo o planeta enquanto destino turístico e consolidando que “qualquer coisa pode ser vendida para um turista”. Esta pesquisa busca determinar o que ocasionou estas mudanças e iniciar um debate relacionando aquelas “novas formas de turismo” com as atuais.

Hiking as a relevant wellness activity - results of an exploratory study of hiking tourists in Portugal applied to a rural tourism project

New forms of tourism are gaining ground throughout the world. Nowadays, successful tourism destinations must offer variety and new tourism products, addressing special interest niches. One increasingly popular tourism product is health and wellness tourism. The wellness concept typically integrates physical activity combined with relaxation of the mind and intellectual stimulus, enhancing well-being through a balance of the body, mind and spirit. Promoting well-being is a relevant motive of most tourists and should be regarded in any tourism marketing strategy. Hiking is an appropriate activity to integrate in a wellness tourism context, being since long a strategically developed recreational and tourism activity in many European countries. In the present study we show the results of an exploratory survey of hikers in Portugal and discuss possible implications on planning and management of rural tourism destinations, with emphasis on the creation of integrated wellness products. Results were used for developing a more holistic tourism offer within the European Network of Village Tourism.

Alternative tourism: new forms of tourism in Bethlehem for the Palestinian tourism industry

War and conflict are usually seen as major hindrances to travel and tourism. The daily diet of war and conflict stories that have emanated from the second uprising (Intifada), give the impression that the tourism industry is the least likely sector to flourish. This article provides an overview of some of the alternative forms of tourism found in the literature on tourism and attempts to contextualise the form of tourism it is exploring. It starts by setting a definitional context of tourism and political instability, which is followed by visiting alternative tourism and the different forms of it as well as the analysis of tourism industry in Palestine and finally the examination of new forms of tourism in Bethlehem and the surrounded areas.

Poverty tourism: theoretical reflections and empirical findings regarding an extraordinary form of tourism

During the mid-1990s, a new form of tourism was established in metropolises of several developing countries or emerging nations. This type of tourism consists in visits to the most disadvantaged parts of the respective city. Poverty tours or slum tours are offered on a relatively large scale in the South African cities of Johannesburg and Cape Town, Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, as well as in Indian metropolises, to name some important examples. The target group of these tours consists primarily of international tourists. It is estimated that 40,000 such tourists visit favelas in Rio de Janeiro each year, around 300,000 the townships in Cape Town. This contribution refers to and comments on these developments and insights regarding poverty tourism or slumming, based on empirical research and experiences in South Africa, Brazil, and India. It will be shed light on the phenomenon from an observational-theoretical perspective. It is aimed to open a discussion on the ways poverty tours or slumming observes and simultaneously programmatically charges poverty. And, it will be considered in which way poverty tourism is observed.

Innovation penetration into a region with specific features: the case of Crete, Greece

This paper intends to map the state of the following sectors of Cretan Economy: Food and beverage, Trade, New forms of tourism, and Products of the primary sector, regarding their innovativeness. Most importantly, it aims at understanding the innovation level in a Greek Region with special features, analysing the existing trends, recognising the prospects, strengths and weaknesses, evaluating the influence of the recently established Cretan innovation network and, finally, suggesting areas of innovative improvement. All this information is summarised in the form of conclusions and suggestions, which will be useful for any other similar region worldwide.

Wedding Tourism and India

Wedding Tourism — a seemingly new form of Tourism is causing a lot of excitement in the tourism industry. In some cases it is also referred to as "Marriage Tourism" or "Destination Wedding". Whatever maybe the way one addresses this phenomenon, it is for sure that we cannot ignore this new trend in the tourism sector.
 According to the bridal magazine, Conde Nast Bridal Group's survey, globally wedding tourism has seen a growth of 400% in the past 10 years. Globalisation and a growing interest in each other's culture is probably one of the primary reasons for this trend. The people world over are attracted to say their "I Do" in some unique way or at an exotic location. Europe based couples are known to fly overseas to destinations like Las Vegas, Hawaii, the Caribbean and Cyprus in order to marry. No wonder these destinations rank among the favourites.
 India as a country is one of the beneficiaries of this new trend. Both NRIs and foreigners are choosing an Indian wedding, with all its traditional rituals and interesting locales. The already booming Indian wedding industry, with a revenue of Rs.50, 000 /- crore per annum and
 a growth rate of 25% per year is looking for ways to tie up with leading hotels and travel agents to woo this growing tourist segment. Although, in India, it is difficult to come across the exact statistics and figures regarding this tourism sector, nevertheless we cannot ignore this segment.
 This paper is an attempt to understand this concept of wedding tourism. The paper also examines the possible reasons for its growing popularity and its role in creating other business avenues for the travel and hospitality and allied industries, such as wedding resorts and others. The scope of wedding tourism in India is also explored.

