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Several tourism destinations are using social media (SM) marketing more than traditional marketing in the developed countries. The increasing use of technology has replaced the role of travel intermediary. Most of the travellers in developed countries are no longer using travel agencies for their services. Many bookings are done online using electronic devices either at office or home. It is, therefore, a fact that SM has come to stay. However, the situation is contrary to some developing countries due to several reasons; for example, unreliable source of energy, communication, poor infrastructure and lack of competition. Most of developing countries depend on tourists from developed nations to consume their tourism destination products. Moreover, the modern travellers are no longer travelling in the dark. They want to have prior knowledge about their destinations. They check online product offerings, certification and destination labels. A modern tourist is becoming a more responsible traveller. SM plays a big role by providing information about many tourism destinations. Nevertheless, there are ongoing debates regarding the usefulness, future and survival of traditional travel agents despite the fact that there are threats from online travel agents and the increasing use of SM. This chapter is a case study of Malawi as a tourist destination. It critically discusses and analyses the impact of SM as a marketing tool. It also analyses the benefits and challenges of the travel agents, and finally confirms that there is a need to embrace technological change in travel and tourism industry in the developing nations.

Recently, ancillary services' (e.g. bag processing, preferred seating) contribution to the overall air travel revenues has become substantial. Yet, no study to date has addressed how these services are purchased. This study aims to investigate air travelers' adoption of mobile phones to purchase ancillary air travel services.

A comprehensive structural model was developed based on the Technology Acceptance Model and augmented with constructs like trust, privacy, security, innovativeness, and personalization. The model was validated using confirmatory factor analysis and structural equations modeling.

The model explained 84 percent of the variability in intentions to use mobile phones to purchase air travel ancillary services. The strongest predictor of attitudes was perceived usefulness, followed by perceived ease of use and trust.

First, this study's extended theoretical framework was well supported, as it captures relevant system perceptions (e.g. usefulness, ease of use) and personal traits of consumers (e.g. innovativeness), thus extending the classic paradigmatic approach to technology adoption beyond system beliefs. Second, the study explains the relationships among trust, security, and privacy in m-commerce. Third, this study explicates the roles of innovativeness and personalization, which have not been examined in the context of m-commerce in travel.

This study offers managers an understanding of factors leading to adoption of mobile phones for purchasing air travel ancillary services.

This study provides a first theoretical perspective on the purchasing behavior of services that have not been studied so far, but have an increasingly substantial financial significance for the airline industry.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the applicability of biometric systems in travel and explain how they can be used in response to today's increasing security problems.

This research is conceptual. Its analysis is based on an extensive review of literature on biometric systems.

Biometric systems can improve travel security without compromising consumer value, convenience, and privacy. Deployment of various applications of biometric systems (i.e. immigration/visitor management systems, trusted traveler programs) improve specific aspects of travel security. Biometric systems present challenges, associated with consumers' perceptions of system functionality, privacy, trust, and anxiety, which must be examined in the context of consumer adoption. To achieve synergy in travel information technology and provide benefits to all stakeholders, biometric systems must seamlessly integrate with other travel technologies, both intra‐firm and inter‐firm.

This research provides a domain statement for biometric systems in travel and stays at the foundation of a methodical approach for the study of biometric systems in travel. It offers a conceptual framework that asserts that an integrated deployment and adoption of biometric systems in travel can transform the current travel system into an ideal, more secure system. Further, this study formulates a number of propositions for further empirical examination of biometric systems in specific fields within travel.

This research provides specific suggestions to integrate biometric systems with the existing systems to achieve synergies and derive benefits for travel stakeholders.

Addressing the security‐privacy relationship, biometric systems have social implications. Travelers' concerns about privacy, fear of harm, trust, and anxiety are found to influence their view of biometric systems, with potential implications for adoption and use.

To date, there is scant academic research examining how biometric systems improve travel security. Thus, the position of this research is unique: it offers insight into a technology that is promising for both research and practitioners investigating the role of biometric systems in improving travel security and paves the way for a multitude of specific research directions.

Consumer-driven technology innovations are transforming travel behavior. However, travel suppliers are still struggling to grasp their customers’ desires regarding mobile device usage in travel and also face other barriers. This paper aims to take a two-pronged approach to identify the gap between what travelers would like to do on mobile devices and what suppliers currently offer and to provide insights from technology industry experts on future trends.

This paper uses two exploratory studies: a consumer survey to understand travelers’ needs and wants regarding mobile devices and a qualitative study to learn more about how travel suppliers are responding and to identify barriers. Statistical techniques include ANOVA tests to identify individual differences and factor analyses to discover patterns in the data.

Consumers would like to do more on mobile devices than is currently available; therefore, industry providers must be more forward-thinking with technology development and overcome the barriers identified in this paper.

