Niche Tourism Research Articles

Introducing meta-governance as a sustainability tool in popular culture tourism regional development

ABSTRACT Popular culture tourism development suffers from a weak grounding in the broader societal system in which it operates, and there is insufficient understanding of how governance can assist in counterbalancing this trend. What is therefore required is a deeper understanding of how current and future governance can complement popular culture tourism development in the wake of the sustainability transition. The aim of this paper is to propose a meta-governance analytic framework that can serve as a critical lens for an improved holistic understanding of popular culture tourism development in the regional governance context. Drawing on a selective literature review of the meta-governance field, the concept is introduced as a critical lens through which existing and future popular culture tourism governance can be theoretically and empirically scrutinized. It is proposed that a popular culture tourism meta-governance analysis should revolve around the rationale for this form of niche tourism, resourceful stakeholders, the governance landscape, and appropriate governance strategies and tools.

Glamping in Romania, a new perspective in camping tourism

Glamping accommodation exploded on the tourism market as a response and resilience of COVID 19 Pandemic. Romania is one of the European countries where this niche tourism has registered an unprecedented development. In this background, the current research analyzes the dimensions of consumers’ perceptions via google reviews regarding the quality of glamping in Romania. In order to fulfill this aim, a qualitative-quantitative research known as a mixed method was applied. The results showed that statistics about glamping registered some inconsistencies between the official data and those from the field, and not all sites had a certification by stars. The rating given by tourists was extremely high compared to other tourist structures. Consumers were satisfied to the greatest extent with the views where glamping are framed and the quiet of nature. For the services, tourists appreciated the glamping at whole, as memorable experiences, with exceptional equipment, but also the friendly atmosphere of the hosts. Even if some negative aspects were reported, the study showed that the mountainous and hilly areas remained more suitable for the development of such accommodation units.

Unveiling the essence: Constructs of memorable wellness tourism experiences

Existing studies on memorable tourism experiences (MTE) focus primarily on diverse niche tourism forms, although there is a dearth of evidence and studies on MTE in wellness tourism. The present research seeks to fill knowledge and empirical gaps in the field of wellness tourism and address theoretical inconsistencies by examining the key constructs that constitute memorable wellness tourism experiences (MWTE). An exploratory qualitative investigation was conducted to identify specific dimensions of MWTE. Data were gathered from international primary wellness tourists, selected through criterion-based snowball sampling, during October – December 2022, employing semi-structured interviews. Thematic analysis was performed based on grounded theory approach, using NVivo software for data analysis. Findings revealed ten dimensions; professionalism, meaningfulness, environmental aesthetics, refreshment, hedonism, hospitality, involvement, novelty, value for money, and authenticity with respective indicators (40). Opposing prior studies, study outcomes acknowledged professionalism and value for money as crucial MWTE determinants while revealing a new and intriguing determinant: environmental aesthetics. Identifying MWTE constructs fosters more in-depth insights into the aspects that constitute and reinforce wellness travel experiences. This profound knowledge may establish evidence-based decisions, policies, and practises that strengthen wellness tourists’ overall well-being and contentment.

Lexical Innovation in Ecotourism Discourse: The Case of Eco(-)lodge

As repositories of the cultures whose language they describe, lexicographical resources partake in the (re)production of dominant ideologies. This is especially relevant with regard to the current ecological crisis. With this in mind, the present article contributes to research within the field of ecolexicography. Combining critical lexicography with ecolinguistics, it acknowledges the role of lexicographical resources in shaping the users’ awareness of environmental protection. In particular, this study investigates lexical innovation within ecotourism discourse in order to understand whether “ecotourism talk” can respond to its sustainable objectives. The research focusses on one specific instance, the noun eco(-)lodge, which is examined by searching both native speakers’ and learners’ dictionaries and specialised and general English corpora. Results highlight a partial clash between the two types of sources. While examples of usage mostly connote ecolodges as a type of luxury and exclusive accommodation placed in natural—i.e., non-urban—contexts, dictionaries define them solely with reference to their supposed minimal environmental impact. Outcomes suggest a semantic bleaching of the combining form eco- in ecotourism discourse, which is exploited in lexical creations to advertise a form of niche tourism that does not always align with ecological concerns.