Towards a history of geotourism: definitions, antecedents and the future

Abstract Geotourism is a relatively new form of tourism with considerable growth potential. Initially researched and defined within the UK, it is a growing field of international academic study. The term passed into general usage in the early 1990s, although its antecedents date back to the seventeenth century. Its resource base includes geosites, museum, library and archive collections and artistic outputs. It has significant social history and industrial archaeology underpinnings. Relatively recently defined, and benefiting from a new appreciation of its historical roots and various outcomes, the concept is already undergoing redefinition and refinement. However, because of an inadequately developed historical perspective and theoretical framework, the rationale for its provision and the societal significance of its resource base is not always fully appreciated by existing and potential stakeholders. This account presents geotourism's historical and theoretical development, especially in Britain from which examples are drawn, and explores its likely future.

Responsible Tourism: A Kierkegaardian Interpretation

Tourism, by its nature, emphasizes the value of one over the value of others. This axiom is supported by the fact that tourism creates innumerable negative costs that stem from the pursuit of primarily hedonistic ends. The response from the tourism community has been the development of several new forms of tourism to offset these costs. As one of these forms, responsible tourism (RT) espouses the fair and equitable distribution of benefits to local communities as well as the protection of the natural world. But what has constrained other types of tourism in their attempt to mitigate tourism's impacts in the past, is equally true of responsible tourism today: the absence of a well grounded philosophical framework which could help us better contextualize the meaning of responsible or responsibility in tourism. As such, this paper attempts to philosophically situate RT through the work of the Danish existentialist, Søren Kierkegaard; specifically his writings on love and responsibility. Although his philosophy is thought to have no social relevance because of its subjectivist, inward dimension to the self, this has recently been challenged by contemporary theorists who argue that Kierkegaard's focus on selfless love for the other can be a basis for responsible citizenship through the development of a community of ethically-oriented selves. This mindset is discussed using the example of sex tourism, and challenges conventional wisdom, i.e., that responsible tourism is merely the act of ‘doing’.

The moderating role of familiarity in rural tourism in Spain

A review of the literature suggests the importance of a customer's attitude for the cognitive–affective process that derives from a transaction specific to a particular object. The authors examine how tourists’ attitudes toward rural tourism, as a new form of tourism, can affect both the quality and the satisfaction that the tourist associates with a specific facility. Although the authors do not find discriminant validity between perceived quality and satisfaction, the analyses confirm the positive effect of attitude toward rural tourism on perceived quality and the moderating role of familiarity, such that more experienced tourists experience less altered evaluation results.

Geotourism: A new Form of Tourism utilising natural Landscapes and based on Imagination and Emotion

Tourists and visitors currently tend to consider environment and the purity of nature, educational tourism, culture and history, large‐ and small‐scale events, and entertainment and fun as crucial issues. For certain specific target groups, these wishes and needs may be satisfied by a new form of tourism called “geotourism”, which is an multi‐interest kind of tourism exploiting natural sites and landscapes containing interesting earth‐science features in a didactic and entertaining way. Relative to demand, a form of tourism based on imagination and emotion, favouring experience and sensations, and explaining the natural environment by playing with its temporal and spatial dimensions may provide opportunities of economic development. Different target groups (e.g. seniors, families, schools) potentially interested in cultural and natural landscapes seem to constitute specific markets to consider. In this sense, on‐site interpretation needs to be more adapted to the visitors' expectations and a more original and striking way of communication has to be used. From a promotional point of view, “geomarketing”, a kind of image communication that explores the temporal and spatial dimensions of the rocks (e.g. minerals, fossils) and forms (e.g. glaciers, caves) of the Earth's surface, may be developed. This will not only generate inquisitiveness among the target groups selected, but also give a clear position to a destination, in order to distinguish itself from similar territories. Of course, product communication must complete this marketing strategy with the creation, promotion and sale of specific and original products, especially for the summer period (from spring to autumn). For instance, a mix of walking, wellness, “agro‐tourism” and “geotourism” may be profitable for regional economic development. Thus, this paper is a conceptual contribution based on a theoretical work and a literature review.