Given the limitations to existing supplier offerings and capabilities, travelers were asked what they would like to do on mobile devices. Although marketing and technology personnel from various companies were interviewed, other perspectives exist.

This paper contributes to the technology adoption and service-supplier innovation literatures by helping mobile technology service providers in the travel industry better understand and bridge the supplier-user gap. Suggestions to close this gap and predictions from technology industry experts are included to direct future actions.

The research documented in this paper aims to explore e‐business uses in small and medium‐sized tourism enterprises compared with their larger counterparts.

Five case studies were conducted with Thai tourism SMEs to investigate their technology adoption and use experiences. For large‐sized enterprises, an extensive review of industry's practice was conducted. A comparison was then carried out based on the scope of the technology, namely inter‐organisation, intra‐organisation, and front‐end side linking to customers.

In terms of e‐business use, it is not surprising that Thai SMEs remain less advanced in utilising e‐business technology. However, size is found to be a significant factor in determining SME behaviour not only in comparison to larger travel agencies or hotels, but also with the SME sector itself. Associated with this is application complexity that is again significant and linked to relative size. Finally, the choices made by small hotels and travel agents are shown to be influenced by the technology providers.

The main research limitation is a limited generalisibility. Future research on SMEs in developing countries would make the comparison more sound and increase generalisability.

SMEs should pay more attention on strategic use of IT in order to compete with their larger competitors. At the policy level, more education on IT development skills and business potentials of IT are needed.

The paper adds to the literature on IT adoption in SMEs particularly with respect to size within the SME sector, the importance of complexity and the role of technology provider.

This study aims to investigate the customers’ behavioral intention and actual usage (AUE) of artificial intelligence (AI)-powered chatbots for hospitality and tourism in India by extending the technology adoption model (TAM) with context-specific variables.

To understand the customers’ behavioral intention and AUE of AI-powered chatbots for tourism, the mixed-method design was used whereby qualitative and quantitative techniques were combined. A total of 36 senior managers and executives from the travel agencies were interviewed and the analysis of interview data was done using NVivo 8.0 software. A total of 1,480 customers were surveyed and the partial least squares structural equation modeling technique was used for data analysis.

As per the results, the predictors of chatbot adoption intention (AIN) are perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, perceived trust (PTR), perceived intelligence (PNT) and anthropomorphism (ANM). Technological anxiety (TXN) does not influence the chatbot AIN. Stickiness to traditional human travel agents negatively moderates the relation of AIN and AUE of chatbots in tourism and provides deeper insights into manager’s commitment to providing travel planning services using AI-based chatbots.

This research presents unique practical insights to the practitioners, managers and executives in the tourism industry, system designers and developers of AI-based chatbot technologies to understand the antecedents of chatbot adoption by travelers. TXN is a vital concern for the customers; so, designers and developers should ensure that chatbots are easily accessible, have a user-friendly interface, be more human-like and communicate in various native languages with the customers.

This study contributes theoretically by extending the TAM to provide better explanatory power with human–robot interaction context-specific constructs – PTR, PNT, ANM and TXN – to examine the customers’ chatbot AIN. This is the first step in the direction to empirically test and validate a theoretical model for chatbots’ adoption and usage, which is a disruptive technology in the hospitality and tourism sector in an emerging economy such as India.

Travel is usually not valued in and of itself, but for the activities it allows people to partake in. Therefore, if change occurs in either the activities people perform, or in the means they use to perform them, the demand for travel is likely to change accordingly. Technologies have the potential to accommodate the activities people need or want to perform and how they perform them. The purpose of this conceptual paper is to increase the understanding of the complex relations between technologies developing outside the transport domain, social practices and travel, and the uncertainties that can result from these linkages. As such it draws attention to the interconnectivity of transport with other domains (e.g. healthcare, retail, leisure).

The relations between non‐transport technologies, social practices and travel are largely unintended and/or unanticipated. This study therefore utilised notions developed elsewhere of the mechanisms through which unintended consequences materialize. With these notions in mind, some selected examples of past, present and possible future technologies expose the possible indirect influences they can have on travel demand, thereby developing the conceptual understanding of these linkages.

If policies are being developed to limit, change, or reduce people's travel then non‐transport technologies may thwart those policy ambitions in serious ways or be realised in unexpected and surprising forms.

There appears precious little (quantitative) evidence of data that captures the relations between technologies, social practices and travel.

This study is one of the first to examine the indirect impacts of technological developments occurring outside the transport domain on travel demand.

This study aims to investigate the engagement gap between Metaverse and in-person travel, the influence of Metaverse tourism on tourists and the industry and the challenges and responses associated with Metaverse technology. The study presents practical cases and highlights the implications of this research for practice, society and future research.

This study uses a literature review to explore concerns about Metaverse technology in tourism. It analyzes the difference between in-person travel and Metaverse tourism, the impact on tourists and the industry and challenges and responses to Metaverse. The review shows a rising trend in Metaverse tourism research.

