Slow Travel Research Articles

Paradisiacal Travelers' Experiences Shaping Sustainable Tourism Development (SGD) in Sicogon Island

Objective: This study explores the captivating encounters that shape travelers’ perceptions of Sicogon Island's enchanting allure, providing insights for sustainable tourism development (SGD). Theoretical Framework: This research is grounded in phenomenology, aiming to understand the essence of travelers' lived experiences on Sicogon Island. It draws on literature emphasizing the significance of subjective experiences, the interplay of natural and cultural elements in shaping destination appeal, and the growing trend of experiential tourism. Method: A qualitative approach was adopted, employing in-depth interviews and participant observations with 15 travelers who had diverse experiences on the island. Data analysis was conducted using NVivo software, facilitating thematic analysis and identification of patterns. Results and Discussion: Five key themes emerged, revealing captivating encounters related to nature's serenity, cultural immersion, adventure, simplicity, and transformative connections. These encounters were shaped by the island's natural beauty, cultural richness, opportunities for exploration, unhurried pace of life, and genuine human interactions. Research Implications: This study offers valuable insights for sustainable tourism development on Sicogon Island. It underscores the need to preserve the island's natural environment, promote cultural heritage, develop eco-tourism and adventure activities, foster slow travel experiences, and facilitate authentic connections between visitors and the local community. Originality/Value: In exploring the captivating encounters that contribute to Sicogon Island's allure, this study can provide a unique perspective on the island's tourism potential. The findings can inform the development of sustainable tourism strategies that enhance the visitor experience while preserving the island's natural and cultural treasures.

Migratory behaviour of Ipswich Sparrows during spring

Optimal migration theory predicts birds will follow migration strategies that minimize time, energy, or predation risk, and these strategies employ specific and conflicting behaviours. Many behaviours driving songbird strategies are relatively well known, however gaps remain, especially for spring migration. Here, we describe the behaviours of a short-distance migrant, the Ipswich Sparrow ( Passerculus sandwichensis princeps Maynard, 1872), during spring migration. We determined the start and end dates of migration, migratory duration, travel speed, distance per night, and stopover location and duration. We also examined whether behaviours differed by sex and age. Sparrows migrated between March and June, and took an average of 29.1 days at a speed of 7.2 ± 9.4 m/s (SD) to fly ∼1574 km to their breeding grounds. Sparrows flew approximately 100 km/night and made stopovers of >7 days adjacent to ecological barriers. Males migrated before females, and behaviour did not differ with age. Overall, Ipswich Sparrows had a relatively slow travel speed and covered short distances each night consistent with efforts to minimize energy costs or predation risk. They had prolonged stopovers suggesting that they were also trying to minimize time. More work is required to determine which strategy sparrows may be using during spring migration.

Effects of travel vlogs on travel intention of slow tourism in China: an evaluation of resonance and destination image

PurposeThe distinct characteristics of slow tourism compared to mass tourism determine the differences between slow travelers and mass travelers. This transformation is essential for potential tourists to transition into slow travelers when promoting slow tourism to them. Can travel vlogs, a “fast” way of promoting, achieve such a “slow” transformation? To address this question, the purpose of this paper is to introduce the resonance theory and investigate the impact of resonance with slow tourism vlogs on potential travelers’ destination image and travel intention.Design/methodology/approachThrough the distribution of online questionnaires on site, this study collected a total of 349 valid questionnaires. Subsequently, the researcher used partial least squares structural equation modeling to analyze the data and test the hypotheses.FindingsThe research findings indicate that cognitive resonance only positively affected cognitive image, while emotional resonance was positively associated with both cognitive image and affective image. In addition, it was observed that cognitive image and affective image played a positive mediating role between resonance with slow tourism vlogs and travel intention.Originality/valueThis research is pioneering in quantitatively validating the structure linking resonance, destination image and travel intention in the context of slow tourism. By validating the second-order structure of cognitive and emotional resonance, this study underscores the crucial role of resonance in shaping tourists’ transition toward a slow mindset in slow tourism.

