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People with autism and their families struggle with travel because of its complexity. This study aims to promote travel participation by exploring the travel needs and patterns of people with autism and their families.

A total of 28 participants were interviewed. Data were analyzed via constructivist grounded theory.

People with autism and their families displayed five travel patterns: mutual support, relatives’ visitation, independent travel, expanded socialization and package tours. These patterns were adopted in a stepwise fashion as the autistic individuals’ abilities improved. The travel challenges and support needs of Chinese autistic people and their families were identified.

The findings can inform accessibility tourism, promote an understanding of autistic people’s tourism activities among the public and industry marketers and offer strategic guidance about family travel for this population.

This effort responds to a call to investigate disability-related issues. The study evaluated the travel behavior of people with autism and their families, from a developmental perspective, presenting a new angle in research on accessibility tourism.

Social sciences have discussed the host–guest relation from many theoretical lenses and perspectives. Violence as well as local crime has been studied as one of the major risks concerning tourism security. Anyway, less attention was given to homeless people and their interaction with foreign or local tourists. The purpose of this paper is oriented to explain how globalization has winners and losers, in which case, as noted, thousands of persons are excluded from the formal labor marketplace or the economic system year by year.

This is a conceptual paper that discusses critically not only the recent advances of sociology in urban tourism but also the connection between homeless people and tourists.

There is an urban underclass formed by those who have been excluded from the economic system. What is more important, such an underclass situates nearby luxury hotels and tourist destinations creating serious contradictions or zones of disputes. These contradictions have been approached by different sociologists since the turn of the 20th century.

The question of sustainability, as well as the idea of liveable cities, and the efficient organization of the city, have occupied a central position in the academic debate, above all after the COVID-19 pandemic. In the present paper, the authors put in dialogue the contributions of Marc Auge with Zyggy Bauman toward a new understanding of this postmodern phenomenon.

Based on the metaphor of vagabonds and tourists, we give a snapshot of the problem of homelessness in Buenos Aires city and its effects on the tourism industry. Unlike other English-speaking countries where the cities are actively organized by the state, Buenos Aires city lacks a planned program to regulate and relocate homeless people. They dwell in nonplaces nearby tourists sleeping in the streets near luxury hotels (but for sure escaping any planning or governmental control).

This paper analyses the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Myanmar’s tourism industry, identifying challenges and innovations, and predicting future trends to foster a resilient and sustainable sector.

The study uses a comprehensive analysis of tourism trends, government and private sector responses and changes in tourist behaviour, employing data, case studies and policy reviews.

The pandemic significantly disrupted Myanmar’s tourism, causing economic losses and shifts towards sustainable, outdoor and cultural experiences. Effective strategies by the government and private sector are aiding recovery and suggesting a more diverse and resilient future.

The research is limited by the availability of data during the pandemic, highlighting the need for ongoing strategy adaptation.

The study recommends digitalization, health protocols, domestic tourism focus and sustainable practices for a robust post-pandemic industry.

The study emphasizes the pandemic’s social impact on tourism-dependent communities and the need for inclusive, sustainable tourism practices.

Itprovides unique insights into COVID-19’s multifaceted impact on Myanmar’s tourism, offering valuable information for future sector strategies.

Virtual tourism has become popular in recent years. However, there is still a research gap on virtual tourist motivation. This study aims to identify virtual tourist motivation and explore the relationship between virtual tourism and on-site tourism.

This research identifies virtual tourist motivation based on Means-end chain (MEC) theory. Laddering interviews with 32 respondents were conducted to construct a hierarchical value map. Additionally, a motivation analysis of virtual tourism and on-site tourism was developed based on a review of the relevant literature.

This exploratory study revealed 12 attributes, 9 results and 4 values that virtual tourists wish to achieve and identified 5 means-end chains where self-satisfaction is the most important value-led motivation. Compared with on-site tourism motivations, virtual tourism shows possibilities of replacing, complementing and extending on-site tourism under certain circumstances. However, it significantly depends on whether tourists are attracted by the technical characteristics, security and experience conditions of virtual tourism.

