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A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Economic and Business Aspects of Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 January 2022) | Viewed by 32586

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Prof. Dr. Chris Roberts

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Guest Editor

School of Hospitality Leadership, Driehaus College of Business, DePaul University, 14 East Jackson Boulevard, Suite 320, Chicago, IL 60604, USA
Interests: strategic decision-making process strategies of the service sectors; top management teams; hotel, resort, and casino management; strategic management; sustainability in tourism and hospitality
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The hospitality industry that produces the products that tourism destinations need to serve travelers has generally embraced sustainability concepts, but with mixed results. Some tourists champion sustainability, patronizing destinations and hospitality firms that showcase it. Other tourists ignore it because of a sense of entitlement as paying customers, feeling that only firms profit from their individual efforts to practice sustainability. The recent pandemic has stressed the worldwide tourism industry in unimaginable ways. As tourism destinations and hospitality firms slowly regroup and rebuild, the role of sustainability could be at the forefront of their actions. This Special Issue welcomes research that explores this sustainability dynamic in the context of the tourism industry recovery during the times of this pandemic.

Cordially,

Prof. Dr. Chris Roberts
Guest Editor

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Keywords

Sustainable tourism
Tourism recovery
Sustainability in lodging
Sustainability in restaurants
Sustainability in Attractions

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 692 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Meta-Analysis of Tourism Sustainability Research: 2019–2021

by Chris Roberts, Joel Reynolds and Mary Jo Dolasinski

Sustainability 2022, 14(6), 3303; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su14063303 - 11 Mar 2022

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3822

Abstract

Sustainability in tourism, hospitality, and leisure is a long-standing topic of growing interest. Research in the field of tourism has accelerated over the past decade. The goal of this meta-analysis is to categorize recent research in tourism sustainability to identify patterns and trends, which could help us understand where the field is currently conducting research and where more work may be needed. Over 800 relevant articles published in major tourism journals during a three-year period (2019–2021) were included in the analysis; however, despite the increase in volume of published tourism sustainability research, this quantity was less than 4% of all publications in the same journals. Four over-arching pillars of sustainability research themes emerged (social, economic, ecological, and institutional) with numerous sub-categories within each. The majority of tourism sustainability research occurred in the social and economic arenas. Much more research is needed in the other three categories. The greater part of the recent advances in tourism sustainability appears to be driven by small- and medium-sized tourism firms. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on tourism sustainability is only beginning to be understood. Tourism business leaders have an opportunity to strengthen and integrate their use of sustainability as they work to rebuild consumer trust in travel services. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Trends in Sustainable Tourism)

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18 pages, 539 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Willingness to Pay for Sustainable Destinations: A Structural Approach

by Arthur Filipe de Araújo, Maria Isabel Andrés Marques, Maria Teresa Ribeiro Candeias and Armando Luís Vieira

Sustainability 2022, 14(5), 2548; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su14052548 - 23 Feb 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 3860

Abstract

Even though tourists increasingly value sustainable practices in tourism businesses and destinations, price is still one of the main determinant factors in their decisions. Therefore, for destination managers it is essential to understand tourists’ willingness to pay an additional price to visit a place where sustainable practices are adopted. In this context, and building on social psychology theories, the present study proposes and tests a causal model encompassing tourists’ Willingness To Pay (WTP) for sustainability in tourist destinations as well as their own sustainability attitudes, namely: Environmental Beliefs, Ecotour Attitudes, and Sustainable Consumption Behaviour. To this end, data were collected through a questionnaire survey of Portuguese tourists (n = 567). The hypothesised relationships between the latent variables were then tested using Structural Equations Modelling (SEM) procedures. The results show that Environmental Beliefs significantly affected both Ecotour Attitudes and Sustainable Consumption Behaviour, and that the latter two significantly affected WTP. However, no significant effect of Environmental Beliefs on WTP was found. These findings provide useful insights for destination managers aiming to more effectively cater to sustainability-oriented tourists. Future research should attempt to assess the role of other determinants of WTP. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Trends in Sustainable Tourism)

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26 pages, 2227 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Role of Performance and Environmental Sustainability Indicators in Hotel Competitiveness

by Zorica Duric and Jasna Potočnik Topler

Sustainability 2021, 13(12), 6574; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su13126574 - 09 Jun 2021

Cited by 25 | Viewed by 14241

Abstract

Environmental protection and environmental sustainability are becoming increasingly important factors in the hotel business and their competitiveness, in a market that brings numerous benefits. Environmental sustainability is, increasingly, considered one of the most important functions of the hotel business, as well as communication and marketing, which attracts a larger number of guests. Some of the key aspects of hotel environmental sustainability are performance and environmental sustainability indicators, as well as hotel management of environmental performance in order to establish efficiency in that process. The principal question arising is how environmentally sustainable business affects hotel performance, and what are the most important indicators of the environmental hotel business. The aim of this article is to offer an insight into, and analysis of, performance and indicators of the environmental sustainability of hotels through the relevant literature. A case study from Serbia is used to point out the complexity and the significance of these indicators in the hotel business, as well as to emphasise the importance of environmental reports in the case of Serbia. The findings of our study are significant because they help hotel managers identify new opportunities for employing more sustainable processes for saving resources. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Trends in Sustainable Tourism)

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17 pages, 998 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Towards the Development of Sustainable Tourism in Pakistan: A Study of the Role of Tour Operators

by Zia Ullah, Rana Tahir Naveed, Atta Ur Rehman, Naveed Ahmad, Miklas Scholz, Mohammad Adnan and Heesup Han

Sustainability 2021, 13(9), 4902; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su13094902 - 27 Apr 2021

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 9626

Abstract

The literature on sustainable tourism is scant, particularly in the least developed countries. Very few studies touch upon the concept and no holistic theoretical or conceptual frameworks around the idea of sustainable tourism have been formulated. This study aims at exploring the role of tour operators in developing sustainable tourism in Pakistan and how the tour operators (TOs) conceive their role in this regard. TOs were reached through phone calls, emails, and virtual sources as face-to-face interviews were not possible due to COVID-19 pandemic and restrictions on travel by the government. In-depth interviews were conducted to gather data. Results suggest that the TOs although realize the importance of social, environmental, and economic dimensions of tourism on the communities but have no management systems in place to cater accordingly. There are no incentives in place by the government facilitate TOs to design and implement such systems. The TOs do not select a destination based on Global Sustainable Tourism Council criterion, but rather the selection of destination is mostly demand-based and profit-oriented. The study suggests that corporate profit motive is the sole criterion for decision making and is one of the major causes impeding sustainable tourism in Pakistan. The role of TOs in developing sustainable tourism is vague as the TOs do not have any systems in place to implement sustainable models. The study recommends that efforts need to be put in place to incentivize sustainable tourism in Pakistan and proper laws should be set forth by the authorities to comply by the TOs. The role of TOs is important and understood, however, there is a need to put proper systems in place. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Trends in Sustainable Tourism)

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