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The purpose of the study is to examine opportunities for gastronomic tourism development and smart solutions in the regions of Latvia.

The methodology is based on a qualitative approach applied to examine the theoretical and legal frameworks for gastronomic tourism, as well as on a case study based on mapping and a typology of gastronomic tourism.

An analysis of priorities for the Kurzeme planning region (including Talsi municipality) in tourism development revealed that digitalization, the introduction of smart solutions important for travellers and the integration of the digital environment and innovative solutions into tourism services are specified in policy documents. An examination of a mapping of tourist services supplied in the Talsi municipality and the role of gastronomic tourism therein showed that such a mapping can serve as a basis for developing targeted smart and digital tourism products for Talsi municipality, which involves both the target audience and the typology of food tourist behaviour.

The examination of smart solutions for the regions of Latvia represented an in-depth case study of one municipality – Talsi. Talsi municipality was selected as a typical gastronomic destination, which offers a wide range of gastronomic tourism opportunities, and this kind of tourism is also referred to in the tourism development strategy of the municipality (region).

This study's contribution is determined by the constantly changing dynamic environment that fosters the differentiation of supply of tourism products, as well as the integration of smart solutions into tourism products. Gastronomic tourism in Latvia and the Baltic states plays a steady role in contributing to the recognition of the cultural environment and regional traditions; therefore, the supply of smart solutions is essential and significant from the regional perspective. The originality of the research is also determined by an examination of smart solutions for gastronomic tourism in the tourism products supplied in the region.

This paper aims to analyse the development of research on gastronomic tourism experiences and chart its relationship to foundational management and marketing literature as well as the tourism and hospitality field.

The author develops a literature review of papers in specialist journals and the SCOPUS database to identify major research themes and the evolution of experience and gastronomic experience research.

Gastronomy is an increasingly important element of tourism experiences. Gastronomic experience research in tourism mirrors the evolution in management and marketing theory from rational information processing approaches to emotional and hedonistic approaches and analysis of relationality and co-creation. The paper sketches a development from Experience 1.0 (producer-orientated) to Experience 2.0 (co-creation) to Experience 3.0 (foodscapes) in gastronomic experiences in tourism research.

Increasing complexity of gastronomic experiences requires a more holistic analytic approach, including more attention for relational and co-creational processes. Linking together different experience elements and experience phases requires more holistic and contextual research approaches.

Hospitality organizations should recognize the differentiated and complex nature of gastronomic experiences, the different touchpoints within the customer journey and their relationship to experience outcomes. The development of hybrid gastronomic experiences offers both opportunities and challenges for the future.

This quantitative and qualitative literature analysis underlines the need for a more holistic approach to gastronomic experiences, covering different experiential phases and contexts of production and consumption.

The importance of gastronomy for tourism development has been broadly recognised in academic literature and practice, as it represents an essential element of tourism services and has a significant impact on customer satisfaction. Gastronomy in the Western Balkans has attracted increasing attention from tourism and hospitality researchers since the fall of Yugoslavia in the 1990s. As a relatively new topic in academic literature, it requires frequent and critical monitoring that can shed light on current research and practice and make needed adjustments in terms of future development. However, to date, there have been few systematic reviews of this body of work. As such, this study aims to fill this void by conducting a qualitative analysis of the development of gastronomy in the Republic of Slovenia. Particular attention has been devoted to the presentation of gastronomic heritage, tourism and policies implemented by Slovenian authorities in order to strategically develop the national gastronomic identity. Based on a literature review and interviews with experts from academia and practice, the findings reveal that for the successful development of gastronomy, a strategic approach to gastronomy and tourism development is needed. The development of gastronomy is also vital for the improvement of tourism and gastronomic services at the regional, local and entrepreneurial levels. The results of this study will be of interest to policymakers, researchers and practitioners. This research has also raised many questions requiring further investigation. It is suggested that future longitudinal studies include interviews with different groups of stakeholders and empirically investigate the different perspectives of gastronomy development.

Luxury has received attention from tourism researchers as an important element of the gastronomic tourism experience. With recent research suggesting food and wine tourism being connected to luxury, it is important to explore how gastronomic tourism experiences are marketed to create such perceptions and feelings of luxury. This chapter aims to understand marketing strategies that support luxury gastronomic tourism experiences. In contrast to the definition of luxury as a performance or a value, this research conceptualises luxury as an affect which is sensed and felt in gastronomic tourism experiences. How this conceptualisation translates into marketing practice is explored for a particular gastronomic region. An in-depth analysis of the website of a destination marketing organisation in the Hunter Valley gastronomic region of Australia shows that the gastronomic tourism experience is marketed as bucolic luxury using marketing strategies of connection, congregation and repetition, all of which channel and maintain the affect of bucolic luxury. The chapter contributes to the literature on luxury marketing in the tourism context by identifying marketing strategies that can augment the affect of luxury for the gastronomy tourist.