“An island on the edge of Europe”: A study on academic air travel in Finland through a combined model of practice

Although evidence about the environmental harm of air travel is growing, the goal of internationalization remains firmly built into academia. The aim of this article is to study this dilemma from both the institutional and individual levels. We seek to determine the elements of academic air travel from an online survey conducted at a Finnish research university. We utilize a combined model of practice, which merges the three-element model of practice theory and the levels of society approach. We also reflect upon the travel policies of all 14 Finnish research universities against the needs and wants of the individual academic.Our findings highlight that the core elements of academic air travel in the institution we studied are physical events, social interaction, technologies, and environmental values. Although virtual alternatives and slow travel are gaining momentum, more support is needed to replace the informal interactions associated with physical presence. In addition, the external pressure to travel, e.g., to undertake fieldwork or attend conferences, is limiting efforts toward low-carbon travel. We hypothesize that change is particularly difficult to induce with linkages between various levels of society. Our combined model of practice provides a tool to identify the elements of practice that can be influenced by the individual or require changes at the institutional or even the national levels. Finally, we note a mismatch between some forms of policy support between individuals and institutions, showing a need for more practical rather than theoretical support, especially with lowering academic expectations on the need to travel.

TENETS OF THE SLOW FOOD MOVEMENT AS MOTIVATION FOR TOURISTS TO VISIT RURAL TOURIST HOUSEHOLDS IN SERBIA

Local cuisine is one of the foundations for how Serbian rural communities are presented to tourists. The desire for regional cuisine has recently increased, which has created opportunities for the promotion of regional and, most importantly, traditional production. The changing behaviours of travellers, who are becoming more conscious of the value of authenticity and quality when travelling, offer opportunities for rural areas to thrive while also creating a new horizon for tourism centered on the discovery of traditional cuisine and rural communities. This kind of travel can be compared to slow travel, which was developed in conjunction with the Slow Food movement. The Slow Food movement is a political and cultural movement with the goal of opposing the industrialisation of food production, promoting locally made, high-quality, sustainable food, and making a significant contribution to rural areas. Three guiding principles – good, clean, and fair – define what food should be and form the foundation of this movement. The major objective of this paper is to present the driving elements that have the biggest impact on tourists’ enthusiasm to visit rural tourist houses in Serbia. The research also seeks to determine how much the respondents’ desire to return to Serbia’s rural tourist households is influenced by motivating factors.

‘We are waiting for the end’: ageing and (im)mobility in the tourist city

Many tourist cities rely on walking as form of slow travel to take in the destination. Venice, the case study for this paper, is a distinct ‘walking city’, scripted into its cultural landscape along with its visitor crowds. As in other historical cities, however, crowding compromises residents’ walking mobility. This particularly affects groups that rely on proximate mobility such as older residents. This paper delves into the effects of tourism on everyday mobilities and realities of coping with change in the tourist city. It thus uncovers repercussions on ‘those remaining’ and highlights how the privilege of slowness may become a condition of disadvantage. It engages with long-term biographies, walking experiences, and the ageing process itself during an empirical study consisting of walking interviews. The findings show how tourist mobilities collide with access to spaces of social activity, essential services, and neighbourhood life. More importantly, they bring to surface how residents negotiate these hindrances and seek opportunities for mobility and wellbeing, despite older age-related challenges arising from the exclusive uptake of slow mobilities. Eventually, this paper forms a critique that discloses the collateral nature of tourism impacts on ageing in place, stuck between global mobility flows and local tourism management choices.

Saying “I Do” To a Sustainable Wedding: A Case About Making a Wedding Sustainable

This case study focuses on how a wedding planner can plan a sustainable wedding by making the ceremony, and the events and items connected with it, sustainable. It briefly describes sustainability, with a focus on the triple bottom line of environmental, sociocultural, and economic sustainability. In addition, it applies the concepts and practices of slow travel and tourism and a sense of place, including neolocalism. The case asks the reader, as a wedding planner, to address the dilemma of how the events associated with a wedding can be sustainable and attuned to the complex aspects involved in engaging in environmental, sociocultural, and economic sustainability.

