Articles

From Preservation to Participation: Digital Applications for Sustainable Cultural Tourism in Tripoli Old City


Abstract


Valorising the significance of integrating digital technologies at heritage sites leads to collaboration, which could represent the cultural identity and enhance the visitors’ perception of authentic cultural knowledge. This contributes directly to forming the Lebanese cultural tourism market toward providing an effective experience. The paper investigates the integrative fundamentals between employing innovative digital technologies and their applications, and providing an edutainment cultural tourism experience in Tripoli Old City (Lebanon). It is a qualitative empirical case study that employs direct observations and assesses thirty semi-structured interviews with the key actors. The methods focus on the integration of digital devices to enhance visitor experiences and sustainable conservative management. The findings suggest a framework from which actors may initiate future advancements of increasing the investment in AR/VR/AI.


Keywords


cultural tourism, cultural value perception, cultural heritage, digital technology, sustainability, Tripoli old city

Full Text:

PDF


DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.2423/i22394303v15n1p65

References


Abdul-Jabbar, S.N., & Alwehab, A.A. (2023). Augmented Reality’s Role in Highlighting Historical Heritage/Kirkuk Citadel. Journal of Engineering, 29(12), 104-122. https://doi.org/10.31026/j.eng.2023.12.07

Afifi, G. (2021). The Post-COVID-19 New Normal Tourism: Concerns and Criteria. Journal of Association of Arab Universities for Tourism and Hospitality, 20(2), 108-131. https://doi.org/10.21608/jaauth.2021.62962.1134

Ahmed, O., Ammar, S., & Soliman, K. (2022). Virtual Reality Technology as a Tool for Promoting Luxor as a Cultural Tourism Destination. International Journal of Tourism and Hospitality Management, 5(2), 120– 137. https://dx.doi.org/10.21608/ijthm.2022.270137

Ammirato, S., Felicetti, A.M., Linzalone, R., & Carlucci, D. (2022). Digital Business Models in Cultural Tourism. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research, 28(8), 1940-1961. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEBR-01-2021-0070

Azouri, A., Salem, G., Khreis, A., & Azouri, M. (2016). The Impact of New Emerging Technologies on Tourism Sector: Evidence from Lebanon. In V. Katsoni & A. Stratigea (eds), Tourism and Culture in the Age of Innovation. Cham: Springer, 551-562.

Bordoni, L. (2011). Technologies to Support Cultural Tourism for Latin Latium. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology, 2(2), 96-104.

Buhalis, D. (2019). Technology in Tourism - from Information Communication Technologies to E-tourism and Smart Tourism towards Ambient Intelligence Tourism: A perspective article. Tourism Review, 75(1), 267–272.

Buhalis, D., & Karatay, N. (2022). Mixed Reality (MR) for Generation Z in Cultural Heritage Tourism Towards Metaverse. In J. L. Stienmetz, B. Ferrer-Rosell & D. Massimo (eds.), Information and Communication Technologies in Tourism 2022. Cham: Springer. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3- 030-94751-4_2

Cai, Z., Fang, C., Zhang, Q., & Chen, F. (2021). Joint Development of Cultural Heritage Protection and Tourism: the Case of Mount Lushan Cultural Landscape Heritage Site. Heritage Science, 9(86), 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40494-021-00558-5

Chang, B., Magobe, M., & Kim, Y. (2015). E-commerce Applications in the Tourism Industry: a Tanzania Case Study. South African Journal of Business Management, 46(4), 53–64. https://doi.org/10.4102/sajbm.v46i4.109

El-Barazi, K. (2009). Cultural Heritage Management and the Impact of Tourism: the Case of Tripoli (MSc in City and Regional Planning, the Graduate School of Natural and Applied Sciences). Ankara: Middle East Technical University.

El-Shami, A. (2023). Influence of Cultural Tourism in the Economic and Social Growth in Lebanon. International Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, 5(6), 114-127. http://dx.doi.org/10.47832/2717- 8293.26.7

Fareed, M.W., & Amer, M. (2023). People-centred Natural Language Processing for Cultural Tourism Market: a Research Agenda. In A. Amelio, F. Cauteruccio, D. Ursino, & L. Virgili, (eds.), the Proceedings of the 2nd International Satellite Conference on Visual Pattern Extraction and Recognition for Cultural Heritage Understanding (Vol. 3600). Zadar: CEUR-WS Workshop.

Graziano, T., & Privitera, D. (2020). Cultural Heritage, Tourist Attractiveness and Augmented Reality: Insights from Italy. Journal of Heritage Tourism, 15(6), 666-679.

https://doi.org/10.1080/1743873X.2020.1719116

Gregorić, M. (2022). Post-COVID Transformation of Cultural Tourism. Croatian Regional Development Journal, 3(2), 161–180.

