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This study extends the current understanding of halal tourism at an island destination. Specifically, this study aims to explore the attributes of halal tourism in the local islands of the Maldives, a fully Muslim country where tourism is the primary source of income for residents. To accomplish this, Muslim travellers’ experiences were examined using the process theory of travel, the halal tourism concept and the service marketing perspective.

The study used a qualitative research methodology and conducted interviews with Muslim travellers visiting the local islands of the Maldives.

The findings affirmed the five established generic attributes of halal tourism and generated another three emergent attributes of halal tourism, specific to an island destination. The study further enhances the existing knowledge of the generic attributes of halal food and beverage, prayers and mutual respect and benefits. It also establishes that the dimensions of safety and privacy, value for money, perishability and heterogeneity characterise all the emerging halal tourism attributes. The study concludes that halal tourism is an experience imbued with values that promotes dignified tourism.

The findings on the specific attributes of halal tourism at an island destination extend overall understanding of the halal tourism concept and process. The fact that the Maldives is entirely Muslim offers a unique opportunity to explore the normative attributes of halal tourism in an island destination. This enhanced understanding contributes to effective managerial practices aimed at developing competitive halal tourism services.

The complexity and ambiguity of COVID-19 presented itself as a ‘wicked problem’ (Rittel & Webber, 1973) for tourism policymakers with no definitive solution to stop the virus or restart tourism across the globe. The reliance on expert advice proposed by international organisations (such as World Health Organisation, WHO, and United Nations World Tourism Organisation, UNWTO) varied across government leaders (Head, 2022). This resulted in mixed outcomes for containing the virus and tourism recovery. This chapter selects Maldives as a case study for exploring how the government tackled COVID-19 as a wicked problem despite having no prior experience in managing a health pandemic and an economy heavily dependent on tourism. The chapter outlines the strategies and policies used by the government of Maldives (a) to lessen the impact of COVID-19 on the economy of Maldives; (b) to apply guidelines proposed by international agencies to manage the health pandemic; and (c) to recover and rebuild the tourism industry. Review studies indicate the bulk of research evaluating COVID-19 and tourism focussed on the United States and China (Yang et al., 2022). Although some studies have explored South-East Asia, small island destinations and their journey towards recovery from COVID-19 remain under represented in literature. Despite the challenges of being a small island destination and limited experience of a health crisis, Maldives has been swift in applying international guidelines to manage the COVID-19 pandemic and recovered tourism in a short time.

Goffman’s (1961) work on total institutions has been relatively neglected in the fields of organizational research. This paper compares the conceptions of obedience to authority in two different types of voluntary total institutions and how such conceptions affect interaction contrary to the aims of the organizations. Consequently, by addressing how conceptions of authority and constructions of the obedient self shape conditions for underlife, the analysis provides knowledge about the variety of ways in which total institutional authority works and contributes to the understanding of the mechanisms of organizational underlife.

Most Asians are directly or indirectly dependent on agriculture, and most live in rural areas. Since Asia is primarily an agricultural economy, rural tourism and agrotourism are critical in enabling growth. Agrotourism is a term that refers to the fusion of tourism and agriculture. The freshwater turtles (Batagur sp.) are a group of six turtles that once roamed southern Asia's great rivers and estuaries from the Indian Subcontinent to the Indonesian islands. Therefore, this review is to investigate the current state of agrotourism in Batagur sp. conservation and assess the associated challenges and opportunities. This review paper recognized the impacts and benefits for the rural site as an agrotourism industry. Moreover, three initiatives in Batagur sp. conservation programs were also discussed. Agrotourism, with a focus on the conservation of Batagur sp., is a vital driver of economic growth in rural Asian regions. It diversifies rural communities' income sources, enhancing economic stability and resilience.

With increasing wine consumption in Armenia, both residents and inbound tourists have become attractive target groups for wine sales, which are stimulated by wine tourism activities. The objective of this explorative study is to shed light on the potential of wine tourism for rural development in Armenia.

The paper starts with a structured and interdisciplinary literature review. Based on qualitative surveys among local tour operators and wine producers, and complemented by three expert interviews, the offer of wine tourism activities in Armenia will then be analyzed.

Each of the surveyed wine producers offers wine tourism activities. Foreign tourists know little about the Armenian wine industry, however, and are interested in cultural experiences and Armenia’s breathtaking nature. Armenian wine producers need to understand the expectations of their target groups to develop or adapt their offers successfully.