Proof–of–concept evidence for high–density EEG investigation of sleep slow wave traveling in First-Episode Psychosis

Schizophrenia is thought to reflect aberrant connectivity within cortico-cortical and reentrant thalamo-cortical loops, which physiologically integrate and coordinate the function of multiple cortical and subcortical structures. Despite extensive research, reliable biomarkers of such "dys-connectivity" remain to be identified at the onset of psychosis, and before exposure to antipsychotic drugs. Because slow waves travel across the brain during sleep, they represent an ideal paradigm to study pathological conditions affecting brain connectivity. Here, we provide proof–of–concept evidence for a novel approach to investigate slow wave traveling properties in First-Episode Psychosis (FEP) with high-density electroencephalography (EEG). Whole–night sleep recordings of 5 drug-naïve FEP and 5 age- and gender-matched healthy control subjects were obtained with a 256-channel EEG system. One patient was re-recorded after 6 months and 3 years of continuous clozapine treatment. Slow wave detection and traveling properties were obtained with an open-source toolbox. Slow wave density and slow wave traveled distance (measured as the line of longest displacement) were significantly lower in patients (p < 0.05). In the patient who was tested longitudinally during effective clozapine treatment, slow wave density normalized, while traveling distance only partially recovered. These preliminary findings suggest that slow wave traveling could be employed in larger samples to detect cortical "dys-connectivity" at psychosis onset.

Coexisting fast–slow dendritic traveling waves in a 3D-array electric field coupled neuronal network

Coexistence of fast and slow traveling waves without synaptic transmission has been found in hhhippocampal tissues, which is closely related to both normal brain activity and abnormal neural activity such as epileptic discharge. However, the propagation mechanism behind this coexistence phenomenon remains unclear. In this paper, a three-dimensional electric field coupled hippocampal neural network is established to investigate generation of coexisting spontaneous fast and slow traveling waves. This model captures two types of dendritic traveling waves propagating in both transverse and longitude directions: the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)-dependent wave with a speed of about 0.1 m/s and the Ca-dependent wave with a speed of about 0.009 m/s. These traveling waves are synaptic-independent and could be conducted only by the electric fields generated by neighboring neurons, which are basically consistent with the in vitro data measured experiments. It is also found that the slow Ca wave could trigger generation of fast NMDA waves in the propagation path of slow waves whereas fast NMDA waves cannot affect the propagation of slow Ca waves. These results suggest that dendritic Ca waves could acted as the source of the coexistence fast and slow waves. Furthermore, we also confirm the impact of cellular spacing heterogeneity on the onset of coexisting fast and slow waves. The local region with decreasing distances among neighbor neurons is more liable to promote the onset of spontaneous slow waves which, as sources, excite propagation of fast waves. These modeling studies provide possible biophysical mechanisms underlying the neural dynamics of spontaneous traveling waves in brain tissues.

Metro cultural scene: A new community scale in urban scene research

Cultural scenes are essential units and value collections within consumer spaces, and metro scenes in large cities are a new perspective for cultural scene research. Based on scene theory, we isolated distinct urban metro scenes through the perspective of slow travelling, through which we identified the dimensions of Shanghai’s metro cultural scenes. Furthermore, we identified five patterns of metro cultural scenes through factor analysis and cluster analysis of scene dimensions, namely, mechanically modern, charming and expressive, local and down-to-earth, public welfare and rationality, and ordinary scenes. We found that the names of metro stations could influence scene formation by influencing the category of amenities around the station, while the convenience of the metro stations could significantly promote the formation of some scene dimensions. In addition, urban planning and crowd distribution also have an impact on the metro culture scene. Our study reveals the characteristics and patterns of metro scenes in Shanghai and proposes a pathway by which metro scenes are formed, providing a new direction for urban scene research.

Learning from informal gendered mobilities: Towards a holistic understanding for experimenting with city streets

This paper argues that the right to access public spaces and streets is impacted not only because of automobility but also by socio-spatial factors of the urban environment. This paper presents insights towards a holistic understanding for street experiments (with a focus on stationary and slow travel modes) by highlighting the factors that impact the conditions of mobility and access through the lens of gender. By adopting a combination of new technologies, such as GPS, along with mobile methods, like ethnography, this research centres around the everyday travel experiences of urban marginalized women (UMW) from peri‑urban areas of New Delhi who contest their right to access public spaces on a day-to-day basis. This study examines the socio-spatial environment comprising the daily mobilities of UMW to reveal the conditions of mobility and access to public spaces. The findings highlight that the issues faced by these women while travelling, mainly guided by aspects of gender, act as barriers to their mobility and access to public spaces (streets) in urban informal conditions. The study also reveals elements of urban informality (socio-spatial elements) enhance as well as negatively on the daily mobilities of UMW. These socio-spatial factors were found to be interconnected to one another and thus cannot be implemented as individual or isolated factors. The results of the study support the proposal of a more inclusive and accessible public space.

