Special Issue "Tourism, Innovation, Heritage, and Sustainability: Global and Local Perspectives"

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Tourism, Culture, and Heritage".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 28 February 2022.

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Flávio Gomes Borges Tiago
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Business and Economics Department, University of the Azores, 9500-321 Ponta Delgada, Portugal
Interests: digital marketing; social media; marketing; strategy; tourism; eTourism; knowledge management
Prof. Dr. Maria Teresa Borges Tiago
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Business and Economics Department, University of the Azores, 9500-321 Ponta Delgada, Portugal
Interests: social media; smart tourism; tourism; digital marketing; healthcare; brand management
Prof. Dr. Beatriz Casais
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Management, University of Minho, 4710-057 Braga, Portugal
Interests: social and nonprofit marketing; digital marketing; e-Commerce and e-Marketplaces; advertising; marketing communications; and reputation management; place branding; public diplomacy
Prof. Dr. Androniki Kavoura
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Business Administration, University of West Attica, 122 43 Athens, Greece
Interests: communication; advertising; tourism; cultural policy; branding
Special Issues and Collections in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Since 2020, the economy worldwide has faced severe challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic and international lockdowns. At this time, nobody can foresee how the pandemic will evolve, nor the recovery timeline. Nonetheless, to reignite the global economies, firms, regions, and countries will need to rethink their strategy and forge future scenarios. Crosschecking all industries, three common points of concern have emerged: sustainability, innovation, and technology. From the convergence of these dimensions, new scenarios can be designed, adapted to the new consumer behavior patterns in different industries. 

Tourism was, without a doubt, the industry most impacted by the pandemic. According to UNWTO, post-COVID-19, tourists are expected to change their behavior patterns, seeking adventure travel, natural spaces, and safe and quality experiences. Destinations and tourism and hospitality firms need to fully understand the behavioral changes and new preferences caused by the significant disruption in people’s lives. Therefore, studying these industries in the pandemic context is of paramount importance. It is also important to keep in mind that changes occurred not only at the consumer but also at the firm level. As the past has shown, tourism players show remarkable resilience in overcoming challenges, innovating, and adapting.

This resilience is vital today, regardless of the industry. Thus, it is time to investigate the main trends and present critical reflections and empirical models that reinforce industries; ability to rapidly transform themselves, with particular attention given to tourism and hospitality. Some of the main areas range from consumer behavior and confidence, sustainability, and cultural entrepreneurship to smart tourism and technological innovation.

We invite researchers to submit original papers that include conceptual, empirical, analytical, or design-oriented methodologies. The Special Issue seeks papers including (but not limited to) the following themes:

  • Opportunities and challenges for sustainable tourism;
  • Tourism marketing, digital marketing, social media, and brand co-creation;
  • Cultural, religious, and gastronomic heritage;
  • Smart tourism;
  • Tourism innovation practices, planning, and development;
  • Contemporary issues and tourism experiences in a post-COVID era;
  • Tourism stakeholders behaviors and perceptions;
  • Economic, social, and territorial impacts of tourism;
  • Adventure, sports, wellness, and health tourism;
  • Senior tourism and accessible destinations.

Prof. Dr. Flávio Gomes Borges Tiago
Prof. Dr. Maria Teresa Borges Tiago
Prof. Dr. Beatriz Casais
Prof. Dr. Androniki Kavoura
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All papers will be peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