Slovenia lies at the crossroads of the Alpine, Mediterranean and Pannonian regions, and this variety of geographical landscapes is reflected in its diverse and rich culinary heritage. Down the centuries, the diverse culinary heritage developed as part of everyday life and the festive calendar in close correlation to whatever nature provided and to the standard of living.

In 2006 Slovenia adopted the Gastronomic Strategy of Slovenia, which includes a culinary pyramid with 24 gastronomic regions and over 360 distinct dishes with a local character. Posavje with Bizeljsko represents one of the gastronomic regions of Slovenia. The National Gastronomic Strategy lists the following dishes and wines for the Posavje Region: pofaláča, bizeljski ajdov kolač (Bizeljsko buckwheat cake), koruzna prga (corn cake), pleteno srce (plaited-dough heart), bizeljska mlinčevka (Bizeljsko flat cake tart) and white and red wine Bizeljčan. These dishes and wines represent the foundation of the distinct culinary identity of the Posavje and Bizeljsko Region.

The aim of this chapter is to define the culinary heritage of the Posavje Region and identify its special and characteristic taste. A mix of methods including qualitative research, field research, expert groups and workshops was applied to identify dishes, recipes and ingredients in everyday and festive cuisine as well as cuisine related to different jobs and tasks. A gastronomic pyramid of the Posavje Region was developed and culinary workshops were conducted to introduce regional gastronomy to tourism. Challenges identified in the project exposed the need for the establishment of local supply chains, good cooperation among stakeholders in tourism, quality assurance, branding and other issues related to local tourism and gastronomic development.

The main objective of this research is to establish an integrated model of gastronomy tourism to help some of the main public and private stakeholders design strategies to improve tourists' gastronomic experience and satisfaction, taking gastronomic motivations as a starting point. Furthermore, the difference between destination satisfaction and gastronomic satisfaction has been established in order to determine the degree to which each one influences loyalty towards the destination.

After detailing the theoretical framework for the development of the hypotheses, the study was carried out using a quantitative methodology based on structural equation modelling (SEM). The final sample consisted of 710 tourists who visited Córdoba, Spain – a world heritage city of international renown.

Results indicate that gastronomic motivations, gastronomic experience and destination satisfaction have a direct influence on loyalty towards a destination. Also, destination satisfaction is found to play a mediating role in the relationship between gastronomic experience and loyalty towards the destination. Differences between destination and gastronomic satisfaction have been evidenced. For fostering a tourist's loyalty towards a destination, gastronomic satisfaction alone is not enough; other elements inherent to the destination itself are necessary for full loyalty, whether attitudinal or behavioural.

Correctly identifying tourist motivations can help managers of Destination Management Organizations (DMOs) to develop tailored marketing and communication campaigns that boost return visits to the destination or recommendations to family and friends. DMOs need to be aware that DMOs cannot overlook elements such as safety, hospitality or destination cleanliness at the expense of gastronomic satisfaction.

As one of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization initiatives, the creative cities network (CCN) declares the cities that are creative in the contexts of music, gastronomy, design, etc., with the aim of promoting cooperation amongst the member cities and maintaining sustainable urban development. This study aims to identify the destination food image of Gaziantep in Turkey, which is a member gastronomy city of the CCN since 2015. Identified destination food image elements were connected to the common targets of the CCN to show how the city may contribute to the network objectives.

A two-stage research process was used in the study. First, qualitative approach was adopted for the clarification of projected and perceived destination food image elements. Projected image elements were derived from a content analysis performed on a totally 113 official, semi-official and unofficial online documents in Turkish and English. Perceived destination food image elements were identified by face-to-face interviews, conducted on 10 participants. As a result, 18 projected and 20 perceived destination food image elements were obtained. These were then grouped under 4 main and 22 sub-categories. At the second stage, destination food image elements were matched with common targets of the CCN.

