Darina Rojíková (p)

Zeynep Elburz

Tourism is one of the key economic sectors of the European Union, with its impact extending far beyond traditional recreational activities. Among its dynamically evolving forms is cultural pilgrimage tourism, which intertwines spiritual, cultural, and experiential aspects.
Pilgrimage is no longer perceived solely as a religious act. Modern forms of pilgrimage tourism incorporate elements of cultural heritage exploration, the discovery of local architecture and traditions, sustainable travel, and even improvements in physical and mental well-being. This multifaceted approach makes cultural pilgrimage tourism a phenomenon with growing potential. However, a comprehensive theoretical framework defining its relationship with cultural tourism, pilgrimage tourism, and sustainable territorial development is still lacking.
An important question also remains regarding the profile of the cultural pilgrim—who are these travellers, what motivates them, what are their needs, and how do they influence territorial development? The absence of this knowledge complicates strategic planning for infrastructure, products, and services that could effectively support this tourism segment.
The aim of this research is to identify and evaluate cultural pilgrimage tourism as a tool for sustainable regional development. The study builds on the growing recognition of its positive economic, social, and environmental impacts—ranging from supporting local communities and preserving cultural heritage to stimulating regional economies.
This study applies the Delphi method, which, through expert consensus, enables a comprehensive examination of the issue. Experts from academia and practice provide their insights over multiple phases of the research, gradually defining the key characteristics of cultural pilgrimage tourism, the profile of the pilgrim, and its impact on territorial development.
Preliminary findings indicate that cultural pilgrimage tourism represents a unique fusion of spiritual and physical enrichment with the authentic exploration of cultural heritage. In addition to religious motivations, pilgrims increasingly seek personal introspection, relaxation, and a deeper understanding of historical and cultural contexts. Key factors influencing its development include infrastructure accessibility, the digitalisation of information resources, and support from local communities.
The opportunities within cultural pilgrimage tourism primarily lie in strengthening local economies, preserving and revitalising cultural heritage, and fostering community engagement.
Research findings to date highlight the need for an effective development strategy for this segment, incorporating the integration of destinations with local stakeholders, enhanced use of digital tools to deliver authentic experiences, and the sustainable management of pilgrimage sites. This research not only contributes to the theoretical framework of cultural pilgrimage tourism but also provides recommendations for policy-making and development strategies in this field.

Zeynep Elburz (p), Karima Kourtit, Peter Nijkamp

Massimo Moltoni

Digitalization reshapes the tourism industry, influencing how travellers interact with destinations and businesses. In the İzmir region, a key tourism destination in Turkiye, digital technologies such as online booking platforms, mobile applications, social media marketing, and smart tourism solutions increasingly influence tourism activities. This study examines the impact of digitalization on tourism in the İzmir region by analyzing web-based data from tourism-related platforms, including TripAdvisor, Booking.com, and other travel websites. The study collects data on online reviews, ratings, and digital booking trends using web scraping techniques. Quantitative analysis methods, including trend analysis and statistical modelling, are applied to assess the relationship between digital presence and key tourism performance indicators, such as visitor interest, accommodation demand, and tourist perceptions. The findings will reveal how online engagement influences tourism dynamics in İzmir, highlighting the role of user-generated content, digital reputation, and booking patterns in destination competitiveness. This research will provide data-driven insights for tourism stakeholders, offering recommendations on leveraging digital tools for sustainable regional tourism growth.

Massimo Moltoni (p)

Josep-Maria Arauzo-Carod

Sharing platforms, and those devoted to short-term rentals (such as Airbnb, whose market capitalization exceeds 24 billion $), could affect a wide range of socio-economic variables like inequality and financial hardship as well as impacting city livability, housing availability and affordability, gentrification, inhabitant displacement. Also, they could generate a sense of alienation in the most touristified neighbourhoods.
One of the channels through which this happens is very likely to be that of overtourism, which is by definition an unmeasurable phenomenon mainly covering social, environmental and cultural dimensions.
The majority of studies on this field show either positive externalities or negative ones, with the former coming almost exclusively from Airbnb own reports.
As for the latter, various studies show that it creates an upward pressure on both rental and house prices, as well as generating noise, nuisance, traffic, parking and waste management issues while being able to produce positive externalities within the neighbourhood in terms of touristic employment (restaurants, bars, etc.).
Furthermore, spatial concentration of Airbnb depends on some neighbourhood characteristics, such as the presence of public transport systems, as well as of amenities generally specific, in the case of Italy, to some major, touristic, municipalities or certain local labour markets.
As of 2023, Italy records 944421 Airbnbs covering almost half (4077) of total municipalities. In particular, 21276 are located in Florence, 48690 in Rome and 13940 in Venice. Among these cities, Venice displays the highest occupancy rate as well as the highest average daily price and the highest monthly average revenue.

Josep-Maria Arauzo-Carod (p)

Darina Rojíková

This paper analyzes the location patterns of firms in the Cultural and Creative Industries (CCIs) across 947 Catalan municipalities. The interest in these industries stems from their potential for job creation, knowledge generation, and enhancing city reputation, both in urban and rural areas. Empirical literature has demonstrated these benefits, making CCIs a relevant focus of study. Catalonia is particularly interesting due to the spatial heterogeneities between urban and rural areas and the widespread presence of CCIs. Specifically, this paper examines 18 CCIs, highlighting their spatial distribution and location determinants. To account for spatial heterogeneities across Catalan municipalities, we apply a Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR), which captures the asymmetrical effects of location determinants across different areas. This approach allows for better-tailored firm entry promotion policies, recognizing that location determinants do not act uniformly across municipalities.