These findings suggest differences between Metaverse tourism and in-person travel. By providing personalized travel options, social interaction, immersive experiences and soliciting visitor feedback, it is possible to enhance the tourist experience. Additionally, the study highlights the opportunities and challenges that Metaverse tourism presents to the tourism industry. The study provides practical cases in the tourism industry and implications for practice, society and future research.

The study’s implications for Metaverse tourism are practical, societal and future research-related. Metaverse technology can enhance the tourist experience through personalized options, social interaction, immersive experiences and feedback. This inclusivity can promote social equity and cultural exchange. Further research is needed to explore the social effects of Metaverse tourism and its long-term impacts on local communities, economies and the environment.

This study contributes by exploring the impact of Metaverse tourism, supporting academic research and practice. It fills a knowledge gap by analyzing the application of Metaverse technology in tourism, providing insights for researchers and practitioners. It offers practical guidance by identifying opportunities and challenges in Metaverse tourism, fostering industry innovation. Additionally, it informs policymakers about the impact of Metaverse tourism on development.

This paper aims to establish and empirically test a theoretical framework to explain the impacts of health quick response (QR) technology trust and acceptance on responsible pandemic travel.

The study integrates trust, confidence and cooperation theory and the technology acceptance model (TAM) to address the research aim. Adopting a quota sampling approach, a national online survey of 1,089 respondents was conducted across mainland China. Structural equation modelling is applied to evaluate the proposed hypotheses.

Results indicate that health QR code technology trust can improve travel confidence and mitigate travel fear, which influences travel intention and social distancing practices among tourists. However, tourists’ acceptance of health QR codes encourages social distancing behaviours rather than travel intentions.

The study illustrates the role of health information technology in improving tourist confidence and responsible travel behaviours in a pandemic context. Furthermore, the research supports and adds to the TAM by investigating the relationships between acceptance of health-related technology and pandemic travel behaviour.

This research helps the local government and tourism managers to evaluate the effectiveness of health QR codes in pandemic travel in China. Strategies for improving tourists’ trust, technology adoption and responsible behaviours are provided.

This study differs from existing literature by investigating the innovative technology (i.e., health QR codes) in pandemic travel. Given the prevalence of health QR codes after the COVID-19 outbreak, it fills a knowledge gap and provides advice to improve pandemic travel safety.

本文旨在建立并实证检验一个理论框架, 以解释健康快速反应 (QR) 技术信任和接受对负责任的大流行旅行的影响。

该研究整合了信任、信心和合作理论以及技术接受模型来解决研究目标。 采用配额抽样的方法, 在中国大陆对 1089 名受访者进行了全国在线调查。 应用结构方程模型来评估提出的假设。

结果表明, 健康二维码技术信任可以提高旅行信心并减轻旅行恐惧, 这会影响游客的旅行意愿和社会疏远做法。 然而, 游客对健康二维码的接受鼓励了社会疏远行为, 而不是旅游意图。

该研究说明了健康信息技术在大流行背景下提高游客信心和负责任的旅行行为方面的作用。 此外, 该研究通过调查健康相关技术的接受度与流行病旅行行为之间的关系, 支持并补充了技术接受度模型。

这项研究帮助当地政府和旅游管理者评估健康二维码在中国大流行旅游中的有效性。 提供了提高游客信任度、技术采用和负责任行为的策略。

这项研究与现有文献的不同之处在于调查了大流行旅行中的创新技术（即健康二维码）。 鉴于 COVID-19 爆发后健康二维码的流行, 它填补了知识空白并提供了改善大流行旅行安全的建议。

The purpose of the present article is to highlight the role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Robotics in the tourism industry. The various technologies being integrated to improve the service and customer experience in tourism. The expected changes and challenges in tourism in the future are focused in this paper.

A systematic study on the emerging technologies of AI and Robotics applied in the tourism sector is presented in the form of a viewpoint.

AI certainly enhances tourism experiential services however cannot surpass the human touch which is an essential determinant of experiential tourism. AI acts as an effective complementary dimension to the future of tourism. With the emergence of artificial travel intelligence, it is simpler to make travel arrangements. AI offers travel services that are automated, customized and insightful. AI allows travelers to learn about their behaviors, interests to inclinations and provide a personalized experience. Gone are the days to consult a travel agent, meet him physically and indulge in an endless chain of troubling phone calls to inquire about travel arrangements.

Tourism marketing to see a positive and improved change that will enhance the tourists’ overall experience due to the application of AI and Robotics. New emerging technologies like chatbots, virtual reality, language translators, etc. can be effectively applied in Travel, Tourism & Hospitality industry.

The present viewpoint discusses the application and role of AI and Robotics with the help of relevant industry examples and theory. The present paper highlights the different technologies being used and will be used in the future.