Innovation and Creativity in Tourism, Business and Social Sciences 11th International Conference, IACuDiT, Naxos, Greece, 2024 - Vol. 2

This book is the second volume of the proceedings of the 11th International Conference of the International Association of Cultural and Digital Tourism (IACuDiT). Focusing on “Innovation and Creativity in Tourism, Business and Social Sciences,” the conference was held from September 3 to 5, 2024, in Naxos, Greece. The book showcases the latest research on tourism business, technology, and the social sciences and presents a critical academic discourse on ICT adoption in the social sciences, regional development; sustainability and tourism experience; smart and sustainable practices; innovations in museum interpretation and collections management; emerging and disruptive technologies; gaming, gamification and augmented reality, and other topical aspects in business and the social sciences.

The book discusses these digital transformation processes from various standpoints, including its effect on the social sciences combined with specific forms of tourism. The impact of digitalization encourages the emergence of new digital products and services based on the principle of flexibility. The book focuses on the knowledge economy and the “smart destinations” concepts and highlights new modes of tourism management and development, while further chapters address emerging technologies, such as the Internet of Things, AI, big data, and robotics in a range of tourism practices.

Vicky Katsoni is a professor in Tourism Marketing and e-Tourism modules at the University of West Attica, Athens, Greece, and director of the Tourism Distant Learning Programs of the National Kapodistrian University of Athens, Faculty of Business and Social Sciences. She has published over 16 books on tourism, many chapters in edited volumes, and numerous papers in highly academic journals. She is the president of the non-profit “International Association of Cultural and Digital Tourism” and a member of the Editorial Board of many journals in tourism and marketing. She has directed and participated in several European and national research projects and worked as an expert, evaluator, and reviewer of projects requesting European Commission funding such as Horizon 2020, Erasmus + KA2, and Cost. Her research interests include e-tourism, tourism marketing, tourism destination strategies, DMOs, cultural tourism, tourism consumer behavior, and sustainability in tourism.

Carlos Costa is a full professor and head of the Department of Economics, Management Industrial Engineering and Tourism (DEGEIT) of the University of Aveiro, Portugal. He has more than 25 years of academic and professional experience in tourism and planning. He is the head of the Tourism Research Group of the Research Center in Governance, Competitiveness, and Public Policies (GOVCOPP), the leader of the PhD Tourism Program of the University of Aveiro, and  coordinator of the assessment and accreditation of the university tourism courses of the Agency for Assessment and Accreditation of Higher Education.