- Review
Gastronomic Tourism: Global Trends, Sustainability Challenges, and Research Directions (2010–2025)—A Comprehensive Review
- Lucian Dordai,
- Anca Becze and
- Marius Roman
Gastronomic tourism has emerged as a significant driver of destination competitiveness, cultural preservation, and sustainable development. This comprehensive review synthesizes the scientific literature published between 2010 and 2025, examining the evolution of gastronomic tourism research, global trends, sustainability dimensions, and emerging challenges. Through systematic analysis of 150 peer-reviewed articles from major academic databases, this paper identifies key themes including cultural heritage preservation, sustainability practices, digital transformation, and educational innovations. The findings reveal a growing recognition of gastronomy as intangible cultural heritage, increased focus on farm-to-fork practices, and the transformative role of social media in destination branding. Despite the rapid growth of gastronomic tourism research, important gaps remain. The literature lacks standardized sustainability indicators, limiting comparability across studies, while cross-cultural comparative research and interdisciplinary integration remain insufficiently developed. Addressing these gaps is essential for advancing theoretical coherence and supporting evidence-based practice in gastronomic tourism.
15 January 2026


![PRISMA Flow Diagram of Literature Selection Process (Based on PRISMA 2020 guidelines [38]. The diagram illustrates the four-phase systematic review process from initial database search through final inclusion of 150 studies in the synthesis).](https://mdpi-res.com/cdn-cgi/image/w=470,h=317/https://mdpi-res.com/gastronomy/gastronomy-04-00004/article_deploy/html/images/gastronomy-04-00004-g001-550.jpg)