A Better Brew: COVID-19 and Sustainable Outcomes for Coffee Tourism in Ali Mountain, Taiwan

COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the global economy in an unprecedented manner, which includes the coffee industry. This paper seeks to provide insights as to how coffee farmers on Ali Mountain, Taiwan transitioned to sustainable futures as an outcome of the pandemic. A case study approach is adopted to explore how COVID-19 influences the coffee business and corresponding tourism implications, along with crisis management strategies for a post-pandemic era. Through a case study approach, the study revealed that the current pandemic has conditioned the perception of risk towards all actors of the coffee estate and thereby causing a shift in consumer preference. Despite the adaptive strategies employed by the business to establish some form of normality, the coffee estate operation in Ali Mountain remains reactive to crises and disaster in the absence of a strategic and holistic plan to deal with situations such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Theoretical and practical suggestions are provided to inspire coffee farm owners in terms of disaster management scenarios, sustainable anti-pandemic strategies, as well as the desire and quest for industry resuscitation and activation.

The Role of Millennial Tourists in Promoting Responsible Tourism: A Case in Singapore

The tourism industry has emerged as one of the main contributors of gross domestic product (GDP) in many countries, including Singapore. Though the direct benefits associated with the growth of tourism industry is promising, the social-culturally and environmental problems that arisen simultaneously must not be overlooked. This paper presents five hypotheses for understanding the inter-relationship between millennial tourists’ evaluation on tourism experience, their attitude towards the tourism experience, attitude towards the destination as well as their responsible tourism intention by using the consumption value theory, the halo effects and the theory of planned behavior as guiding frameworks. The paper proposes that the perceived value of millennial tourists is made up of six distinctive dimensions, which will have a positive effect on their attitude towards the tourism experience. Their positive attitude arisen from tourism experience will, then, affect their attitude towards the destination and thus their intention to engage in responsible tourism behavior. This paper offers opportunities to refine concepts and build on existing theories.

Theme Park Disasters and Crisis Management – New Insights towards a Duty of Care in Responsible Tourism Management

Responsible tourism has been crafted in the narrative of tourists making ethical decisions to ensure that they engage in tourism in respectful ways. Likewise, tourism practitioners also embed responsible tourism practices to their operations, to derive desired brand and destination images that are aligned to responsible tourism outcomes. However, little is known as to how theme parks engage in responsible tourism, especially when confronted with a crisis or disaster. Using the case study of the Dreamworld equipment malfunction incident in 2016, social media contents and the coroner’s report revealed the gaps related to the duty of care by the theme park in delivering a safe and secure visitor experience over the past few decades. It is hoped that this incident offers a solemn, but timely reminder of the need to weave responsible tourism management practices across service and operational design in the theme park industry.