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Vietnam has repositioned itself from a war-torn country to a popular tourist destination. Although research on Vietnam tourism has grown in number, a macro analysis of national tourism governance and policies has largely been missing.

This synthesis paper offers a systemic analysis of Vietnam’s tourism accommodating intensified government intervention and dramatic market changes in recent decades. The authors offer a chronological analysis of tourism development along with the major political and economic turns of the country.

The patterns of tourism development reflect a compromise between centralization and decentralization of the governance system and a trade-off between economic and social objectives of development. Balancing these opposites, the internal strength of the domestic market and the resilience of communities and businesses become key assets for growth in circumstances where the socialist market economy continues to inform the current and future development of the industry.

Although the case of Vietnam is unique, the adaptive mechanism of the tourism industry highlighted in this paper offers a useful lesson for other developing countries. The research addresses tourism in the political economy in developing countries, which is valuable for researchers, policy analysts as well as practitioners in tourism.

The practical contribution of the study is derived from authors’ academic and industrial backgrounds. Findings from the study serve as a useful reference for those who embark on the study of tourism governance and policy-making in developing countries and problems associated with the economic transitional process. Those problems of the disparity between centralization and decentralization of the political system might not be only significant in Vietnam, but also prevail in developing countries. Thus, this study offers a point of departure for future empirical and comparative research on the kindship of tourism and political economy in a full scale.

The transitional economy as viewed through the tourism industry is prominently presented in the “evolutionary” approach to the transitional economy, which exhibits several unique features: the transition from a centrally planned (command) economy to a market economy and the manifestations of a socialist orientation in the modern economic management system (Vuong et al., 2019). While data from this study is mainly illustrative of the first point, the transition from a planned economy to a market economy, the second characteristic, the manifestation of a social orientation has only slightly been addressed and will need further elaboration in a future study. While Vietnam’s tourism positions itself in a socialist market-oriented economy might set a unique case, the study highlights the politics of tourism is shaped by the politico-economic system. The authors conclude that the adaptation of Vietnam tourism to a socialist market-orientated economy is better perceived as a social evolution achievement rather than a feature of capitalism.

The latest study on tourism governance (Bui et al., 2022) has outlined the evolution of the tourism administrative system and markets in the country; however, linkages of tourism to the broader political economic system have yet to be addressed. Addressing this gap, the authors carry out analysis of policies and governance from the insider’s viewpoint, when team members have been involved in numerous tourism planning and development projects, both on international and national scales. The practical experience along with thorough review of literature and statistical data contributes to shaping a fresh understanding of tourism in a transitional economy.

这篇综述对越南旅游业进行了系统分析, 包括近几十年来不断增强的政府干预以及巨大的市场变化。作者根据时间顺序分析了旅游业的发展以及该国的主要政治及经济的转变。此外, 政策文件的内容分析及旅游市场分析进一步说明了政治经济体系对旅游治理及政策的影响。

越南已将自己从一个饱受战争的国家重新定位成备受欢迎的旅游目的地。尽管对越南旅游业的研究不断增多, 但对国家旅游治理和政策的宏观分析却被之前的探究所忽略。此研究通过展示越南转型经济中的旅游治理模式连接了两个学科, 并且丰富了政治经济学和旅游学的文献。

旅游政策和市场分析反应了治理体系集权与分权之间的折中以及经济和社会发展目标之间的权衡。国内市场的内在优势以及社区及企业的韧性可以成为成长的关键资产来平衡这些对立面, 同时社会主义市场经济将继续影响产业的当前及未来的发展。因此我们的结论是, 越南旅游业适应社会主义市场经济应该被视为社会进化的成就, 而不是资本主义的特征。

考虑到一篇文章所能解决的问题有限, 作者无法就转型经济与中国进行比较研究。我们的研究为未来亚洲旅游与政治经济之间联系的实证和比较研究提供了一个出发点。

研究结果为发展中国家旅游治理和政策制定研究提供了有益的参考。

研究结果对于发展中国家旅游治理及政策制定研究具有重要参考意义。这项研究的成果对于发展中国家的旅游政策分析师, 特别是亚洲的研究人员来说很有价值。

当前的研究弥补了政治经济学中的一个研究不足, 即马克思主义学说及其与旅游业的对话。知识转移是本研究的一个亮点, 它源自对国家政治经济议程中的旅游治理的批判性分析。

Vietnam ha pasado de ser un país devastado por la guerra a convertirse en un popular destino turístico. Aunque la investigación sobre el turismo en Vietnam ha crecido en número, ha faltado en gran medida un macroanálisis de la gobernanza y las políticas turísticas nacionales. Nuestra investigación ha enriquecido la literatura tanto de la economía política como del turismo tendiendo un puente entre ambas disciplinas al presentar las pautas de la gobernanza del turismo en la economía de transición de Vietnam.

