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Thanks to a background of federal structures with varied jurisdictions, responsibilities and competencies, and a wide range of stakeholders active in tourism policy and the tourism industry, a high degree of complexity characterises tourism structures in Germany. These structures often present a great challenge in the sense of Head’s (2022) wicked problems, as policy success depends on identifying the relevant political level, the relevant tourism policy decision-makers and the relevant political institutions with whom to communicate and interact. One option for realising interests is tourism lobbying. In this context, the tourism lobbying model according to Pillmayer and Scherle (2014) serves as a starting point to visualise and ultimately implement the procedure.

Recently, the tourism and hospitality industry has been increasingly hit by serious crises. In particular, the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic and phenomena such as a shortage of skilled workers and overtourism are presenting numerous destinations and their key stakeholders with new, increasingly complex challenges. In addition, the continued development of meta-processes such as demographic change and digitalisation in many respects implies an ‘end of tourism as we know it’ (Destinationthink.com, 2017). In order to successfully face these complex challenges, it is necessary – as with most wicked problems – to think and act ‘outside the box’. An increasing individualisation and pluralisation of lifestyles is taking place in most societies and represents another challenge that should not be underestimated. This implies that diversity and diversity management are becoming ever more important strategic success factors, both for human resource management and for the development of new markets and target groups. Unfortunately, however, far too few players in the tourism and hospitality sector value diversity management as part of their corporate strategy. This chapter therefore aims to raise awareness of diversity and diversity management as a concept that has become increasingly important in recent years but still only occupies a niche in tourism-specific contexts. The intensified strategic valorisation of diversity can actually sustainably increase the competitiveness of destinations and their key actors. Against this backdrop, this contribution explores conceptual understandings of diversity and diversity management from a theoretical perspective and uses specific case studies to illustrate how the corresponding management approach can be successfully valorised in tourist destinations.

It is widely agreed that transformation processes that are triggered by crisis events can challenge conventional behavioural norms and stimulate new ideas and innovations that can assist in the preparations for future challenges. This impetus for transformation processes not only applies to the COVID-19 pandemic, but has also been seen in many other instances, such as the Global Financial Crisis in 2008 or the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster, which have sparked significant socio-political change processes often with a global reach. The multitude of wicked tourism policy problems discussed in our book often occur in parallel, are of growing complexities, are often not well understood and indistinguishable from one another and exert pressure on the resilience of vulnerable political, economic and community-based systems. These circumstances often present as tipping points which can trigger necessary long-term transformations. However, this process of long-term change must be well planned and strategically implemented. Thus, future transformative destination management should be built on a holistic approach, underpinned by adaptive political leadership in which tourism is not only seen as a driver for economic growth and employment, but as a strategy which successfully integrates social, cultural and ecological goals.

According to Head (2008), wicked problems are not just wicked problems in the sense of complex challenges, but situations that are confusing, unique, diffuse, without clear responsibilities or accountabilities, and difficult to resolve. These problems stand out for their uncertain nature, lack of clear solutions and possible irreversible consequences of attempted interventions. Recognising the pertinence of wicked problems in contemporary public policy discourse, this chapter aims to explore and better understand political decision-makers’ handling of these issues, in a tourism-specific context. The discourse on wicked problems, in accordance with 10 characteristics outlined by Rittel and Webber (1973), remains relevant when examining policy responses to mega trends, such as indigenous disparities, sustainability, digital transformation and demographic change. Against this backdrop and positioned within current academic discourse, this introductory chapter briefly foreshadows the volume’s various contributions by academics from around the world who present a wide range of wicked problems in tourism from their respective perspectives and contexts.

This chapter aims to familiarize the reader with some of the important aspects of tourism geography in the German-speaking countries. It starts with a primarily historical-genetic perspective on tourism development and the theoretical traditions associated with them. The second section describes the structure of the discipline, with a focus on the institutionalization of the field in the universities including their research specialization. The chapter maintains that tourism geography plays a marginal role compared with other subdisciplines of geography, though this is reflected primarily in its institutionalization and less so in the research undertaken. The last section deals with the current challenges and future prospects in German-speaking geographies of tourism from a problem-centered perspective.

Complexity and interconnections of the wicked problems constantly challenge policy-makers and public authorities. The tourism system, with its diverse nature and entangled connections among the stakeholders, provides a favourable ground for the emergence of numerous wicked issues. The Bulgarian tourism policy ecosystem has a well-developed legislative basis, envisaging most of the possible problems among the actors. Still, the decision-makers, service delivery managers, technical experts and social researchers need close coordination and a systematic approach to reach a coherent and acceptable solution. The current chapter reveals the gaps in the work of the tourism policy institutions in Bulgaria, caused mainly by the lack of coordination and limited communication among them.