Embodied Multisensory Gastronomic Experience and Sustainable Destination Appeal: A Grounded Theory Approach

Qicheng Pan, Qingchuo Zhang, Junjun Tian, Jinhua Zhang and Qian Chen ()
Additional contact information
Qicheng Pan: School of Tourism and Cuisine, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225012, China
Qingchuo Zhang: School of Tourism and Cuisine, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225012, China
Junjun Tian: School of Tourism and Cuisine, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225012, China
Jinhua Zhang: Plymouth Business School, Plymouth University, Plymouth PL4 8AA, UK
Qian Chen: School of Tourism and Cuisine, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225012, China

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 16, 1-23

Abstract: The shift toward experience-oriented travel has positioned food as a central driver for attracting visitors to sustainable destinations, directly supporting United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG)11 (resilient cities) and SDG 12 (responsible consumption). While prior research has predominantly emphasised marketing outcomes, the role of bodily experiences in shaping gastronomic tourism has received less attention. This study explores how sensory elements (sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch) and non-sensory elements (including cultural meaning and service quality) jointly influence food-related travel experiences. Twenty-five self-identified food travellers were interviewed in a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) City of Gastronomy, and their narratives were analysed using a three-stage grounded theory approach in NVivo 12. The resulting model identifies four interrelated dimensions: (1) embodied experience, grounded in culinary memories and shared cultural narratives; (2) sensory stimulation arising from food and its surroundings; (3) situated embodiment, shaped by location, timing, and social interaction; and (4) environmental perception, encompassing food presentation, facility quality, cleanliness, and pricing fairness. These dimensions interact to enhance overall experience quality. By integrating an embodied perspective with a sustainability focus, this study advances tourism experience research and offers practical guidance for designing multisensory dining environments, fostering environmentally responsible visitor behaviour, and ensuring a balanced relationship between price and perceived value.

Keywords: embodied food experience; multisensory perception; grounded theory; embodied cognition; food tourism (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/16/7296/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/16/7296/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:16:p:7296-:d:1723043

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().