The Main Trends in the Development of Digital Tourism in Uzbekistan

The article discusses current trends in tourism development: e-tourism, virtualization, niche tourism,the transition from the service industry to the industry of experience and impressions. The role of large companiesin the online travel market is being studied.

GROWTH OF TOURISM IN HIMACHAL PRADESH: A STUDY OF DISTRICT SHIMLA IN HIMACHAL PRADESH

The tourist sector in Himachal Pradesh is expanding and contributing significantly to the creation of jobs and economic prosperity in the area. It is anticipated that the establishment of businesses, the development of infrastructure, and the creation of jobs will all have a substantial impact on the socioeconomic development of the state. Tourism has the capacity to help other economic sectors through its backward and forward connections and cross-sectoral synergies with businesses including agriculture, horticulture, poultry, handicrafts, transportation, and construction, among others. Spending on tourism brings about a number of transactions that demand the supply of goods and services from these related businesses. As a result of tourist spending, consumer demand rises, creating more jobs and having a positive multiplier effect on the economy. How well a region develops tourism is dependent on its resources. Due to the tourism industries growing impact on the environment's resources, it is now more crucial than ever to encourage environmentally friendly tourism. Himachal is a well-known tourist attraction both domestically and internationally. Domestic tourists come to this hill state for a number of reasons, such as to take in the peace and quiet, to escape the oppressive heat of the lowlands, to relax, or to perform pilgrimages. Visitors from other countries are drawn to the hill state because of its historical significance. New tourism niches, such as adventure, trekking, camping, and sport tourism, have been found for both domestic and foreign tourists. The State Government has started a number of initiatives to stimulate travel and tourism.

Progress in volunteer tourism research: From niche tourism curiosity to experience-based improvements

This paper reviews the latest research directions and conceptual developments on the phenomenon of volunteer tourism. The last review was published in 2017, so it is time to summarize and re-evaluate how voluntourism has evolved. The paper projects future developments within voluntourism by showcasing some critical changes in the participants’ attitudes. This is likely to influence how, where and by whom volunteering initiatives will be implemented. The contributions of this paper are assembling an overview of efforts to formulate a definition of voluntourism and providing clues as to what socio-cultural and market- forces will drive its evolution in the future.

Classification of long-distance trails into nature-based tourism niches:

Hiking tourism has intensified in Brazil in recent years. Among the evidence of this process is the creation, in 2018, of the Brazilian Network of Long-Distance Trails (RBT), which brings together trails that require at least one overnight stay to complete their route. Considering the country's potential in this field and the rapid growth of this tourist offer, the research sought to develop and test a methodology to classify these trails according to niches in the nature tourism segment. To this end, it collected data from RBT websites and social media and from the Long-Distance Trails (LDT) of Rio Grande do Sul, as well as applied online questionnaires with managers to identify evidence that would make it possible to associate these trails with certain niches of nature tourism. As a result, it obtained a preliminary classification of the Long-Distance Trails of Rio Grande do Sul in relation to the niches of the nature tourism segment, as well as identified important aspects to be considered for the construction of methodologies with the same purpose.

