In today’s global perspective, cities are no longer just places to live and work, but they have now emerged as major tourist destinations. Cities attract tourists due to historical sites, cultural heritage, modern infrastructure and diverse entertainment options. The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has classified this type of tourism activity in the category of “urban tourism”. It not only empowers cities economically, but also plays an important role in local development. Research on urban tourism has seen extraordinary growth in the last few years and it has become an independent and special field of tourism studies.
However, till now clear definitions and concrete research on urban tourism have been limited. To fill this gap, an in-depth analysis of urban tourism research has been done in the present article. It provides information about the trends of published articles, main topics, lead authors, famous journals, countries and universities doing the most research work. Also, the main objective of this article is to identify potential areas for future research.
Research Methodology: Descriptive and Quantitative Analysis
In this study, Descriptive-Analytical Approach has been adopted and Bibliometric Method has been used. With the bibliometric method, publications, authors, references, and major topics can be measured and analyzed visually in any research field. For this study, 1155 research articles were collected from the “Web of Science” database. These were screened to select only research articles and review articles and only English language articles were included, so that quality is maintained. After this process, 706 articles were selected for final analysis.
The data was entered into VOSviewer software, which visualizes co-authorship, key keywords and links between research topics. Through this, major trends, conceptual frameworks and centers of knowledge of urban tourism research were identified.
Key findings: article publications, citations and global impact
According to this study, there has been a steady increase in the publication of articles on urban tourism from 2006 to 2020. The highest number of 111 articles were published in the year 2020. At the same time, this field received the highest number of 2727 citations in 2021.
The most cited article was “Urban Tourism Researches: Recent Progress and Current Paradoxes” written by Ashworth and Page, which has received 490 citations. This article and authors have been considered the most influential in the field.
Tourism Management Journal is the most cited journal in the field, with articles receiving a total of 2095 citations. England also has the most citations and the strongest academic links, making it the leading country. Hong Kong Polytechnic University ranks highest among universities, with 625 citations and a link strength of 169.
Research topics and key keywords: what’s at the centre?
Keyword co-occurrence analysis shows that “urban tourism”, “tourism”, and “over-tourism” are the most frequently used terms. This indicates that environmental pressures, tourism burdens on cities, and sustainability are now central to the study of urban tourism.
Heritage conservation, historic sites, and places have long been a subject of research. But in recent years, topics such as over-tourism, sustainability, gentrification, peer-to-peer accommodation and smart tourism have attracted the attention of researchers.
Over-tourism: A growing urban problem
Over-tourism has become the most discussed and worrying topic in urban tourism today. When the number of tourists at a place exceeds its carrying capacity, it has a negative impact on the local residents, services and the environment. This problem came into discussion especially in European countries since 2017, when a huge increase in tourist numbers was recorded.
Problems such as pressure on public transport, increase in local prices, lack of availability of essential services due to overcrowding came to the fore. Not only this, the increasing demand for houses increased rents and low-income people faced displacement, which is called gentrification. Also, local businesses were replaced by foreign brands, which had a profound impact on the social and economic structure.
Towards the solution: Smart tourism and sustainability
These problems can be solved by incorporating Smart Tourism and Sustainability. In smart tourism, tourism management can be made more efficient and eco-friendly by collecting data on tourist activities, preferences, travel time and traffic patterns.
This model not only ensures proper use of resources, but also improves the tourism experience. Location-specific services, personalized experiences and real-time guidance can be provided to tourists through smart technology.
LocationSustainability is essential for the long-term development of urban tourism. It ensures that the arrival of tourists does not exploit local resources or harm local communities.
Emerging themes: Shared accommodation and new generation thinking
Another major change in urban tourism has emerged in the form of Peer-to-peer Accommodation. Due to technological advances, people are now using Couchsurfing, Airbnb, and other sharing platforms more than hotels. While this gives tourists a cheap and local experience, it also creates new challenges for accommodation management in cities.
China and the US are leading in social structure, while Europe has taken the lead in research work. But there is still a need for detailed research on the effects of over-tourism in many countries, especially in developing countries.
Direction of future research: attention to unseen aspects
Based on this study, it can be said that many research possibilities still remain in the field of urban tourism. In the future, research is needed on the following topics:
- Impact of over-tourism on religious tourism
- Tourist participation in smart tourism and “co-creation of value”
- Evaluation of Carrying Capacity and sustainability of cities
- Experiences, motivations, and needs of shared accommodation users
- Study of the impact of personalized services through technology
Conclusion: New horizons of urban tourism
Urban tourism has not only given a new dimension to the tourism industry, but it has also become a powerful medium of local development, cultural exchange, and economic empowerment. Today, when cities are changing rapidly, researchers and policy makers need to adopt new approaches in this field.
Challenges like over-tourism can be solved by adopting smart, sustainable and participatory models. The future direction should be that tourism not only enriches the experience of the tourist but also contributes to the well-being of the local community.
If you want to do research in the field of urban tourism, then this topic can open new doors of knowledge and innovation for you. Urban tourism is no longer just a trend but has become an integral part of urban life and global connectivity.
