Dimensions of Co-Creative Food & Wine Tourism Experiences – Findings from A Multiple-Case Study

Year 2024, Volume: 12 Issue: 4, 337 - 367, 03.12.2024

Mariana Carvalho , Elisabeth Kastenholz , Maria João Carneiro , Luís Souza

https://doi.org/10.30519/ahtr.1287676

Abstract

The relationship between food & wine tourism and co-creation is gaining prominence in the academic field, due to the increasing interest shown by visitors for engaging in multi-sensory, rich experiences while travelling. Considering the relevance of understanding most valued experience dimensions within each tourism context to help design memorable, immersive co-creative food & wine experiences, this article aims to identify the dimensions of food & wine tourism experiences from the perspective of visitors and supply agents. For this purpose, insights from a food tour experience in Lisbon and other gastronomic experiences in Bairrada and Dão wine regions are presented based on a qualitative approach. A netnography study, integrating the analysis of 658 visitor reviews and an interview with the tour operator, combined with a case study involving semi-structured interviews with visitors (N = 38) and supply agents (N = 6) from the above-mentioned wine regions, are key elements of this multiple case study. Content analysis was performed with QSR NVivo 12 software. Findings highlighted a convergent perception of visitors and supply agents regarding the most prominent dimensions of co-creative experiences identified and revealed the potential of qualitative methodologies in the promotion of in-depth knowledge, especially within exploratory research frameworks.

Keywords

Experience co-creation, food & wine tourism, qualitative research, multiple-case study

Supporting Institution

University of Aveiro, Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia

Project Number

PTDC/GES-GCE/32259/2017 - POCI-01-0145-FEDER-032259

Thanks

This article was developed in the scope of the research project TWINE - PTDC/GES-GCE/32259/2017 - POCI-01-0145-FEDER-032259, funded by FEDER, through COMPETE 2020 - Operational Programme Competitiveness and Inter-nationalization (POCI) and by national funds (OPTDC/GES-GCE/32259/2017 -E), through FCT/MCTES. Additionally, this work was financially supported by the Research Unit on Governance, Competitiveness and Public Policies (UIDB/04058/2020) + (UIDP/04058/2020), funded by national funds through FCT - Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia.

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