International Journal of Tourism Policy (10 papers in press)

Regular Issues

• The Effect of COVID-19 Crisis on the Tourist Behaviour: The case of Greek Post-Millennials  
  by Lambros Tsourgiannis, Stavros Valsamidis, Pavlos Efraimidis, George Drosatos 
  Abstract: This paper explores how COVID-19 has affected the attitudes of post-millennials regarding their decision to go on holidays or not. It aims to identify the main attitudes of those Generation Z people that will go on holidays within the COVID-19 crisis, and of those that will not, and to cluster them into groups according to their behaviour. Therefore, the researchers elaborated a primary survey on 1287 Generation Z persons in Greece, in the summer of 2020. About 45% of the respondents declared that would not go on holidays, whilst 55% of them answered that they would. The key factors that describe their main attitudes towards the above-mentioned issues were detected through Principal Component Analysis, whilst cluster analysis classified the respondents into groups regarding their attitudes. Quadratic discriminant analysis was performed to assess cluster predictability, and chi-square analysis was employed to profile each group regarding their demographic characteristics.
  Keywords: Tourism Marketing; Consumer Behaviour; COVID-19; Generation Z.
  
  
• Sustainability in European tourism policy-making after the treaty of Lisbon  
  by Tania Pantazi 
  Abstract: Tourism policy in the European Union is an area of supporting competence and coordination, with a limited legal basis for action introduced by the Treaty of Lisbon in 2007. Sustainability has been on the agenda of European policymakers for at least thirty years. This paper reviews, categorises and chronologically presents institutional documents and studies prepared for European bodies, mainly collected from the Publications Office of the European Union, in order to identify in which way sustainability has been incorporated into tourism policy-making since 2007. Findings reveal a gradual change in political priorities after 2015 and the emergence of sustainability as the principal matter of discussion in European tourism documents. The current European action plan has the green and digital transition at its core, but EU action remains supplementary in nature and the most important advancements are expected to occur in the context of other European policies.
  Keywords: European Union; sustainability; tourism policy; institutional documents; green and digital transition.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJTP.2024.10065673
   
  
• Challenges for women in tourism and hospitality entrepreneurship: a systematic literature review and future research agenda  
  by Saima Kareem, Sarah Hussain, Sujood 
  Abstract: This systematic literature review (SLR) offers an overview of the challenges that women encounter in tourism and hospitality entrepreneurship. The review adheres to the SPAR-4-SLR protocol to conduct an extensive evaluation of scholastic publications in the Scopus database. The results indicate a rise in research into the challenges that women face in tourism and hospitality entrepreneurship. However, the existing corpus of scholarship on the subject matter remains limited. This study further proposes ways to overcome these challenges while also advocating for more inclusivity. The findings provide valuable insights for government agencies and policymakers. It also suggests research agendas for both researchers and practitioners. Moreover, the study aligns with three United Nations sustainable development goals (SDGs): SDG 5 (Gender Equality), SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), and SDG 10 (Reducing Inequalities).
  Keywords: women entrepreneurs; entrepreneurship; challenges; gender equality; tourism and hospitality; SLR; systematic literature review; SDGs; sustainable development goals.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJTP.2024.10065792
   
  
• Elevating tourism destination competitiveness: a stakeholder-centric strategic intervention  
  by Saurabh Gupta 
  Abstract: ourism industry is a dynamic industry and competition is the driving force behind development and growth of tourism. Enhancing competitiveness of destination is important in terms of attracting and retaining tourists by standing out among other destinations. The study aims to identify the various determinants of tourism destination competitiveness enhancing strategic interventions (TDCESI). The five dimensions of TDCESI have been extracted through exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis technique. The results of this study are helpful to researchers and policy makers in building strategic plan and identify success factors for the tourism destination development and competitiveness.
  Keywords: tourism destination; destination competitiveness; strategic interventions; destination development; stakeholder.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJTP.2024.10066217
   
  
• Re-visit intention in branded hotel industry through ideal self-congruency and brand experience  
  by Shradha Vernekar, Navneet Gera, Anjali Garg 
  Abstract: The hotel industry has grown in India due to the changing lifestyle and spending habits of Indian consumers. This paper aims at developing a framework that explores the antecedents of revisit intention for branded hotels and the factors which contributes to hotel brand experience. The study is descriptive and causal in nature, with data collected via a self-administered questionnaire and a convenient sampling procedure. Measurement model and structural model testing have been done using partial least square structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis models are used to test the determinants. The main conclusion from this study is that the most important way to encourage repeat guests is to provide them with an exceptional hotel brand experience and ideal selfcongruence.
  Keywords: hotel industry; ideal self-congruency; brand experience; hotel location; hotel staff; revisit intention.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJTP.2024.10066238
   