La Calidad como herramienta de gestión del Turismo Cultural

Despite of tourism in Historical and Heritage Sites are a very old phenomenon and one of the first tourism activities realize by the society, however the role of this redeem in the social and economi- cal transformation of urban spaces are scanty studied, and for these reason we need to develop a meth- odological and theoretical basis for the supporting the fast increase of tourism in Heritage Cities espe- cially in Old Havana, Cuba, using also some indexes to understand the changes in the urban area under the pressure of new forms of tourism.

Innovation strategies and technology for experience-based tourism

Tourism is undergoing significant change and facing new challenges—that call for new perspectives. At least two dimensions of the change can be identified: • new forms of tourism, characterized by the tendency to depart from mass tourism; • the diffusion of information and communication technologies, with a pervasive effect on the creation, production and consumption of the tourist product. The limited success of most attempts to exploit produced windows of opportunity indicates that we are facing a pre-paradigmatic phase of transition. Innovative attempts gain new strategic value when viewed from a perspective that values experience as an important new attribute. Such a perspective has significant consequences for the growth of destination strategies, policies, and the integration of the information-society dimension.

The Impact of Globalisation on Human Resource Management in the Tourism Sector

Globalisation is having a significant impact upon human resource management in tourism. To cope with the international intensity of competition brought about by globalisation, a knowledge-based economy has emerged to replace the previously dominant ‘Fordist’ mode of production. This knowledge-based economy utilises the skills of the workforce to the full, so creating a new way of thinking about human resource management and demanding a response on behalf of human resource managers. The driving forces of globalisation have impacted upon human resource management in a variety of ways. For example, on ‘the supply-side’, the penetration of technology and particularly use of the Internet in tourism has demanded different skills and competencies on behalf of employees and also impacted upon education and training needs. As company mergers and strategic alliances have become the medium for internationalisation so this has demanded a response on behalf of human resource managers to deal with employment-related consequences. In particular, larger companies are developing HRM policies and plans to take into account the need for relocation of employees and both social and cultural sensitivities for those working away from the home base. On ‘the demand-side’ the emergence of the ‘new tourist’ also has implications for human resource management. For example, a more discerning and experienced consumer is demanding higher quality products and service, so impacting upon training, both in-company and also in pre-job preparation in colleges. With globalisation too, have come new forms of tourism that utilise both the natural and cultural environments as a base for their product. This too impacts upon human resource management—for example in terms of the encouragement of the local involvement of indigenous peoples in employment, or the increased importance of guiding and communication competencies amongst eco-tourism employees. The thrust of this paper is to analyse the implications of globalisation for human resource management in tourism. Given the driving forces of globalisation outlined above, it is clear that the nature of employment in tourism is changing. The paper provides evidence of this in terms of the response of the private sector, governments and the trade unions. The paper also shows that response to globalisation varies across the tourism sector from the trans-national companies where international personnel policies are demanded to the small enterprise where the impact of globalisation is demanding a policy response by both national and international agencies.

Sustainable Tourism or Sustainable Mobility? The Norwegian Case

This paper presents a critical discussion of the internationally prevailing understanding of the concept 'sustainable tourism'. It is argued that the current focus on stationary activities and local, intensive environmental issues is too limited both in relation to the concept of tourism and the concept of sustainable development. There is no tourism without travel. And, as shown in a Norwegian research study, tourist travel is a major source of serious environmental problems. The paper emphasises that sustainable tourism should be linked to a concept of sustainable mobility. However, this mobility would imply not only a change in the means of transport but also a reduced level of mobility in the rich part of the world. As this would entail new forms of tourism, other than those solely based on auto- and aeromobility, it represents a major challenge for the future development of tourism.