Este documento de síntesis ofrece un análisis sistemático del turismo de Vietnam que abarca la intensificación de la intervención gubernamental y los drásticos cambios del mercado en las últimas décadas. Los autores ofrecen un análisis cronológico del desarrollo del turismo junto con los principales giros políticos y económicos del país. Además, el análisis del contenido de los documentos políticos y el análisis del mercado turístico ilustran mejor las repercusiones de los sistemas político-económicos en la gobernanza y las políticas turísticas.

Las políticas turísticas y el análisis del mercado revelan un compromiso entre la centralización y la descentralización del sistema de gobernanza y un compromiso entre los objetivos económicos y sociales del desarrollo. Al equilibrar estos opuestos, la fuerza interna del mercado nacional y la resistencia de las comunidades y las empresas se convierten en activos clave para el crecimiento en unas circunstancias en las que la economía de mercado socialista sigue informando el desarrollo actual y futuro de la industria. Concluimos que la adaptación del turismo vietnamita a una economía socialista orientada al mercado se percibe mejor como un logro de la evolución social que como una característica del capitalismo.

Dentro del limitado abanico de cuestiones que podrían abordarse en un solo artículo, los autores no pueden establecer un estudio comparativo con China, en lo que respecta a la economía de transición. Nuestro estudio ofrece un punto de partida para futuras investigaciones empíricas y comparativas sobre la conexión entre turismo y economía política en Asia.

Las conclusiones del estudio sirven de referencia útil para quienes se embarcan en el estudio de la gobernanza y la formulación de políticas turísticas en los países en desarrollo.

Los resultados de la investigación son valiosos para los investigadores del sudeste asiático en particular y para los analistas de la política turística del mundo en desarrollo en general.

La presente investigación contribuye a un área poco investigada de la economía política, a saber, la doctrina marxista y su diálogo con el turismo. La transferencia de conocimientos es un aspecto destacado de esta investigación, que se ha derivado de un análisis crítico de la gobernanza del turismo en la agenda económica política nacional.

The tourism sector is facing significant challenges due to global climate change. The sector is a major contributor to carbon emissions while at the same time relied upon to drive regional development in Arctic Finland. This paradoxical situation highlights the urgent need for effective mitigation and adaptation policies and governance frameworks for both climate change and tourism. Finland has set one of the world’s most ambitious national climate mitigation targets into a legally binding framework. The state aims to be the first country in the global North to reach carbon neutrality by 2035. The new Climate Change Act 2022 outlines the key requirements for climate change policy planning and related monitoring and defines the national climate objectives. However, the tourism industry’s future growth potential in the Arctic Finland relies heavily on international tourism, which is largely based on the aviation sector. Tourism therefore faces a paradoxical situation for growth thinking in the current climate change policy context. Against this backdrop, this chapter aims to explore the complex issue of sustainable tourism development governance in the context of carbon neutrality policy in Arctic Finland. Specifically, it focusses on the potential contradictions between the role and needs of the tourism sector in regional development policies, and the responsibilities outlined in the Climate Change Act. This ‘wicked problem’ requires careful consideration and innovative solutions to ensure that tourism can continue to drive economic growth while also addressing the challenges of climate change.

Even though the idea of citizen participation in tourism planning and policy-making is anything but new (Keogh, 1990; Murphy, 1985) its implementation becomes increasingly important as citizens play a key role for a socially sustainable tourism development (Bramwell & Lane, 2011; Moscardo, 2011; Papachristou & Rosas-Casals, 2019; Spil et al., 2017). Nonetheless, despite the consensus on the importance and urgency, the plethora of collaborative concepts has hardly been translated into reality. In this chapter, it will be questioned why citizen involvement in tourism policy is such a wicked problem. Further, the issue will be framed with the 10 characteristics of wicked problems by Rittel and Webber (1973) as well as Head’s (2022) governmental responses to wicked problems. Based on empirical data of two urban case studies, namely Munich (Germany) and Copenhagen (Denmark), citizens’ perspectives on their role in tourism have been disclosed to expand the past debate. Contrasting empirical findings and the outlined theoretical frame, various solution approaches could be identified from the so far neglected perspective of those at the heart of the wicked problem – the destination citizens.

