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The purpose of this paper is to examine how local agricultural communities are integrated into the tourism value chains and provide insights into how this can contribute to poverty reduction.

The study employed the value chain approach to gain an understanding of the linkages between tourism and agriculture. Interviews involving local suppliers of agricultural products and tourism businesses (n=195) were conducted in Lushoto, Tanzania. The livelihood portfolios (range of activities – farming, employment, tourism, etc.) were analyzed in terms of the resources (economic, natural, human, physical and social assets) available to individuals and households and how these are optimally used to achieve inclusive growth.

The findings show that the form of tourism business ownership and the presence of specific social networks between tourism businesses and local suppliers dictate the mode of buying and the strength of supply chains. Community-based tourism is dominant in the area, allowing tourists to interact with agrarian rural communities. However, the optimal local linkages have been hampered by the quantitative and qualitative mismatch between locally supplied products and the tourism sector’s requirements. The failure of many initiatives aimed at addressing the mismatch creates a need for empowering local communities to enable them to take the opportunities that tourism provides.

Least developed countries need to build on the lessons learned from the development of tourism in their local settings, and pursue strategies which bring hope, confidence and real benefits to the majority of the struggling population. This study gives an insight on how inter-sectoral linkages could be embraced among the strategies or means of reducing rampant poverty.

Linking local agricultural production to tourism has long been seen as a promising way to make tourism more economically inclusive. However, the use of value chain approach in studying the tourism-agriculture linkages for inclusive development, especially in the developing economies is not common. While employing Porter’s value chains analysis, this study provides insights into how local farmers can be incorporated in tourism food supply chains in an ethical and beneficial way.

The purpose of this study is to examine how the tourism economy affects local food availability, access, utilization and stability in dessert-prone agricultural heritage sites. Specifically, the study aims to explore the relationship between the tourism industry and local agricultural practices and how this connection influences food security in the Siwa Oasis, located in the Western Desert of Egypt.

The study employs a qualitative exploratory research design using in-depth interviews and focus groups to investigate the impact of the tourism economy on food security and identify potential benefits and limitations for food security in the region.

The research reveals that the tourism economy in Siwa Oasis has only a marginal contribution to food security. The study highlights a lack of a strong connection between the tourism industry and local agricultural practices within the heritage site. As a result, the potential benefits and synergies that could be achieved between tourism and agriculture have not been fully realized, leading to a limited impact on food stability.

This study primarily relies on qualitative data from Siwa Oasis, Egypt, which may limit the generalizability of findings beyond this specific context. Additionally, while the study provides valuable insights into the complex relationship between tourism and food security, it does not quantitatively measure the magnitude of tourism's impact. Future research could incorporate quantitative methods for a more comprehensive understanding of this relationship in diverse desert-prone regions. Finally, the study highlights the need for more integrated approaches to enhance food security through tourism, but the specific strategies and policy recommendations require further investigation and adaptation to local contexts.

This study underscores the need for tourism development strategies that prioritize food security in desert-prone areas like Siwa Oasis. Policymakers and stakeholders should promote sustainable tourism practices that enhance local agriculture, create diversified income sources and foster equitable benefits for communities. Moreover, recognizing the seasonal nature of tourism, interventions to address food shortages during off-peak periods are crucial. Efforts should also focus on skill development and gender-inclusive opportunities within the tourism sector to ensure broader community participation. Additionally, collaborations between tourism and agriculture should be encouraged to optimize food availability and stability while preserving cultural food traditions.

This study adds original insights by examining the specific impact of the tourism economy on food security in dessert-prone agricultural heritage sites. The study's originality lies in its exploration of the untapped potential for synergy between the tourism and agricultural sectors and the implications for local food security. This research contributes to understanding how tourism can improve food security in specific contexts and provides valuable insights into sustainable development in heritage sites.

The purpose of this paper is to identify pathways to improve the performance and competitiveness of Ethiopia's tourism sector using coffee as one essential tourism experience, thereby improving the socio-economic conditions of the local communities who depend on coffee for their livelihoods.

Based upon qualitative focus group discussions undertaken with key informants in both the coffee and tourism sectors in Ethiopia.

Despite the existing tourism development potential, Ethiopia has not yet fully exploited this position. While the country uses coffee to assist its destination marketing strategies, practical interventions to position coffee as a primary tourism product are absent and remain of critical importance.