Due to the explorative nature of this study, the sample size of the surveyed wineries and tour operators is small and hence not representative. In addition, only local tour operators were surveyed. The sample should be extended to include foreign tour operators and more wineries in future research projects.

Whereas first studies on the structure and competitiveness of the Armenian wine sector exist, there is no survey on the general wine tourism in Armenia and its potential to foster rural development.

The purpose of this paper is to analyse museums and theme parks as a tourist package and how the proximity of airports to the city and public transport influence the development of this tourist package to stimulate tourism demand in cities.

Qualitative and quantitative indicators have been applied in our methodology to measure the most visited European theme parks and museums from 2012 to 2022. Moreover, the localisation of airports has allowed us to address the importance of theme parks and museums in cities and their regional economies.

The results suggest that the location of the city, entertainment complementary activity, airport proximity, intermodal passenger transport, air and train accessibility, tourism demand and supply, and a high concentration of population in cities have a high influence on the development of a tourist package that includes museums and theme parks to stimulate the tourism demand in European urban cities. London and Paris are two of the most visited cities in the world, and these are the most attractive European cities for tourists in terms of efficiency because tourists can optimize much better their space and time to visit the city’s tourist attractions during their holidays. Another important finding is that the public transport service plays an important role in museums and theme parks’ visits and the optimization of space-time for tourists when they are visiting a city and its tourist attractions on holidays, especially subways, trains and buses. Although time-space measures of accessibility in public transport in cities must be improved to optimize the time of the native population and tourists.

This research shows the complementary role of museums and theme parks as an attractive tourist package and an entertainment, cultural and educational activity to improve the quality of tourism supply and redistribute tourist flows in European countries. Moreover, there are limited studies that tackle the theme of parks and museums in a tourism context.

Digital detox practices seek to encourage tourists to disconnect from their devices and immerse themselves in the destination they are visiting. This may involve activities such as meditation, yoga or simply abstaining from social media and email. The impact of digital detox practices on tourist experiences can vary depending on the individual. While some tourists may find it difficult to disconnect from their devices, others may appreciate the opportunity to fully engage with their surroundings without distractions. Ultimately, digital detox practices have the potential to promote mindfulness and enhance the overall travel experience for those who are willing to try them.

In this section, digital detox defined and different forms are mentioned. The motivation factors of digital detox tourism activities carried out in this context and destinations and businesses for digital detox holidays will be examined. The chapter concluded by analysing the feedback obtained from consumers on TripAdvisor. This chapter provides a valuable contribution to the present digital detox tourism, which is in the market as a new touristic product by offering a comprehensive literature review. In addition, the chapter examines the review of comments made by tourists on TripAdvisor about digital detox tourism. The chapter further offers recommendations to tourism businesses on how to enhance their services in this domain. As a result, this section is expected to make a valuable contribution to both the academic literature and the tourism industry, specifically in the area of digital detox tourism.

The hospitality industry has been debating the merits of sustainable tourism for some time, but more and more people are becoming interested in regenerative tourism. The concept of regenerative tourism goes beyond that of sustainable tourism in that it seeks to restore and regenerate both the natural environment and the communities in which it operates. The Chinese hospitality industry has been expanding at a rapid rate and has the potential to adopt practices that are associated with regenerative tourism. This chapter investigated the hospitality industry of China and the shift from sustainable tourism to regenerative tourism. Consumer expectations, government programmes, and AI are driving this shift from sustainable to regenerative tourism. Despite the challenges of transitioning tourism from sustainable to regenerative, many Chinese initiatives and programmes are helping the environment and communities.

This case study from The Gambia is based on the research project ‘Transnational Relationship Establishment: Diaspora Tourism and Circular Migration’. It introduces the development and problems of migration in West Africa and specifically in The Gambia. Beyond migration policy, it looks at the structures and motives of migration in one of the poorest countries in Africa, which is characterised by extreme dependence on remittances from the diaspora. Furthermore, The Gambia has a very high share of tourism in gross domestic product (GDP), which leads to a high dependence on tourists and tour operators from Europe. Taken together, these aspects pose major challenges to the country’s tourism policy in terms of contested ‘wicked problems’. The purpose of this chapter is to use qualitative analysis to describe the significance and impact of diaspora tourism and transnational relationships and circular migration of Gambians on their homeland. One focus is on examining the development potential of forms of tourism associated with members of the diaspora and their home countries. Another focus is on how plurilocal familial, economic and sociocultural ties can be shaped and maintained and remigration processes initiated through the study of transnational relations.