This study contributes to understanding virtual tourist motivation and offers motivation-based insights into the relationship between virtual and on-site tourism. Managerial implications on how to attract potential online tourists are also provided.

虚拟旅游在近些年逐渐受到欢迎。然而, 关于虚拟旅游动机的研究仍存在不足。本研究旨在识别虚拟旅游动机, 并探讨虚拟旅游与现实旅游之间的关系。

本研究基于方法-目的链（MEC）理论识别虚拟游客动机。通过对32名受访者进行阶梯式访谈, 以构建一个价值阶层图。此外, 本研究在回顾相关文献基础上, 对虚拟旅游和现实旅游的动机进行差异化比较分析。

这项探索性研究揭示了虚拟旅游游客希望实现的12个属性、9个结果和4个价值, 并确定了5条MEC, 其中自我满足是最重要的价值导向动机。通过与现实旅游动机比较, 研究发现虚拟旅游在一定条件下具有替代、补充和延伸现实旅游的可能性。然而, 这在很大程度上取决于游客是否被虚拟旅游的技术特点、安全性和体验等条件所吸引。

研究结果有助于进一步理解虚拟旅游动机, 并为虚拟旅游和现实旅游之间的关系提供基于动机的见解。重要的是, 研究还为如何吸引潜在虚拟游客提供管理启示。

El turismo virtual se ha popularizado en los últimos años. Sin embargo, aún existe un vacío en la investigación sobre la motivación del turista virtual. El estudio pretende identificar la motivación del turista virtual y explorar la relación entre el turismo virtual y el turismo in situ (real).

Esta investigación identifica la motivación del turista virtual basándose en la teoría de la cadena medio-fin (MEC). Se realizaron entrevistas escalonadas a 32 encuestados para construir un mapa jerárquico de valores. Además, se elaboró un análisis de la motivación del turismo virtual y del turismo presencial basado en una revisión de la bibliografía pertinente.

El estudio exploratorio reveló 12 atributos, 9 resultados y 4 valores que los turistas virtuales desean alcanzar e identificó 5 MEC en los que la autosatisfacción es la motivación basada en valores más importante. En comparación con las motivaciones del turismo in situ (real), el turismo virtual muestra posibilidades de sustituir, complementar y ampliar el turismo in situ (real) en determinadas circunstancias. Sin embargo, depende en gran medida de si los turistas se sienten atraídos por las características técnicas, la seguridad y las condiciones de experiencia del turismo virtual.

Este estudio contribuye a comprender la motivación del turista virtual y ofrece perspectivas basadas en la motivación sobre la relación entre el turismo virtual y el turismo in situ (real). También se ofrecen implicaciones para la gestión sobre cómo atraer a los turistas potenciales en línea.

The tourism industry is facing significant challenges in an ever-changing world marked by globalisation, digitalisation and societal shifts. The issues of overtourism and massification exacerbate concerns about sustainability and the industry's impact on the environment and local communities. These concerns arise as profit-driven ideologies overshadow the industry's original vocation to contribute to meaningful encounters, well-being and social justice. This chapter explores the cultivation of humaneness and conscience within tourism through education, knowledge and personal reflection. Drawing inspiration from Hannah Arendt's interpretation of Socrates' philosophy, it highlights the importance of critical thinking and a comprehensive understanding of the industry's role in shaping alternative futures. Tourism higher education plays a pivotal role in empowering students to become catalysts for systemic transformation. Furthermore, this chapter emphasises the value of embracing diverse viewpoints and engaging in meaningful encounters and dialogues with local communities and stakeholders to collaboratively imagine and implement sustainable practices. Only by dismantling entrenched habits through critical thinking and fostering collaboration can the tourism industry envision alternative trajectories towards a more conscientious and humane path forward.

The aim of this study is to explain the educational practices that emerged with the concept of “new normal” in an overview. In line with this goal, the experiences of academics who are experts in their fields have been utilized.