In this exploratory study key informant participants from government and industry share their experience within this policy domain. It is acknowledged that future research aiming to provide a fuller picture of governance in this domain would also include the perspective of community-level coffee growers.

Paramount among the implications of this study is the need to enhance cross-sectoral planning and collaboration and to establish a bridging organisation that will help integrate the agricultural (coffee) sector and the tourism sector.

This study identifies key governance-related obstacles to addressing rural poverty through coffee-related agri-tourism initiatives in Ethiopia.

This paper addresses, from a governance perspective, the obstacles and opportunities for coffee as a tourism product/experience in Ethiopia. The paper identifies what interventions and innovations in policy and practice are necessary to enhance the role of Ethiopia's coffee culture in the performance of the country's tourism sector.

This study was undertaken to investigate whether a service-oriented approach to the local food supply chain contributes to strengthened linkages between accommodation and agricultural sectors, thereby creating value for users.

The qualitative study examined levels of customer/consumer engagement (CE) within theoretical constructs of the service-oriented framework and value co-creation, intangible resources and valued relationship within the value chain and food service. Also, two explanatory case studies were conducted on two accommodation properties.

Empirical findings indicated that the hospitality business which emphasized a consumer-centric service approach throughout the value chain – both forward (toward the consumer) and backward (toward the supplier) – had greater success in engaging customers. It also highlighted the importance of service leadership.

The research study provides practical guidance to members of the local food supply chains in the hospitality sector and strategies that can be used to optimize all opportunities to ensure consumers’ needs are met and exceeded as a precursor for repeat business.

The intricacies of services when well understood and applied in hospitality businesses are likely to generate favorable outcomes such as poverty alleviation. Developing destinations invest significantly in tourism as a channel for economic development. Unfortunately, gains are forfeited since limited attention is given to strategically advancing consumer-centric service at the micro level in tourism businesses to the extent that these benefit other stakeholders. Fostering CE and developing a culture of service leadership appear to be critical success factors.

This study is unique and extremely relevant to island destinations as it provides insights using a service management framework in the Caribbean context on how destinations may enhance hospitality business through improved service in island states.

This research investigated wine tourism development and marketing in southwest Michigan, a longtime viticultural, but emerging wine tourism region. The aims involved discovering the motivations, expectations, and successes of Southwest Michigan Wine Trail member wineries in developing horizontal and vertical alliances.

Semi‐structured, in‐depth interviews were conducted with individuals in charge of the wineries’ marketing activities (i.e. marketing directors and members of the marketing departments, winery owners). These interviews were recorded and transcribed. Activities fostered through the horizontal and vertical alliances were identified.

Alliances along the Southwest Michigan Wine Trail have furthered the development and marketing of wine tourism. The trail's member wineries have formed strong horizontal relationships, which include joint advertising, promotion, and production. They have also built vertical relationships with tour operators, lodging businesses, and restaurants that promote individual wineries as well as the wine region. Wine tourism has provided wineries with another sales outlet and established the wine region as a destination.

This study contributed to the limited literature on the development and marketing of wine tourism in Michigan and in other emerging wine regions in the United States. For those working to further such rural/agri‐tourism, this research indicated that there is considerable growth potential through an increased presence in restaurants and in packaging with accommodations. Adding new specialized wine tours, wine festivals,geographical target markets, and a focus on wine education on‐site and at educational institutions can expand wine tourism and sales.

The purpose of the study is to assess whether a relationship exists between corporate social responsibility (CSR) engagement and tour operators' performances.

A web survey was submitted to tour operators worldwide. A large sample of tour operators from different countries and continents participated in the survey. Principal component analysis was performed and a regression model was developed to analyze the relationship among variables.

Empirical evidence indicates that tour operators with high CSR engagement experienced a significantly higher short-term growth of profits and sales volume. Results also show that applying CSR principles, facilitating CSR values and fostering local economic linkages have a positive and significant influence on tour operators' performances.

Tour operators should cultivate a sustainable corporate culture requiring a commitment to sustainability of the company and its suppliers. The findings contradict with the tendency of “enclavisation” of package tourists within self-sufficient tourism complexes and suggest that locals are part of the tourism place-product.

