Book review: accessible tourism in the digital ecosystem

Citation

Anggraeni, R., Faizah, R. and Sari, N.S. (2024), "Book review: accessible tourism in the digital ecosystem", Journal of Tourism Futures, Vol. 10 No. 1, pp. 149-151. https://doi.org/10.1108/JTF-03-2024-299

UNWTO and academicians have advocated for the development of responsible, sustainable and openly accessible tourism in order to promote social inclusion and equal human rights. Prior research has also demonstrated the significance and promise of intelligent technologies in lowering, if not eliminating, barriers for people with access requirements when traveling and living their daily lives (Lin et al., 2022). Accessible tourism has become one of the most promising forms of tourism among all the well-known ones. People with physical limitations benefit significantly from this tourism sector regarding social integration (Gura et al., 2020). As estimated, most people will have a disability at some point in their lives, and it has been predicted that 30% of the population will need access at any given moment (Darcy and Dickson, 2009). According to Song et al. (2020), tourism now views inclusivity as a moral imperative and a business advantage. This means accessible tourism has become a new segment for humans with special needs and supports competitiveness to increase economic growth in the tourism sector.

This book offers a contemporary and comprehensive perspective on accessible tourism, including conceptual and methodological advancements. It adopts the digital ecosystem framework to propose strategies for enhancing accessible tourist experiences and improving the overall accessibility of tourism destinations. This book will be helpful for tourism observers, researchers and academics. Additionally, because it summarizes the challenges and solutions many tourist destinations use to meet the needs of people who require special assistance, this book is essential for tourism organizers and policymakers who want to create more inclusive tourism. The author not only looks at it from a supply perspective but also brings up the demand side to deepen the understanding of this book.

As an opening, this book provides an overview of accessible tourism. In Chapter 1, Chiara Rossato and Rossella Baratta present the conceptual evolution of accessible tourism with technological developments by reviewing the literature on the topic and identifying future research directions. This chapter begins by presenting the theoretical background of the concepts. It then describes the methods used in the literature review and analyzes the results. Finally, the author suggests future research directions, which have implications for researchers and academics for future research developments in the field.

Accessibility benefits anyone who faces challenges in tourism, not just people with disabilities. Therefore, the demand for accessible tourism is diverse and requires in-depth analysis. Furthermore, in the second chapter of this book, Vania V. and Francesca S. present a systematic review of the scientific literature published since 2010. This chapter investigates the aspects that characterize the demand for accessible tourism. It then identifies five main themes: market dimension and value, traveler experience, travel motivation, travel constraints and travel demand. The chapter presents practical implications for destination management organizations and tourism companies looking to improve the accessibility of their services.

The primary factor contributing to the usefulness of this book lies in its exploration of how the digital environment may be utilized to enhance the existing comprehension of accessible tourism. Additionally, the book emphasizes the significance of valuable tourism experiences for individuals whose access requirements are collaboratively developed by multiple actors. Chapter three provides valuable insights into the theoretical foundations of service ecosystems, digital ecosystems and the role of digital platforms. Cassia et al. offer an understanding of the importance of value co-creation between actors in the service ecosystem, the importance of service logic for understanding the digital transformation of actors and markets, the importance of creating valuable tourism experiences and the contribution of technology in solving barriers to accessible tourism.

Accessible tourism destinations provide major benefits for tourists and local residents, but the transition to accessible tourism requires appropriate investment and governance mechanisms. Therefore, in Chapter 4, Castellani and Vargas-Sánchez outline the role of technological and non-technological resources that enable the transition toward accessible tourism and specifically discuss the relationship between accessible tourism and smart tourism destinations, as well as outlining the formal and informal coordination mechanisms between the actors for the success of accessible tourism. Regarding practical implications, authors suggest that players in accessible tourism commit to combining strengths and capacities to design tourism products and experience design; accelerate innovation; engage in lobbying activities and stimulate collective learning, business innovation and location determination.

Another notable part of this book is in Chapter 5 by Federico Brunetti, Paola Castellani and Francesca Bazzani. After presenting various conceptual and literary explanations about accessible tourism and the digital ecosystem perspective, this book presents the realization of organizing accessible tourism with technological advances. Case studies are essential to be discussed as a reference and lesson in implementing accessible tourism. The first case study highlights the tourist area committed to providing tourism services to people with access difficulties by involving people with disabilities as facility assessors. The second case study developed a system that can be applied in various sectors, including tourism, so that people with disabilities become more ‘visible'. This institution not only acts as a service provider to support people with disabilities but also helps develop an inclusive ecosystem, build public understanding and form a mutually supportive and sustainable network. These two cases are success stories of how technology is a catalyst to create a more inclusive tourism ecosystem.

Claudio Beccarani and Daniela Cavallo write the final part of this book in Chapter 6, which emphasizes one factor in realizing accessible tourism. The essence of organizing tourism, including accessible tourism, is welcoming. Welcoming has a broad scope: providing security and acceptance while enjoying the beauty of tourist attractions, cultural acculturation and social interaction. Therefore, this reception is the duty of tourism service providers and all tourism support organizers, the government and residents. In conclusion, to realize accessible tourism, all parties must have the same awareness and responsibility for providing an impressive and satisfying tourist experience.

Accessible tourism is the future face of the tourism sector, and this book provides broad and complete insight by discussing the development of tourism accessibility and strategies to improve accessible tourism experiences and how technological advances can help realize accessible tourism in all sectors. For anyone who has an interest in accessible tourism and is determined to make tourism accessible to everyone, this book is a book that should be held and read casually with your afternoon coffee.