DEVELOPMENT OF SUSTAINABILITY INDICATORS FOR MUSLIM FRIENDLY TOURISM IN MALAYSIA

Muslim friendly tourism is a tourism segment that adheres to the religious needs of Muslim tourists. It includes a wide range of services and facilities including transportation, restaurants, entertainment, and accommodations that designed for and directed at Muslims. Malaysia is one of the fastest growing countries in the Muslim friendly tourism industry sector, holding a sizeable market share. As sustainable tourism has emerged as the way forward for Muslim friendly tourism, specific sustainability indicators should be developed to be used in planning and decision-making of Muslim friendly tourism related matters. Yet, the majority of the existing sustainability indicators reflect other tourism niche such as ecotourism, small tourism enterprises, adventure tourism destinations, festival tourism, and ecological resort. Malaysia’s tourism industry contributed 12.8% to the gross domestic product (GDP) in 2021 and contributed 23.4% to the total employment. Hence, sustaining Muslim friendly tourism as a niche tourism segment is one of the country’s priorities. This study is on-going aims to develop sustainability indicators for Muslim friendly tourism in Malaysia. For this purpose, stage 1 of this research aims to identify sustainability indicators for Muslim friendly tourism and stage 2 aims to evaluate the relative importance of the indicators identified. Findings of this study is in line with the National Tourism Policy (2020-2030), which aiming to ensure the continuity of the country’s tourism industry and will support the Malaysian government specifically Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture (MOTAC) towards achieving Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8 on “decent work and economic growth” as tourism has the potential to contribute, directly or indirectly, to this goal.

Educational Policy, Specialised Staff, Innovations and Recreational Industry

Niche tourism in Bulgaria is facing a shortage of specialised staff. The quality of services in the Recreational industry depends on the integration of scientific findings into Wellness & Spa therapies. This study summarises the specifics of the newly accredited Wellness & Spa programs at the National Sports Academy “V. Levski”. The innovations are financially supported by the Bulgarian Heritage BG Centre of Excellence. Under the priority axis 1 “Research and Technological Development”, a scientific bridge was established to implement the European policy “healthy lifestyle for everyone”. Through the education of specialised personnel, our team gained insights on how Bulgarian Niche tourism can improve the quality of services in the Wellness & Spa sector. By identifying the specific professional competencies, the scientific team at NSA “V. Levski” developed innovative educational programs for new jobs to meet the needs of the Niche tourism business. The analysis of the development of professional knowledge and skills led to improved higher quality services and interdisciplinary education. By accrediting new scientific and educational programs in two professional fields, health care and sports, NSA “V. Levski” has become an educational and scientific leader at the National, Balkan, and European level in the field of Niche tourism, specifically in the Wellness & Spa sector.

Tea Tourism: Evaluating Prospects and Problems of Tea Tourism in Assam, North East India

Tea Tourism is emerging as a new form of niche tourism in India, especially in the northeastern part of the country. A serene landscape in tea gardens is perhaps the most exotic and innovative way to enjoy nature. Tea tourism is emerging as a new type of sustainable cultural tourism where less research has been done. This study attempts to evaluate the prospects of tea gardens and their related products to attract inbound and domestic tourists in Assam, the largest tea-producing state of India. Problems of tea tourism in the study area are also discussed here and necessary suggestions have been given for maintaining its sustainability. Various activities associated with tea tourism destinations and their importance as tour components are also highlighted here. The findings of this study revealed that demographic factors, cultural backgrounds, amenities and activities available in the destinations, eco-friendly practices, etc. are important to understanding the prospects and problems of tea tourism in the form of SWOT analysis in study area.

Finding tourism niche on image-based social media: Integrating computational methods

The purpose of this research is to examine one of the most effective approaches for locating niche tourism attractions that varies by people, using a methodology that combines statistical analysis, deep learning visual image detection, and text mining. Using 30,013 posts with the hashtag #Seoul in English, the analysis focused on the Instagram posts’ time, dominant color, image visual content, and hashtag to identify niche tourism attractions. The analysis result shows that Instagram posts hashtag #Seoul that depicted “young women” and was uploaded in the evening with warm colors such as orange, yellow, and green received more “likes” than other postings. Furthermore, deep learning and text mining analysis were used to identify and forecast the actual image with the most likes in each sectoral domain, as classified by topic modeling, such as “young, woman, outdoor” and “table, plate, indoor.” Through these findings, this study identified niche hotspots of tourism attractions based on those destination image attributes in Instagram photos, which contributes to the popularity of Instagram postings. The methods and results will be particularly useful to marketers and researchers looking to uncover specialized tourism themes and combine popularity measurement with visual image analysis.

