AI and Robots represent a major innovation opportunity for the tourism sector, and their potential impact and application offer several new opportunities to enhance and develop the visitor experience. Nevertheless, there has been limited academic research on the use of robots, together with a limited number of destinations embracing this technology. Focusing on the Pembrokeshire Coastal Path, this research paper outlines how a multi methodological approach could be utilised to examine the use of AI and robotics in helping to enhance the visitor experience during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The researchers anticipate that outcomes from such a study could not only provide theoretical contributions in the area of addressing concerns about accessibility in tourism and leisure settings, but also serve to inform both academia and the wider tourism industry to the benefits such technology can have towards enhancing the visitor experience within social distancing parameters.

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This study analyses the visual social media communication of Italian 5-star hotel brands to investigate whether it has changed over the course of COVID-19. An AI-based image content analysis approach was used to extract the most frequently ascribed labels from 2,439 collected photos of three consecutive year samples. The results of the performed content analysis show that the visual communication of the hotel brand is mainly focused on interior design and the natural environment, with the pandemic stimulating the use of the latter. The study contributes the literature by reinforcing the importance of relative consistency in luxury brand communication even in turbulent times.

This paper analyses the usage of Daily Deals (DDs) in the COVID-19 pandemic context. A constructivist approach and grounded theory methodology are applied to study the managerial DDs usage in Slovenian hotels. The results show a predominance of organisational and external environmental factors, such as government regulation, linking structures, and industry characteristics, on the usage of DDs. These are shown in a conceptual DDs usage model. The study contributes to the hotel digital marketing literature by merging the two leading technology adoption frameworks to explain the formation of attitude and usage of DDs in a specific pandemic context.

The business model (BM) approach is making a slow, yet steady footprint in tourism research, can offer a fresh perspective and a viable level of analysis for broader networks of Internet distribution systems (IDSs). To date, the researchers have devoted limited attention to studying the daily deal (DD) providers and their position next to the online travel agencies (OTAs). More importantly, the DD providers developed a unique BM characteristics, which contrary to early predictions, enabled them to proliferate post-recession and maintain their position. The current study uses the BM approach to observe the original dimensions and BM elements, to identify distinct characteristics of generic and niche DD providers, and to benchmark them against the established OTAs. The BM approach enhances the understanding of the overlooked niche DD providers within IDSs. Further, this article provides a comparison of the BM characteristics in IDSs to help facilitate the formulation of a unique value proposition for each of them. Ultimately, the authors acknowledge limited possibilities for cooperation between the providers and discuss future directions of DD and broader IDSs BM transformations.