This research reviews the literature on the relationship between CSR and firms' performances in tourism and hospitality. The relevance of this study is its focus on tour operators, a context with a fundamental importance for the sustainability of the tourism industry worldwide. Tour operators are the players that mostly reflect the variety of sectors within the tourism industry, combining travel services such as accommodation, food, transports, entertainment and excursions. This is the first time that a study on the relationship between CSR and firms' performances has been developed on tour operators worldwide. The paper is based on the data collected through a survey on 201 companies from 42 countries from all continents.

This chapter examines the nexus between the between tourism growth and income inequality in the top 10 tourist destinations in the world by using the advanced econometric technique namely quantile-on-quantile (QnQ). This approach combines the two approaches, that is, the nonparametric estimation and quantile regression and regresses the quantile of the tourism growth onto income inequality quantiles, thus enabling the effect of the income inequality on across different conditional tourism growth distribution. It also allows to explain a comprehensive picture of the overall interdependence and nonlinear relationship between the examined variables. The result from QnQ approach shows a negative association between income inequality and tourism growth, however, the country-specific analysis shows wide variations within and across different quantiles of variables. Notably, on the one hand, a strong negative association between the variables is found in China, France, Spain, Italy, Russia and the USA implying that tourism expansion minimizes the income inequality. On the other hand, a strong positive association is noted in Germany, Turkey, Mexico and the UK, which means that growth in tourism widens the income inequality. These outcomes provide important policy direction for tourism management in the respective countries.

The purpose of this study is to systematically identify and examine the challenges and opportunities of ecotourism development in Wondo Genet and its vicinity, southern Ethiopia and thereby forward suggestions to pertinent ecotourism stakeholders.

This study uses a mixed-method research approach and collects primary data from 412 research participants (400 survey respondents and 12 interviewees). Descriptive and inferential statistics and content analysis are used to analyze quantitative and qualitative data, respectively.

The research findings unfold several constraints that deter successful ecotourism development along with opportunities that can be used in future development. Ecotourism is suggested as a complementary form of tourism development in Wondo Genet and its vicinity, as the area is known for its natural and cultural resources.

The findings offer substantive insights to policymakers, private investors and local communities about the existing challenges and opportunities of ecotourism development in the context of emerging destinations. Given time, budget and human resource are acute restraints in developing countries; the current study is relevant in terms of highlighting the most pressing challenges that demand urgent action to unleash the development of a sustainable tourist destination.

The findings of this study also provide crucial practical implications to various stakeholders about the complementary nature of ecotourism and sustainable placemaking to conserve destinations’ environmental resources while improving socioeconomic conditions.

Despite Wondo Genet's immense ecotourism resource potential as one of the prime destinations both in the country and in the region, a huge gap exists in the current literature, where the current study intends to bridge in a comprehensive manner.

The purpose of this paper is to contribute the advancement of knowledge on food heritage and indigenous entrepreneurship in a non-Western country, specifically in the Persian gardens as the touristic destination for increasing the tourism and food businesses in Iran.

The methodological approach adopted is based on qualitative and quantitative approaches to compare two representative gardens named as Bagh-Chehel-Sotoun and Bagh-Fin, as famous examples of a Persian garden in Iran. The methods supported the research to explain the lack of strategies for improving virtuous cycles in Persian gardens despite their potentials as the main places to attract many tourists.

Regarding local food and the quality of servicing, most of the visitors and tourists (85–90%) had interest to test local and traditional foods around both gardens, but they had no sufficient awareness of Iranian traditional foods. According to the tourists’ interests, the authors concluded the lack of servicing and facilities to present and introduce local and traditional food for tourists.

Despite the limitation of local food services and lack of awareness of tourists about local foods, the implication of the study offers possible avenues to promote local food business.

The results could be useful for cultural heritage and tourism organizations and for investors in the economic sector due to more exploitation of the tourism industry.

The paper is the first work evaluating the Persian garden with a new perspective of local foods in Iran.

Depending on the research approach one uses, the development of particular bodies of knowledge over time is the result of a combination of agency, chance, opportunity, patronage, power, or structure. This particular account of the development of geographies of tourism stresses its place as understood within the context of different approaches, different research behaviors and foci, and its location within the wider research community and society. The chapter charts the development of different epistemological, methodological, and theoretical traditions over time, their rise and fall, and, in some cases, rediscovery. The chapter concludes that the marketization of academic production will have an increasingly important influence on the nature and direction of tourism geographies.