Behavior‐specific habitat selection by raccoons in the Prairie Pothole Region of Manitoba

AbstractPatterns of resource selection depend upon an animal's behavioral state. Because management strategies are often crafted from an understanding of animal space use, incorporating behavior explicitly into analyses of resource selection has the potential to improve outcomes. In the Prairie Pothole Region of Manitoba, Canada, raccoons (Procyon lotor) are a nest predator of waterfowl, but it is unclear how raccoons use this landscape during the waterfowl nesting season. Our objective was to use high‐resolution global positioning system (GPS) telemetry to differentiate among behaviors by raccoons and evaluate behavior‐specific habitat selection during the waterfowl nesting season. We collected approximately 32,000 locations from 33 animals during the 2018, 2019, and 2021 nesting seasons, amounting to 632 animal‐night's worth of movement data. We used hidden Markov models (HMM) to fit 4‐state models to the movement trajectories, classified observations into discrete behaviors, and fit behavior‐specific random forest resource selection models to evaluate the relative importance of habitat features on selection. Proximity to a wetland was the most important variable contributing to selection for the resting, foraging, and slow travel states. Probability of use was as high as 95% within or immediately adjacent to a wetland for animals engaged in those behaviors, and our best HMM predicted increasing probability of switching from resting or foraging to directed travel with increasing distance from a wetland edge. Human‐use sites were also important to foraging animals, suggesting raccoons subsidize their diet with anthropogenic food resources during spring and summer. These results illuminate the complexity of habitat selection by a waterfowl predator in this patchy landscape, allowing managers to develop effective conservation strategies (e.g., wetland prioritization and conservation, elimination of anthropogenic subsidies) where raccoons are having a disproportionate effect during the waterfowl nesting season.

Bicycle Sharing Travel Characteristics Analysis

The emergence of bicycle sharing has greatly impacted the urban transportation structure and residents' travel modes. The massive spatial-temporal data carried by it is of great significance for studying the characteristics of residents' slow travel and guiding the development of green transportation in cities. Through the analysis of Xiamen's bicycle sharing order data, this paper analyzes the riding characteristics of users and explores the urban functional elements that affect the use of bicycle sharing. This paper will use urban bicycle sharing data, Point of Interest (POI) data in internet maps, and population distribution data to carry out mining and analysis on the travel characteristics and spatial distribution features of bicycle sharing.

Cyclists as Intelligent Carriers of Space-Time Environmental Information: Crowd-Sourced Sensor Data for Local Air Quality Measurement and Mobility Analysis in the Netherlands

ABSTRACT In recent years, slow travel modes (walking, cycling) have gained much interest in the context of urban air quality management. This article presents the findings from a novel air quality measurement experiment in the Netherlands, by regarding cyclists as carriers and transmitters of real-world information on fine-grained air quality conditions. Using individual sensors on bicycles—connected to a GPS positioning system—online local pollution information originating from cyclists’ detailed spatial mobility patterns is obtained. Such air quality surface maps and cyclists’ mobility maps are then used to identify whether there are significant differences between the actual route choice and the cyclists’ shortest route choice, so as to identify the implications of poor air quality conditions for their mobility choices. Thus, the article seeks to present both a detailed pollution surface map and the complex space-time mobility patterns of cyclists in a region, on the basis of online quantitative data—at any point in time and space—from bicycle users in a given locality. In addition, the article estimates their response—in terms of route choice—to detailed air-quality information through the use of a novel geoscience-inspired analysis of space-time “big data.” The empirical test of our quantitative modeling approach was carried out for the Greater Utrecht area in the Netherlands. Our findings confirm that spatial concentration of air pollutants have great consequences for bike users’ route choice patterns, especially in the case of non-commuting trips. We also find that cyclists make longer trips on weekends and in the evenings, especially towards parks and natural amenities.

