Systematic Review and Future Research Agenda on Coastal Heritage in Tourism and Hospitality

Abstract

This paper provides a systematic review and thematic analysis of coastal heritage studies in tourism and hospitality literature to evaluate current knowledge and research topics. Guided by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA), a systematic literature review was conducted. The systematic search on the Web of Science and Scopus databases yielded 416 records, among which 52 studies were eligible to apply thematic analysis. The thematic analysis revealed seven main themes: tourism impacts, coastal heritage attractiveness, sustainability, geography and environment, tourist motivations and experiences, coastal destination planning and development, marketing and promotion, and technology integration in coastal heritage and tourism. Each theme has been discussed by providing the related research topics and key findings. A unique contribution of this research is the comprehensive assessment of coastal heritage research through the thematic analysis of relevant publications. In light of the thematic analysis and key contributions on the subject, this research proposed a future research agenda that can guide and shape future studies in this field. This study contributes to the literature by offering a comprehensive assessment of coastal heritage research through thematic analysis of relevant publications and outlining a future research agenda.