This study aims to critically evaluate the impact of government tourism promotion methods on city image and visiting intentions and to explore the moderating effect of tourism experience on two of the conceptualized relationships, using Macao as a case study.

The research analyzed responses from 407 Macao visitors during the pandemic to determine the effects of tourism promotion methods on the city’s image and visiting intention using structural equation modeling (SEM) to test the hypotheses.

This study revealed that tourism promotion methods positively impact the city’s image and visiting intentions. City image also mediates the relationship between tourism promotion methods and visiting intentions. Furthermore, tourism experience moderates the relationships between promotion methods and city image and between promotion methods and visiting intentions.

The study’s findings on the effects of promotion methods utilized by local governments support and expand upon existing theoretical frameworks within the realm of nonprofit organizations’ management and marketing for destination marketing organizations (DMOs). However, the cross-sectional design limits causality, and findings may not be generalizable beyond Macao without further comparative research.

This study provides valuable insights for policymakers and marketers to design promotional campaigns that deliver authentic and memorable experiences, aligning with their promotional promises, especially in postpandemic contexts.

This research contributes to the theoretical and methodological advancement of management and marketing for DMOs from a public sector perspective, highlighting the critical role of government involvement in urban tourism promotion.

The research offers valuable insights into how promotional activities influence visiting intentions, advancing tourism management and marketing for DMOs from a nonprofit perspective. The study validates theories and adds unique insights by focusing on Macao’s postpandemic recovery, offering practical implications for similar urban settings.

The term sustainable tourism has been in existence for many years, yet the concept is still lacking universal agreement in terms of definition, a situation reflected in the difficulties encountered in producing, particularly implementing and related policies. The broad range of issues involved with sustainable development makes integrated policy and governance difficult even in the more specific fields such as sustainable tourism. This chapter begins by reviewing the basic elements of sustainable tourism, its links with the parent subject of sustainable development, and the issues involved in applying the ‘triple bottom line’ concept to tourism. It then examines the relationship between policy formulation and application in the context of governance, and the links between governance and power at different levels. While one of the achievements of sustainable tourism has been its widespread acceptance and official adoption of the concept in many countries, regions and communities, this acceptance has not been translated very often into effective action, owing partly to the lack of integration between stakeholders and partly to the multiple viewpoints making up the tourism landscape which rarely achieve unanimity of policy issues. The chapter includes a discussion of case studies at different scales to illustrate the positive and negative results of the implementation of such policies and concludes with a general summation.

Transport is the main enabler of tourism, but also one of its main sources of environmental impact. This paradoxical condition is even more controversial if considering the reluctancy of policymakers to introduce traffic management strategies, as they fear possible drops in tourism demand. This chapter addresses the ‘tourism-traffic paradox’ as a wicked problem and explores adequate and efficient policy interventions to foster sustainable mobility in Alpine destinations, minimising rebound effects in tourism demand. The chapter is focussed on the exemplary case of the Dolomites World Heritage Site (WHS), as this Italian area has experienced a long-lasting process of evidence-informed decision-making in transport, with two pilot actions for traffic calming in 2017 and 2018. The main goal of those actions was to shift the modal choices of tourists, to optimise the traffic network use and to minimise environmental impacts. The policy interventions were rooted in a sustainability governance approach, that is, they were creating a government-led network of stakeholders, including several academic experts, involved in the transport planning and monitoring phase. Advantages and disadvantages of this government-led network to solve the tourism-traffic paradox are discussed in the chapter.

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.

While government is known to provide political guidance and exercising its executive function, it is also has regulatory powers through laws it enacts. In fostering sustainability, it is important to inquire how government's role can be innovated to facilitate sustainability, particularly in the travel and tourism industry. By reviewing tourism governance literature and mapping governance roles in the travel and tourism industry, this chapter creates a policy framework that underscores a new approach to tourism governance. We underscore that government's role must pivot toward being more developmental than regulatory so that it can effectively stimulate the market to sustainability by fostering value creation, supporting manpower capacitation, ensuring health and safety, and protecting the environment. This can be done if government will not fix the market and promote free market policymaking.

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.