  
• Senior tourism: a systematic review and research agenda  
  by Sarath Krishna, Daly Paulose Meppurath 
  Abstract: Reviews papers in Senior tourism - tourism undertaken by elderly, have largely adopted bibliometric and scoping designs. This framework-based review using Theory-Context-Characteristic-Methods (TCCM) and employing Scientific Procedures and Rationales for Systematic Literature Reviews (SPAR-4 SLR) protocol, thoroughly synthesizes the state of knowledge, identifies research gaps and proposes directions for future research. The authors examine 54 articles from 2001 to 2023 sourced from SCOPUS, taking care to minimise risk of bias. Findings reveal that studies on senior tourism are mostly quantitative, confined to limited theoretical frameworks and employ tried and tested methodologies. Publication interest appears sectoral, mostly featuring tourism journals. Research from the developing world is sparse, as are multicountry and inter-disciplinary studies. Authors recommend using longitudinal designs to map antecedents, outcomes and spatio-temporal aspects of travel. Though physical, psychological, and social well-being are well documented travel outcomes, concepts like spiritual well-being, retirement migration, and technology enablement mandate further attention.
  Keywords: senior tourism; systematic review; research agenda; elderly; literature review; travel.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJTP.2024.10066356
   
  
• Why do cities restrict short-term rentals such as Airbnb: an empirical panel analysis from the US  
  by Joshua Smith 
  Abstract: This paper asks why local governments pass policies regarding short-term rentals (STRs), such as Airbnb, using stakeholder theory. A novel dataset from 19 US cities over the years 2012 to 2019 is constructed, examining seven different types of STR restrictions and regulations. This analysis finds that a reduction in housing affordability is the most common motivation for these laws and the most significant with large magnitudes. In addition, cities with budgets that are increasingly dependent on hotel revenues and have a higher penetration of Airbnb are also more likely to pass policies. This study contributes to the literature on Airbnb, government response, and affordability concerns. It shows that housing affordability is a primary policy driver in US, suggesting that governments are concerned with addressing the negative externalities that STRs create.
  Keywords: Airbnb; STRs; short-term rentals; local government policy; restrictions; housing affordability; tourism; hosts; guests; stakeholder theory; tourism-driven gentrification.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJTP.2024.10067393
   
  
• Modelling Indians’ visit intentions to Ram Mandir: implications for temple committee and tourism policymakers  
  by Devkant Kala, Dhani Shanker Chaubey 
  Abstract: This study examines religious, cultural, and social factors influencing Indians’ intention to visit the newly inaugurated Ram Mandir (temple) in Ayodhya, India, using Consumer Cultural Theory. Employing quantitative methods, data was collected from 586 Indians, and hypotheses were tested using partial least squares-structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). Respondents rated 32 statements on religious beliefs, place attachment, cultural pride, destination image, media coverage, fear of missing out (FOMO), and visit intention. The results indicate that religious beliefs, place attachment, and cultural pride have positive relationships with destination image. FOMO emerged as the most influential factor in the relationship with visit intention, alongside religious beliefs, place attachment, cultural pride, media coverage, and destination image. This study enriches existing literature and provides insights into the factors driving visit intentions to Ram Mandir, highlighting the significant roles of FOMO and cultural pride. It offers practical implications for temple committees and policymakers to enhance religious and cultural tourism strategies.
  Keywords: Ram Mandir; religious beliefs; cultural pride; FOMO; fear of missing out; visit intention; India.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJTP.2024.10067394
   
  
• Online reviews on accessibility: the case of 5-star hotels in Turkiye  
  by Ozan Çatir, Nalan R. Ayvazoğlu 
  Abstract: With the increasing implementation of structural and legal accessibility regulations in buildings, including hotels, many countries are seeing more establishments prioritising accessibility and providing services to accommodate guests with disabilities. Thus, this study aimed to examine the online comments of people with disabilities regarding the facilities and services offered by hotel businesses. Data were gathered by analysing the reviews of people with disabilities who had experienced the services of five -star hotels in Turkiye. Four primary themes emerged from the study; accessibility of the rooms and common areas, services provided by the hotel, transportation to the hotel and surroundings, and attentiveness of the staff. As a result, despite improvements, there are still significant accessibility issues that need to be addressed to ensure that people with disabilities can fully enjoy their hotel experience in the tourism sector.
  Keywords: accessibility; disabled guests; five-star hotels; Türkiye; hotel services; common areas; transportation; staff attentiveness; review analysis; tourism sector.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJTP.2024.10067760
   
  
• Overtourism: a systematic review of global issues and management strategies  
  by N.W.T. Dilshan, Chieko Nakabasami 
  Abstract: The study investigates the empirical gap of overtourism issues through a systematic literature review using 57 identified papers from Scopus and Web of Science databases. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) method was used for the review process, which mainly examined the academic literature on overtourism issues and destination management strategies. The results revealed that predominant issues occur due to increased prices of daily essentials, environmental destruction, and loss of cultural identity in destinations, respectively, in economic, environmental, and socio-cultural issues. However, tourism carrying capacity is managed by employing various unique strategies like technology integration and taxation at destinations, even though overtourism disrupts the local life in many destinations. Accordingly, the study recommends implementing sustainable tourism-related regulations by prioritising the local community since the socio-cultural issues result in community displacement at the final stage of tolerance.
  Keywords: overtourism; systematic review; PRISMA analysis; overtourism destinations; overtourism issues; destination management; sustainable tourism; socio-cultural effects; community displacement.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJTP.2024.10067761