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A shift from memorable to transformative experiences is taking place in the emerging transformation economy. Experiences constitute the essence of the tourism industry. While the literature has recognized the link between sustainability and local food, how local food affects tourists’ perceived sustainability, service experience, satisfaction, and advocacy is little known. This paper contributes to filling this research gap by examining the relationship between local food and sustainability at Spanish destinations within the transformative service theoretical framework. We conducted a questionnaire on 1476 Spanish tourists to show that service experience, perceived sustainability, and local food, are fundamental to any tourist destination strategy. Data reveal that perceived sustainability is a determining factor of tourists’ service experience at the destination, and the perception of local food reinforces perceived sustainability. Moreover, tourists’ service experience significantly and positively affects satisfaction and, consequently, advocacy. The significance of safe experience as an additional dimension of the service experience is also shown. This paper contributes to the transformative service literature in the field of tourism by demonstrating the enhancing role of local food over visitors’ sustainable experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A major motivation for international travel is to experience cross-cultural interactions. Such interactions may occur outside the typical travel milieus. They can even take place prior to the actual travel to impact travel intentions. This paper focuses on cross-cultural encounters between the members of a community and the diaspora from a potential host destination who live among them. The research investigates the willingness of individuals in the community to travel to the diaspora members' home country for the first time after having established relationships with them. Affect control theory and relational exchange theory are incorporated into a structural equation model to examine these relationships – focusing on natives of India living in the United States. The study identifies individual warmth and trust formed between the Indian diaspora and their American acquaintances as highly significant factors that could impact the latter's travel intentions – that is, the willingness of Americans who have not visited India to consider traveling there to further experience the Indian culture. The study provides insights into sustaining the diaspora communities' cultural identities and underscores their intuitive role as cultural ambassadors outside their countries of origin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper ascertains how small accommodation firms can contribute to sustainability by creating shared value (CSV) through adapting their product. A sequential mixed methods approach was adopted including interviews with small accommodation providers and an online survey from domestic leisure tourists. Results demonstrate that adapting the accommodation product through implementing local food initiatives and messages positively influences guests’ sustainable behaviour through their willingness to purchase local food, resulting in value creation for various stakeholders including local community and businesses in the region. Adapting the product will also increase guests’ satisfaction with their stay, yielding economic profits for the accommodation providers. Nevertheless, fostering a supportive environment through institutional systems and inter-firm relations is crucial for CSV to function as an effective strategy for these small firms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractAlthough gender and sustainability have been topics of discussion in international discourse since 1980, little has been done to connect the two. While one of the United Nations Sustainable Goals UNSDGs (5) places a strong emphasis on gender equality, the sustainable tourism paradigm fails to examine it from a social perspective. This paper examines the relationships between gender, religion and tourism and makes the case for the creation of travel destinations that uphold gender equity. The research employs narrative interviews conducted with Muslim women while travelling in the UK to explore how their travel experiences are influenced by their gender and religion. This is a field work study based on in-depth interviews with 21 participants who shared their behaviour, perceptions and feelings related to their trip. The results demonstrate that gender and religion influence the views and experiences of female Muslim tourists in the UK and indicate qualities that female Muslim tourists may seek in a destination that are consistent with their Muslim identity. The results also point to some positive and transformative learning that endured after the trip. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Globally, the tourism industry has been devastated by the COVID-19 pandemic and associated changes in international travel. This paper draws on interviews with 51 women working in the tourism sector in Tanzania and examines gendered impacts of the pandemic on their welfare, which instigated or accelerated entrepreneurial activities as an attempt to protect women's incomes and security. Women in the study adopted one of three entrepreneurial strategies: they (re)committed to the tourism industry, working on developing their own skills and business ideas; they diversified their business interests to have a 'Plan B' in addition to tourism to safeguard against future crises; or they moved away from tourism altogether, focusing instead on other less volatile sectors. The crisis caused by the pandemic exposed tourism as a risky business and a gamble for many women, who are considering leaving the sector. This represents a significant obstacle for the tourism industry's recovery and sustainability and illustrates some of the limitations of tourism entrepreneurship for supporting and empowering women in the Global South. Priority policy areas for supporting women to remain within tourism are identified to help support women entrepreneurs and ensure their skills and enthusiasm contribute to rebuilding and reshaping the sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractThis paper presents an integrative review of how social marketing principles and practices have been conceptualised and applied in tourism studies. A systematic literature search was conducted, which found 41 relevant tourism-related journal articles published from 1971 to January 2024. Thirty-six articles self-identified as social marketing, while five studies did not self-identify as social marketing. Findings show most tourism studies conceptualise social marketing from a downstream or micro- perspective, seeking to influence behaviour change in individual tourists. Studies applying an upstream or systems perspective in tourism are rare, indicating opportunities for future research in tourism to align approaches with contemporary social marketing practice. Often theory and model use are not reported, making it challenging to identify the requisite key success factors for effective social marketing interventions. Not only are the impacts of interventions rarely documented, but they also tend to be short-term. Long-term evaluation of interventions, particularly at the macro-level, is missing. A model of social marketing application in tourism is suggested that integrates approaches across the downstream, community, upstream, and macro- levels. Implications for further utilisation of social marketing to achieve sustainable tourism are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]