Oleotourism: A Comparison of Three Mediterranean Countries

Anna D’Auria, Carla Marano-Marcolini, Ana Čehić and Marco Tregua
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Anna D’Auria: Department of Economics, Management, Institutions, Monte Sant’Angelo Campus, University Federico II of Naples, Via Cintia, 26, 80126 Naples, Italy
Carla Marano-Marcolini: Campus las Lagunillas s/n, University of Jaén, 23071 Jaén, Spain
Ana Čehić: Department of Economics and Agricultural Development, Institute of Agriculture and Tourism, Karla Huguesa 8, 52440 Poreč, Croatia
Marco Tregua: Department of Economics, Management, Institutions, Monte Sant’Angelo Campus, University Federico II of Naples, Via Cintia, 26, 80126 Naples, Italy

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 21, 1-23

Abstract: The recent trends in the tourism industry, as well as the attention paid by scholars, practitioners, and institutions, show the relevance of natural tourism as a lever for local development (United Nations World Tourism Organization -UNWTO-, 2005). In this scenario, the business of oleotourism, namely, a form of domestic tourism based on activities related to olive oil production, its tasting, and some connected rural experiences such as harvesting, is continuously—albeit slowly—growing in Europe and especially in the Mediterranean area. Scholars agree that oleotourism plays a key role for multiple reasons, due to its relations to local territories, firms, resources, and other forms of tourism, also favoring sustainable development. Due to the interplay with the local context, the authors plan to combine and compare the evidence from three Mediterranean countries offering examples of tourism initiatives based on olive oil, namely, Spain, Italy, and Croatia. The similarities and differences emerging from the comparison will expand the understanding of this phenomenon and lead to the highlighting of key features and choices in favoring its development in the coming years. Therefore, this research, through the analysis of both theoretical and practical evidences and data from the local contexts, aims to identify additional knowledge for scholars, managers, and policy-makers. The results of the analysis allow the authors to conclude that, although each of the three countries is in a different stage of development, they all have elements that seem to be common to this type of tourism. Finally, it is concluded that oleotourism can be characterized as a form of sustainable tourism, given the preservation of local customs and landscapes, the participation of the resident community, or the development of quality and food safety labels.

Keywords: oleotourism; natural tourism; olive oil; sustainable development; triangulation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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