Time to transform the way we travel?: A conceptual framework for slow tourism and travel research

Slow food movement gave rise to subsequent movements including Cittáslow and slow tourism. This emphasises a steady state mindful approach to travel and consumption patterns. With consideration for pressing issues like overtourism, mass tourism and the onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is pertinent to discuss viable alternatives to a fast-paced life and travel that we consider normal. One such alternative is slow tourism that accentuates sustainable tourism practices as well as tourism at a reduced pace. It endorses mindfulness in travelling and discovering destinations in a responsible manner. Furthermore, slow travel aims to promote tourists' consumption-oriented enjoyment of experience through slow-paced and low carbon emission travel patterns. An in-depth scientometric review coupled with a critical qualitative review highlights the state-of-the-art of slow tourism and travel research, offers an integrative multilevel and multistage framework, and proposes future research avenues drawing on the gaps within the slow tourism and travel research.

Research on the Path of Improving Quality and Increasing Efficiency of Rural Tourism in Hohhot Based on the Concept of “Fast Forward and Slow Travel”

Research on the Path of Improving Quality and Increasing Efficiency of Rural Tourism in Hohhot Based on the Concept of “Fast Forward and Slow Travel”

A Median-Based Misery Index for Travel Time Reliability

Travel time reliability is vital for both road agencies and road users. Expected travel time reliability can be used by road agencies to assess the state of a transportation system, and by road users, to schedule their trips. Road network deficiencies, such as insufficient traffic flow capacity of a road segment or poor road design, have a negative impact on the reliability of travel times. Thus, to maintain robust and reliable travel times, the detection of road network deficiencies is vital. By continuously analyzing travel times and using appropriate travel time reliability measurements, it is possible to detect existing deficiencies or deficiencies that may eventually occur unless necessary actions are taken. In many cases, indices and measurements of travel time reliability are related to the distribution of the travel times, specifically the skewness and width of the distribution. The current paper introduces a median-based misery index for travel time reliability. The index is robust and handles travel times that follow a skewed distribution well. The index measures the relative difference between the slow travel speeds and the free-flow travel speed. The index is inspired by the median absolute deviation, and its primary application is to detect routes or road segments with potential road network deficiencies. To demonstrate the applicability of the index, we conducted an empirical case study using real travel speed data from the European route E4 in Sweden. The results from the empirical case study indicate that the index is capable of detecting road segments with slow travel speeds regardless of the travel speed distribution.

Tourist motivation for slow travel: A case study of the Vojvodina Region, Serbia

Slow tourism is a type of alternative tourism that promotes the tourist experience by slowing down the pace, protecting the environment and improving of the tourist experience quality by engaging tourists with the place. It is a new idea that is gaining acceptance worldwide. This study is a reflection on how this type of tourism might grow in Vojvodina. The first goal of this study was to examine the characteristics of tourists who visited Vojvodina and to examine which destinations in Vojvodina are the most visited. Finally, the primary objective of the article was to investigate the motives travelers choose to travel to Vojvodina. Based on the research data of 243 participants who visited destinations in Vojvodina, two factors that motivate tourists (research and leisure) were identified, using the Exploratory Factor Analysis. Future studies on this subject in the surrounding countries can take advantage of the research methodology.

Spinoza’s Ethics

Spinoza’s Ethics

The relationship between walkability and QOL outcomes in residential evaluation

To improve social factors related to quality of life (QOL), slow travel modes, represented by walking, may enable more opportunities for physical activities/social contacts. The impacts of walking may vary by the walkability of spatial environments, namely, by how accessible activities are by walking, and how safe, comfortable, and pleasant neighborhood streets are for walking. Little is yet known about the influence of walkability on various QOL outcomes, especially in car-oriented Asian cities. This study aimed to comprehensively explore the relationship between walkability and QOL outcomes by assessing the relationship between their multiple indicators. We first defined the indicators of walkability and QOL. Then, a questionnaire-based survey was administered to 500 inhabitants of Nagoya city (Japan) for evaluations of their neighborhoods with the indicators of walkability (neighborhood street accessibility and street quality) and QOL (work, health, social relationship, and attachment). Finally, the relationships between walkability and QOL outcomes were analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM). Results showed that, neighborhood street quality (particularly pleasurability) affected the QOL outcomes through the interrelationship among the outcomes, more significantly than accessibility. The findings suggest the importance of street quality in land-use transport planning.