Browsing by Author "Rodrigues, Cristina"
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- Accessibility in tourism: optimizing the tourism experience through social sustainability interpretationPublication . Liberato, Pedro; Liberato, Dália; Vieira, Ana; Mendes, Teresa; Barreira, Hugo; Rodrigues, CristinaAccessibility has become one of the main key issues in tourism today, as it determines the extent to which an individual can participate in the activities/experiences provided by the sector in each destination. It ensures that all products, services, and facilities will be developed for everyone to use and that all will benefit from them. This is reflected in the accessibility related to the absence of obstacles to the use of the tourism product still present in the infrastructures, public transport, information, technology, or communication services. The improvement in accessibility may ensure opportunities for access, safely and autonomously, to equipment, transport, spaces, and information, allowing most segments to participate in all activities of daily life in an independent, comfortable, safe, and without discrimination of any kind. This research establishes the objective of identifying the accessibility measures adopted in the cities of Braga and Guimarães, in the Northern Region of Portugal, through issues related to the specific training of employees, the use of new technologies as a competitive advantage, the concern with presenting information in various formats and the appropriate means of transport. For the collection and analysis of information, the qualitative method was selected, an exploratory descriptive study, based on semi-structured interviews conducted with the official responsible, stakeholders, interpreter guides, and associations of each tourist destination. The results show that, despite the improvements diagnosed in recent years, the regions still face some barriers. The measures frequently identified with the aim of optimizing accessibility in tourism destinations were specifically the use of access ramps (removable or definitive) and the introduction of adapted toilets.
- European Union food geographical indication qualifications: a systematic literature review on tourism destinations’ impactsPublication . Queiroz Veiga e Mendes, Teresa Maria; Rodrigues, Cristina; Elisa Alén; Liberato, Dália; Ana Cristina SousaEuropean Union (EU) Geographical Indication (GI) qualifications represent food products quality and reputation from specific geographical origins, connected with specific food production and/ or transformation, from diversified EU territories. Several studies show that food products demand increases once they are recognized as GI products, mainly by international tourists. On the other hand, constructs such as regional gastronomic identity, food heritage, and cultural foodscapes are strengthened by these qualifications and improve tourism destinations’ (TDs) performance by means of food branding. In May 2024, a new GI regulation was introduced by the European Commission, which intends to unify and simplify registration procedures, recognize the importance of sustainable agri-food practices, and empower European food producers and consumers. Overall, EU shows that these food quality symbols can present a clear competitive advantage, concerning other international markets, thus impacting in the continuous demand for EU as the world’s leading tourism destination region. This paper delivers a systematic literature review on food tourism impacts through GI food qualifications, based on a specific articles’ selection protocol. The selected articles, analyzed through a visual bibliometric networks’ software, produced four clusters, reflecting the main food tourism strategies for destinations: Rural Development & GIs, Geographical Indications, Cultural Heritage & GIs Wine Tourism & GIs. The research showed several backlashes to this scheme, concerning impacts on TDs. Further research should be focused on GI’s tourism-related management in each EU member states’ territories and a more accurate definition on EU geo-cultural boundaries. Joint collaborations, comparative case studies, food itineraries, foodscapes’ double accreditation, but also sustainable and autonomous agricultural production for each state member could be some of the urgent academic scopes.
- Exploring the research agenda in literary tourismPublication . Liberato, Pedro; Liberato, Dália; Sousa, Bruno; Costa, Adriano; Pereira, Carina; Rodrigues, Cristina; Malheiro, Alexandra; Esteves, Elsa; Carvalho, Pedro
- Health and wellness activities: contemporary market of thermalismPublication . Rodrigues, Cristina; Ferreira, Fernanda A.; Costa, Vânia; Alves, Maria José; Vaz, Márcia; Fernandes, Paula Odete; Nunes, AlcinaThe health and well-being market has suffered many evolutions in recent years, the differences occurring mainly in your holistic vision, demand profile and supply structuring. This article aims to present theoretical reflections on the scientific advances in this area over the last years. The study presents a literature review, published in the last years, on two intrinsically related themes: “Health and Wellbeing” and “Thermalism.” It then analyses the profile of consumers/practitioners. The methodology incorporates a mixed approach: a bibliometric and content analysis of the existing literature. It is also intended to identify the main trends and transformations that have occurred in the health and well-being market. Additionally, it intends to contribute to the advancement of scientific knowledge in this field of research. The main conclusions are related to the increase in publications in this area with different subjects, highlighting its growing interest and relevance in society. It is observed an increasingly holistic understanding of health and well-being and its impacts on people’s quality of life and a change in the consumer profile, which is increasingly young and healthy with different motivations.