Destination food image elements, obtained by two qualitative studies, are grouped under 4 main and 22 sub-categories as follows: gastronomic identity (with sub-categories of destination’s identity and local culinary culture); diversity of the destination (with sub-categories of attractiveness of the local food, ease of promotion and high brand value); gastronomic attractions (with sub-categories of restaurants and cafes, culinary museums, farmer markets, orchards, gastronomy tours, gastronomy events (e.g. festivals, competitions), culinary education, books on gastronomy, certification systems, organizations, street foods and vendors and handmade or homemade foods); and qualified workforce and stakeholders (with sub-categories of expert chefs and cooks, specialist suppliers, service personnel, locals and local authorities). These are then connected to the common CCN targets (e.g. cuisine, tourism and festivals; extension of the creative value chain; fostering cultural creativity; and sustainability).

This is one of the early research attempts in examining a member gastronomy city’s food image elements and the role that they played in the success of the CCN’s common targets. Moreover, the study contributes to the literature on the identification of (projected and perceived) destination food image by using content analysis.

The aim of this chapter is mainly to explore the gastronomic offer of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a special emphasis on Bosnian cheese varieties, as well as the potentials and opportunities for the advancement of gastronomy in tourist offer in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Several studies have shown gastronomy to be the main reason for visiting Bosnia and Herzegovina. An important part of gastronomic offer is the variety of Bosnian cheese. The most popular types of cheese in Bosnia and Herzegovina are Livno and Vlašić cheese.

Livno cheese belongs to the group of the most popular autochthonous cheese in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Livno cheese is produced in the town of Livno and its surrounding areas, such as Kupres, Glamoč and Tomislavgrad. Originally, it was made of sheep's milk but nowadays, it is mostly made from a mixture of sheep's and cow's milk. Vlašić cheese is a white cheese which matures in brine. Traditional Vlašić cheese is made with raw sheep milk. It is produced in central Bosnia and Herzegovina, on the Vlašić Mountain.

The goal is to discover how Livno and Vlašić cheeses can be included in the gastronomic offer of Bosnia and Herzegovina and to discover how to use gastronomy for the purposes of tourism development in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The purpose of this paper is the segmentation of the tourists who visit a gastronomic festival in the city of Guayaquil, Ecuador, in accordance with their perceptions with respect to gastronomy.

To achieve this objective, the methodology used in this research has been the application of a multivariate technique of grouping items and the realisation of a post hoc single variate ANOVA analysis.

The principal conclusions resulting from this research are focussed on the segmentation of the tourists in three different groups and how the travellers’ interest in gastronomy leads to greater satisfaction with the destination.

The main practical implications are centred on better understanding of the key factors of how gastronomy can reinforce a tourist destination and produce greater satisfaction for the traveller.

Gastronomy is used as a source of inspiration in tourist destinations. This research reinforces this theme, taking on the study of a gastronomic festival in an important business destination, such as the city of Guayaquil, in a geographic area, Latin America, characterised by a recognised gastronomy but still little studied in the scientific literature.

The purpose of this study is to explore the factors affecting locals’ domestic gastronomic behaviour. A conceptual framework is developed that examines domestic restaurant coolness, social return and tourism ethnocentrism as antecedents to attitude towards domestic gastronomic tourism, while positive word-of-mouth and domestic gastronomy behaviour are modelled as consequences.

The study adopts a quantitative methodology to conduct a cross-national examination in Italy and Fiji. A total of 621 responses (Italy = 302 and Fiji = 319) were collected through an online survey and analysed using covariance-based structural equation modelling.

The results of this study show that the positive relationship between domestic restaurant coolness and tourism ethnocentrism on attitude is stronger for Italy. The positive relationship between social return and attitude is only significant for Fiji. Moreover, the positive relationship between attitude towards domestic gastronomic tourism and positive word-of-mouth is stronger for Fiji. Finally, the positive relationship between attitude towards domestic gastronomic tourism and domestic gastronomic tourism behaviour, while significant in both countries, depicted no significant differences in results.

The findings of this study highlight the need for building a cool image based on vibrant, iconic, rebellious and authentic attributes. Marketers need to focus on local restaurants’ effective use of social media platforms to increase the symbolic value of local restaurants. To remain competitive, there is a need for domestic restaurants to manage and understand tourism ethnocentrism to leverage success.

This study contributes to the scarce domestic tourism literature. It contributes to understanding destination coolness in the context of domestic restaurants and increases the generalisability of the destination coolness scale. The study also adds to understanding the symbolic value in domestic gastronomy by examining social returns from peers. It also contributes to the limited research on tourism ethnocentrism by being the first to investigate tourism ethnocentrism in domestic travel and gastronomy experience. Overall, the cross-national nature of the study demonstrates the difference between decision-making behaviour between two distinct countries.