Article
Geotourism Destinations Online Branding Co-Creation
Sustainability 2021, 13(16), 8874; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13168874 - 09 Aug 2021
Viewed by 316
Abstract
The application of brand theory to destinations has grown in the last few decades, with the destination brand personality being a viable metaphor for creating and positioning destination brands. An often-overlooked tourism typology is geotourism; more specifically, volcanic tourism, since it can be [...] Read more.
The application of brand theory to destinations has grown in the last few decades, with the destination brand personality being a viable metaphor for creating and positioning destination brands. An often-overlooked tourism typology is geotourism; more specifically, volcanic tourism, since it can be a passive element of any tourism form or active nature tourism. However, its potential is relatively unexplored in terms of online branding. For this reason, the present study analyzes online brand image co-creation, using 300 websites related to three unique volcanic tourism destinations—Iceland, the Azores, and the Canary Islands. Three different types of sources (destination marketing organizations, commercial, and editorial websites) created these contents. The results demonstrate significant differences between the communication of the three destinations, with Iceland, where there is less aligned communication, most valuing geo elements in their communication, and the Azores, where all stakeholders communicate similar brand personality traits, displaying more aligned communication regarding brand personality. In the Canary Islands geotourism is less explored as a destination offer and is consequently less communicated. Acknowledging the different brand positioning and the parity and differentiation points among destinations with the same baseline offer—volcanic tourism—can be helpful for destination brand managers to reignite tourism and promote a unique tourism experience. Full article
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Article
Creating Opportunities for the Development of Craft Beer Tourism in Serbia as a New Form of Sustainable Tourism
Sustainability 2021, 13(16), 8730; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13168730 - 05 Aug 2021
Viewed by 273
Abstract
Beer may not be the oldest alcoholic beverage, but it is definitely among the most popular alcoholic beverages in Serbia today. The authors conducted a survey in 2019, during three major beer festivals, on a total sample of 542 festival visitors. The authors [...] Read more.
Beer may not be the oldest alcoholic beverage, but it is definitely among the most popular alcoholic beverages in Serbia today. The authors conducted a survey in 2019, during three major beer festivals, on a total sample of 542 festival visitors. The authors set the goal of the research: sensory preferences, habits, knowledge of the beer production process and a healthy lifestyle influence the choice of beer type, in respondents older than 18 years. Further, the goal was to investigate the extent to which craft tourism can be developed in Serbia, and to be an aid in sustainable tourism development. SPSS software, version 26.00, was used for data processing. Descriptive statistical analysis determined the average values for all items from the given research groups. The authors considered that, for determining the group of factors, which may have the strongest predictor power in predicting beer choice, the best results can be given by Binary Logistic Regression. The logarithm of chances, chances and probabilities has also been determined whether in some future period all festival visitors over the age of 18 will be chosen for craft beer instead of factory beer. The obtained results show that visitors mainly consume craft beer, and that sensory tendencies play a leading role in preserving and creating quality, as well as attracting regular consumers and visitors to craft tourism. The importance of the research is undoubtedly seen in resolving the existing doubts about the quality of beer and creating a craft tourist market in Serbia. In addition, the research can improve the measures around the creation of a recognizable identity of the Serbian beer festival, on the wider tourist market. Full article
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Article
Unveiling Island Tourism in Cape Verde through Online Reviews
Sustainability 2021, 13(15), 8167; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13158167 - 21 Jul 2021
Viewed by 372
Abstract
This paper is focused on research addressing a large quantity of data extracted from online reviews written by tourists visiting islands. These were extracted from TripAdvisor regarding island tourist destinations since there is a gap in the scientific literature using this approach on [...] Read more.
This paper is focused on research addressing a large quantity of data extracted from online reviews written by tourists visiting islands. These were extracted from TripAdvisor regarding island tourist destinations since there is a gap in the scientific literature using this approach on island tourism. The Islands of the Sun, Boa Vista and Sal, of Cape Verde, a Small Island Developing State (SIDS), were the targets of this investigation. After applying text mining to a large dataset, results are discussed, including from the perspectives of hotels, restaurants, and tourist attractions. For example, the beach is the main tourist attraction in both islands, but whereas in Boa Vista, tours on quad bikes constitute a major tourist activity, its equivalent in Sal is actually diving. The location of hotels near the beach is a big plus for tourists who also emphasize their human interaction with staff members in both hotels and restaurants. Full article
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