- Improving accessibility as a strategy for social sustainability in tourism supplyPublication . Liberato, Dália; Liberato, Pedro; Vieira, Ana; Rodrigues, Cristina; Mendes, TeresaTourism is a citizens’ right. Therefore, all of society has the right to enjoy tourism experiences regardless of individual preferences. The increase in the elderly population (+ 65 years), the high number of people with disabilities (physical, hearing, intellectual, and cognitive) in the world and the growing desire to travel, has accelerated the interest and concern for accessibility, to provide a better experience to these tourists, increasing practices and strategies under the “Accessible and Inclusive Tourism.” However, this tourism segment still has a long way to go, since many barriers persist. The present research aims to analyze accessibility in cultural heritage. For the collection and analysis of information, the qualitative method was selected, exploratory descriptive study, based on semi-structured interviews conducted with representatives of official entities, stakeholders, interpreter-guides, and associations of two medium-sized destinations in Northern Portugal (Braga and Guimarães), with the aim of assessing accessibility in the historical-cultural heritage in medium-sized cities of particular relevance. The city of Guimarães was distinguished as a World Heritage Site, being associated with the birth of Portugal as a nation, bringing an enormous relevance in terms of valorization and empowerment of its historical and cultural heritage by a segment that is increasingly more universal (accessible), having here the concern to evaluate urban policies in terms of accessibility to heritage and tourism destination. According to the typologies framed in Accessible Tourism, it is possible to highlight that, regarding the percentage of tourists with reduced mobility who visit tourism destinations, and, of these, which ones are interested in cultural heritage and what degree of satisfaction they express, the two tourism destinations analyzed do not account for this type of data, since it is a very residual public. Regarding other types of disabilities, some projects have been developed. Considering the definition of strategies to implement in the access to heritage, it is possible to evidence that, despite the improvements made by the destinations, the existing cultural heritage is not completely accessible, existing mainly architectural barriers. The results show that accessibility is being considered as a strategic opportunity for the targeted tourism destinations, however these are still partially accessible, and it is expected that the path to accessibility is a complex process and applicable in the medium to long term.
- Literary tourism in Northern Portugal and its contribution to regenerative tourismPublication . Bruno Barbosa Sousa; Liberato, Pedro; Rodrigues, Cristina; Carina Pereira; Maria Alexandra Malheiro; Liberato, Dália; Elsa Tavares Esteves; Pedro M. Carvalho; Adriano CostaLiterary tourism has been the subject of new studies and new approaches in the academic context, not only from a historical and cultural perspective, but also for the benefit of the local community and the progress of the territory This chapter aims to present an embryonic reflection on the importance that literary tourism could represent for the benefit of regenerative tourism and the long-term preservation of territories and communities. This research aims to focus on the context of Northern Portugal (a Portuguese geographical context strongly characterized by its cultural wealth and heritage). Regenerative tourism frameworks point to the restoration and building of social, cultural and environmental conditions in destinations. This initial reflection aims to focus on national visitors, considering the importance that domestic tourism can promote in the interior of each country, as a preponderant element for the good practice of a more regenerative tourism (not only in terms of sustainability, but also in terms of culture, history, literary heritage and local resources).
- Literary tourism in Northern Portugal: an exploratory perspectivePublication . Sousa, Bruno; Liberato, Pedro; Liberato, Dália; Pereira, Carina; Rodrigues, Cristina; Costa, Adriano; Malheiro, Alexandra; Esteves, Elsa; Carvalho, Pedro
- Literary tourism in Northern Portugal: proposals based on literary routesPublication . Liberato, Dália; Liberato, Pedro; Sousa, Bruno; Pereira, Carina; Rodrigues, Cristina; Costa, Adriano; Malheiro, Alexandra; Esteves, Elsa; Carvalho, Pedro
- Literary tourism: literature developments and research lines from 2015 to 2020Publication . Rodrigues, Cristina; Liberato, Dália; Esteves, Elsa; Sousa, Bruno; Liberato, Pedro; Costa, Adriano; Pereira, Carina; Malheiro, Maria Alexandra; Carvalho, PedroAlthough literary tourism is still an understudied field, the beneficial relationship between tourism and literature is becoming very clear. Literary tourism involves the literary heritage of places, namely visits to sites related to literary works and the lives of writers. There are already some empirical studies that demonstrate the importance of this type of tourism as a guarantee of cultural enrichment of destinations and sustainable tourism practices. This tourism has begun to be explored in the development of tourism products and experiences, such as itineraries, or infrastructures linked to literary heritage that increase the attractiveness and competitiveness of destinations. This study analyzes literary tourism as a field of research and explores its state of the art through a bibliometric review that includes content analysis. For this purpose, articles published in the period 2015–2020, identified in the Web of Science database, were analyzed. The results identify the main topics of these publications and their temporal analysis, the research methods and techniques applied, the case studies related to authors and works, also the geographies studied and some important insights on literary tourism that address different dimensions. Overall, this study provides a rich understanding of the contemporary study of literary tourism, in a particularly rich period in terms of scientific advances in this area, still under-expressed.
- Pricing strategy for green hotel industryPublication . Ferreira, Flávio; Ferreira, Fernanda A.; Rodrigues, CristinaHolistic health and prevention are increasingly at the center of tourists’ decisions. Tourists expect to may continue their health and wellness lifestyles when they are away from home. Hospitality can find in the “health and wellness” sector a good response to the requalification needs for the post-COVID period. In fact, since 1900s, the hospitality niche of health and wellness has been increasing around the world, and it has been an important issue for the profit growth for the hospitality destinations. But what is wellness tourism? The Global Wellness Institute defines wellness tourism as travel associated with the pursuit of maintaining or enhancing one’s personal wellbeing. Several hotels have introduced green innovation as the innovation that emphasizes health, safety, and environmental friendliness and implementation of environmental management to ensure ecological wellbeing. One way for hotels to be environmentally friendly is to implement corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives. In this paper, we will study the effects of corporate social responsibility policies in the hotel industry. To do that, we will model a non-cooperative hotel competition using game theory concepts. We recall that game theory is a formal, mathematical discipline that studies situations of competition and cooperation between several involved parties and aims to help us understand situations in which decision-makers interact. The model consists in a competition between a CSR hotel and a state-owned (SO) hotel that set room rates. The choice of room rates can be made either simultaneously or sequentially. Our main result is that the CSR hotel profits more than the SO hotel, regardless of the order of movements.