The Long Tail of Tourism
Holiday Niches and their Impact on Mainstream Tourism

Editors: Alexis Papathanassis



Over the last decades, mass-tourism and the emergence of the holiday package have transformed recreational travel from a ‘luxury for the few’ to a ‘commodity for the many’. The ever-increasing demand for individuality, enabled by information technologies and the internet, has given rise to numerous, rapidly-expanding holiday niches and a corresponding explosion of specialists. The resulting ‘long tail’ of holiday offerings implies dramatic shifts in the sector’s concentration levels and its competitive dynamics. In order to examine the applicability and validity of this scenario, a number of key holiday niches are examined in terms of their demand development, supplier landscapes, operational challenges and future potential.

Table of contents (22 chapters)

The long tail of tourism

Dark tourism

Sex tourism

Agro-tourism

Visiting friends & relatives (VFR)

Religious tourism

Health & medical tourism

Shopping tourism

Sport & extreme tourism

Military tourism

Space tourism

Dive tourism

Ecotourism

M.I.C.E.

Drug tourism

Film tourism

Inclusive tourism

Armchair tourism

Wellness tourism

Cultural tourism

Educational tourism

Revisiting the tourism long-tail Scenario