НИШЕВЫЕ И УНИКАЛЬНЫЕ ТУРИСТСКИЕ ПРОДУКТЫ КАК АКТУАЛЬНЫЙ ТРЕНД РАЗВИТИЯ И БРЕНДИНГА ТУРИСТСКИХ ДЕСТИНАЦИЙ В РЕГИОНАХ РОССИИ

One of the main trends in the development of the tourism market in modern Russia is the stratification of offers of tourist products. On the one hand, a mass tourism product stands out, suitable for most tourists. On the other hand, niche tourism is being formed, the proposals of which take into account all kinds of features and customer requests. In this area, educational trips, ecological, sports and other types of tourism are becoming increasingly popular. The ability of Russian regions to form unique niche tourism products directly affects their branding, popularity among tourists, and, as a result, the economic efficiency of tourism activities at the territory.

Fostering Urban Destination Prosperity through Post COVID-19 Sustainable Tourism in Craiova, Romania

In accordance with the 2030 Agenda, the prosperity of tourist destinations holds a crucial role in the sustainable development of urban areas. Tourism represents an imperative solution in transitioning from survival to success after the COVID-19 pandemic. The stakeholders in the field should introduce new tourism forms that enable a more comprehensive strategy for managing and developing responsible tourism, bringing into focus new skills, resources, and levels for change to develop resilience, urban community satisfaction, and the unique intrinsic attraction of each tourist destination in Romania. This study develops a model of prosperity for urban tourist destinations, which can be applied to medium-large cities in Romania. We propose for the city of Craiova the use and identification of four spheres of sustainability, which in turn have a set of 17 indicators. The research method used to determine the indicators has two stages: (1) the analysis of the specialized literature to identify the appropriate indicators for an urban destination and (2) statistical analyzes and interviews with internal stakeholders (residents), which present their tourist perspective of the city. This article tackles an innovative concept, called prosperity and innovation in Craiova tourism, which can be implemented in all tourism niches and brings new development perspectives that correspond to the norms of sustainable development and their direction towards sustainability. The article addresses the concept of prosperity in tourism and contains information about: the definition of prosperity, the concept of prosperity (an engine of innovation in tourism and its implications), but also perspectives for a prosperous tourism policy in Craiova tourism.

Dairy Tourism Model for Enhancing Farmers’ Income: A Niche Tourism Product from the Trans-Gangetic Plains of India

Dairy Tourism Model for Enhancing Farmers’ Income: A Niche Tourism Product from the Trans-Gangetic Plains of India

A structural equation modeling study on productivity investments in tourism security of a multi-islands province: Community perspectives for Community-Based Tourism model of Romblon, the Philippines

Sustainable Tourism through Community Development concept developed the niche of Community-Based Tourism (CBT). This niche is seen as having a great impact on rural communities in the Asian Region known for its pro-poor implications that deliver socio-cultural, ecological, political, and economic benefits to communities. This study aims at investigating the potentials of CBT specifically in the multi-island province of Romblon in the Philippines. Using the Extended Theory of Sustainable Development, the researcher attempts to examine the impacts of tourism to shed light on its costs and benefits for the rural communities of Romblon. Analyses on LGUs and Communities through Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was employed. Results revealed that tourism positively affect the extended parameters of sustainable development. This could be a conclusive basis for a Public Policy Development in the Multi-Island Province.

Educational Travel and Personal Development: Deconstructing the Short-Term Study Abroad Experience

ABSTRACT Taking an explanatory mixed-method approach, this research examines how participation in short-term educational travel abroad affects young adults’ personal development. Different from previous research investigating the study abroad trip as one holistic concept, the current research deconstructs study abroad experiences into travel and education components and examines each component’s effect on undergraduate students’ post-trip developmental benefits. Through a quantitative survey-based study and a follow-up qualitative focus-group study, specific travel- and education-related components of study abroad experience are identified as salient factors promoting young travelers’ personal development progress, including participation in group excursions and experiential learning activities, self-management of travel logistics, and engagement in diverse and authentic social/cultural interactions. The research findings provide insights into how learning occurs through travel and highlight short-term study abroad as an impactful special-purpose tourism product. This research contributes to a niche tourism topic regarding travel experience design with the purpose of fostering personal development.

