AI-powered smart tourism 2.0: A 10-year retrospective and updated model

Abstract

This paper revisits the publication “Smart Tourism: Foundations and Developments” published in Electronic Markets in 2015, which presented a data-centric definition of smart tourism and a foundational model of smart tourism layers and components. Recognizing the dramatic evolution of smart technologies over the past decade, the extensive digital transformation of tourism accelerated by the global COVID-19 pandemic, the Artificial Intelligence revolution fueled by large language models, and the continuing efforts to advance the Metaverse, the paper is a 10-year retrospective and incorporates recent developments in Artificial Intelligence and Metaverse technologies, resulting in an updated “AI-powered smart tourism 2.0” model. The new framework bridges past insights with future possibilities and reflects on emerging smart tourism experiences, smart tourism industry practices, and governance approaches. It thus offers an updated vision for smart tourism to guide future research, policymaking, and industry innovation in an era of extremely rapid and profound technological changes.