This paper draws on both academic and trade literature. Interviews with representatives from schools providing tourism education in North Cyprus were conducted online and in-person. The qualitative research method in the form of the interview method was employed in the research. The research participants consist of 15 academics working in the field of tourism education. Additionally, concerning the selection of these participants, sector experience and applied lecture status were taken into consideration. As the second dimension of the research, an extensive literature review was conducted and the subject was expanded by explaining it with examples from around the world.

It has been revealed in the research that educational institutions and tourist businesses have to constantly renew themselves technologically. The findings obtained from academics include the innovations they use in the “new normal” tourism education in applications such as Hybrid/BL – Blended Learning, VR – Virtual Reality, Artificial intelligence, LMS & In-class response systems, API-based software systems in the courses they teach. The common opinion of academics who want to provide a better education is that educational institutions should always be infrastructurally prepared for such emergencies.

The global COVID-19 pandemic created economic destruction in many countries and brought life to a halt. In the tourism sector, one of the sectors most affected by the COVID-19 problem, various restrictions were imposed on touristic activities. While this situation caused a decrease in demand in the tourism sector, it paved the way for great technological changes and resulted in the adoption of new educational practices in institutions providing tourism education. This paper traces these new development in the face of the pandemic crisis.

This study aims to examine the use of the metaverse in tourism and hospitality to comprehend better how the technology might shape customer journey management, especially relative to information provision, experiences and customer benefits.

This explanatory research used a two-stage approach of media analysis and practitioner interviews to analyse the interactions among tourism information provision, customer experiences and customer benefits in the metaverse. It conceptualized and mapped the consumer journey of the emerging metaverse experience, focusing on the ideas and practices of metaverse design pioneers in tourism and hospitality.

Based on the media analysis and interviews with 27 designers, the metaverse – information – experiences – benefits (MIEB) model was proposed, containing three parts (information characteristics, customer experiences and customer benefits) and 31 supporting items grouped into nine components.

One of the unique contributions of this research is the MIEB model for applying the metaverse in customer journey management (pre-, during- and post-trip). The findings contribute to the current literature with this model based on the practical perspectives of metaverse designers and provide insights on how to incorporate the MIEB model in applying the metaverse in tourism and hospitality management. The findings also address existing literature gaps of insufficient research on metaverse management and design through all stages of the customer travel journey and by paying attention to stakeholders’ viewpoints, including the media and designers of metaverse applications. Engaging in semi-structured interviews with pioneers of the metaverse to gain insights into the design of tourism experiences was also different from other metaverse tourism research, although this is not claimed as a significant point of innovation.

Contemporary changes have occurred in country-level policies and tourists’ intentions in recent years. The role of maintaining a country’s image is trendy in crisis control but has not yet been discussed in domestic tourism research. Extending the Stimulus Organism Response model, this study aims to focus on “trustable WOM creation” in China. In addition, it aimed to discover how behavioral changes encourage domestic tourism intention (DTI).

This study explored the mediating role of DTI and the moderating role of maintenance of country image (MCI) for trustable word of mouth (WOM) creation. Using the snowball sampling technique, a structural equation modeling analysis (Smart PLS-4) was employed to analyze the data of 487 Chinese tourists.

Findings confirm that behavioral changes positively encourage domestic tourism and discourage international tourism, with significant negative moderation by MCI. MCI has an insignificant positive moderating effect between government-media trust and DTI. Furthermore, DTI positively and directly affects the creation of trustable WOM. In addition, it had a 20% mediation effect (VAF%) between behavioral changes and WOM creation, higher than the rejected mediation effect (12%), in the causal relationship between government-media trust and WOM creation.

WOM creation varies from different behavioral changes, but findings suggest that government-media trust and DTI influenced it significantly. Based on the study findings, the government and media can enhance domestic tourism by maintaining the country’s image. These findings both encourage and control the recovery of tourism.

This study provides a theoretical explanation for tourists' behavioral changes during the pandemic. Moreover, it shows that despite avoiding international tourism due to behavioral changes and government-media trust, MCI moderation with the mediation effect of DTI can create trustable WOM. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to theoretically promote tourism through DTI-induced psychology as a mediator and an organism affect prevailing among Chinese tourists.