Halal tourism beyond 2020: concepts, opportunities and future research directions

PurposeThe current research work investigates the concept of halal tourism through research articles published during the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the understanding of what halal tourism means, while traveling following the Islamic law. This study also contributes to the discussion on its definition and the shared understanding, as it is extremely important toward the sustainable development of this niche tourism section.Design/methodology/approachA systematic literature review of total 47 number of existing literature, extracted from two major databases, namely, Scopus and Web of Science, was conducted. For data collection, the time frame from January 2020 to January 2023 was chosen, which represents the pandemic times during which those articles were published.FindingsAlthough being a growing segment, halal tourism is still at a nascent stage in business research. It is potentially an attractive and niche segment of tourism. Current research work highlights the major contents related to halal tourism, dominant theories used in literature, publishing authors, journals and research gaps for further research. In this line, future research directions are also proposed toward the end of this paper.Originality/valueThis study highlights the conceptual development and discusses the opportunities and implementation of halal tourism in post-pandemic world. Current research work presents interesting contextual data and presents insightful knowledge in a new context. This paper offers a systematic analysis and provides both an academic as well as the managerial implications.

ІННОВАЦІЙНІ ІНСТРУМЕНТИ МАРКЕТИНГОВИХ СТРАТЕГІЙ РОЗВИТКУ ТУРИЗМУ НА РЕГІОНАЛЬНОМУ РІВНІ

The article summarizes the scientific and practical approaches to implementing marketing strategies for regional tourism development and identifies and characterizes their essential innovative tools. Territorial marketing strategies have recently become a topical subject of scientific research and a popular tool for promoting regions and increasing their competitiveness. Regional development marketing strategies are initiatives aimed at promoting and improving a specific region's economic and social conditions. The application of such elements of regional tourism development marketing strategies as niche tourism, digital platforms, and storytelling is substantiated. A niche tourism strategy targets specific market segments, such as adventure tourism, ecotourism, or cultural tourism. Tourism regions can use digital platforms to interact with visitors and collect data about their preferences and behavior. By analyzing this data, you can better understand your target market and develop more effective marketing strategies. Storytelling is a marketing strategy because people are more likely to be impressed by a place if they can emotionally connect with it. By creating and sharing stories about the region, its people, and its culture, you can connect emotionally with potential visitors and increase their likelihood of coming. The use of the described marketing tools within the strategies of niche tourism, digital platforms, and storytelling will make it possible shortly, after guaranteeing the safety of tourism in Ukraine, to ensure the rapid development of such promising types and directions of tourism as sustainable and ecological, adventure, cultural, health and healing tourism, and as well as immersive (virtual) and technological tourism. The proposed innovative marketing tools can be used to develop effective strategies for developing tourism at the regional level. However, the effectiveness of these strategies may vary depending on the context and regional characteristics. Implementing marketing strategies will become especially important in Ukraine after the war's end, but it is necessary to develop such strategies using innovative marketing tools now.

Community Based Tourism for Economic Growth: A Case of Mawlyngot the Urlong Tea Village in Meghalaya, India

The significance of Tourism and more specifically the Community Based Tourism was realized in the wake of global pandemic situation. The growing trends towards the popularity of niche tourism such as the Community Based Tourism was a notable change. Tourism is today recognized as one of the fastest growing industries in the world. The question however remains, should the benefits of the industry be limited to select few. Is the industry benefiting local communities who deserve their fair share?The research paper attempts to answer this, citing the example of Mawlyngot village which was a sleepy village full of social evils. The village has seen transformation after promotion of local tea through community-based efforts and promoting Tourism. Based on the structured interactions with the key stakeholders and the local community the paper examines the key factors leading to such transformation.