Guo, Q., Zhu, D., Li, F., Wang, X., & Shu, Y. (2022). Tourists’ Adoption of Extended Reality Technologies: a Meta-analytical Structural Equation Modeling. Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research, 48(3), 450–463. https://doi.org/10.1177/10963480221108906

Gustafsson, C., & Amer, M. (2023). Forsvik, Sweden: Towards a People-Public-Private Partnership as a Circular Governance and Sustainable Culture Tourism Strategy. Sustainability, 15(5), 4687. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15054687

Ghiye, S.S.D. (2020). The Use of Remote Sensing for Identifying Coastal Sites in Lebanon. In the Proceedings of Maritime Archaeology Graduate Symposium. London: Honor Frost Foundation, https://doi.org/10.33583/mags2020.07

Hausmann, A., & Schuhbauer, S. (2021). The Role of Information and Communication Technologies in Cultural Tourists’ Journeys: the Case of a World Heritage Site. Journal of Heritage Tourism, 16(6), 669-683. https://doi.org/10.1080/1743873X.2020.1819300

Iakovaki, E., Konstantakis, M., Teneketzis, A., & Konstantakis, G. (2023). Analyzing Cultural Routes and Their Role in Advancing Cultural Heritage Management within Tourism: a Systematic Review with a Focus on the Integration of Digital Technologies. Encyclopedia, 3(4), 1509-1522.

http://doi.org/10.3390/encyclopedia3040108

Jia, S.J., Chi, O.H., Martinez, S.D., & Lu, L. (2023). When “Old” Meets “New”: Unlocking the Future of Innovative Technology Implementation in Heritage Tourism. Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research, 49(3), 640-661.

Jiang, S., Moyle, B., Yung, R., Li, T., & Scott, N. (2022). Augmented Reality and the Enhancement of Memorable Tourism Experiences at Heritage Sites. Current Issues in Tourism, 26(2), 242–257. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13683500.2022.2026303

Jie, D. (2023). Research on the Integration and Development of Wellness and Culture Tourism Facilitated by Digital Technology Information Systems and Economics, 4(9), 42-47.

https://dx.doi.org/10.23977/infse.2023.040906

Joo, Y., Seok, H., & Nam, Y. (2020). The Moderating Effect of Social Media Use on Sustainable Rural Tourism: a Theory of Planned Behavior Model. Sustainability, 12(10), 4095. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12104095

Judijanto, L. (2024). A Bibliometric Analysis of the Use of Augmented Reality Technology in Enhancing Cultural Tourism Experience. West Science Interdisciplinary Studies, 2(1), 216–225. http://dx.doi.org/10.58812/wsis.v2i01.610

Katsoni, V., & Spyriadis, T. (2019). Cultural and Tourism Innovation in the Digital Era. Cham: Springer Nature.

Li, X.Z., Chen, C.C., Kang, X., & Kang, J. (2022). Research on Relevant Dimensions of Tourism Experience of Intangible Cultural Heritage Lantern Festival: Integrating Generic Learning Outcomes with the Technology Acceptance Model. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.943277.

Liu, X., Zhang, L., & Chen, Q. (2022). The Effects of Tourism E-commerce Live Streaming Features on Consumer Purchase Intention: the Mediating Roles of Flow Experience and Trust. Frontiers in Psychology, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.995129

Ma, S. (2024). Enhancing Tourists’ Satisfaction: Leveraging Artificial Intelligence in the Tourism Sector. Pacific International Journal, 7(3), 89–98. https://doi.org/10.55014/pij.v7i3.624

Mo, L., Aris, A.B., & Yan, X. (2024). Digital Display and Storytelling: Creating an Immersive Experience of Lingnan Costume Cultural Heritage Tourism Project. In the Proceedings of the International Conference on Responsible Tourism and Hospitality (Volume 1366). IOP Publishing Ltd. http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/1755- 1315/1366/1/012047

Naselli, F., Palj, M., Bellone C. B., & Andreassi, F.(2022). Morphology of city layers as a resource for an urban tourism offer. An integrated research tourism vision for Tirana. SCIRES-IT - SCIentific RESearch and Information Technology, 12(1), 165-176. http://dx.doi.org/10.2423/i22394303v12n1p165

Navarrete, T. (2019). Digital Heritage Tourism: Innovations in Museums. World Leisure Journal, 61(3), 200–214. Retrieved from https://pure.eur.nl/ws/portalfiles/portal/48313364/REPUB_118046-OA.pdf

Nur, A., Niswaty, R., Mustafa, D., Guntur, M., & Aslinda, A. (2021). The Role of Technology in Development Policy in the Era of Globalization in South Sulawesi Indonesia. In S. Zauhar, Sumartono, O.R. Danar, C.R. Damayanti, & M. Said (eds.), the Proceedings of the 3rd Annual International Conference on Public and Business Administration (Vol. 191). Atlantis Press.

Omran Group. (n. d.). About Omran, Who Are We?. Retrieved, May 22, 2024, from https://www.omran.om/omran/about-omran

Panagiotopoulou, M., Somarakis, G., & Stratigea, A. (2020). Smartening up Participatory Cultural Tourism Planning in Historical City Centers. Journal of Urban Technology, 27(4), 3–26. https://doi.org/10.1080/10630732.2018.1528540

Pangrazio, L., Godhe, A., & Ledesma, A. (2020). What is Digital Literacy? a Comparative Review of Publications Across Three Language Contexts. E-Learning and Digital Media, 17(6), 442–459. https://doi.org/10.1177/2042753020946291

Pradana, Y, Arifputri, A. N., & Haqqu, R. (2024). Digital Literacy of Tourism Awareness Groups in Digital Promotion Activities of Cibuntu Tourism Village, Kuningan Regency. Lontar Jurnal Ilmu Komunikasi, 12(1), 284–296. https://doi.org/10.30656/lontar.v12i1.8505

Prajapat, D. (2024). Revolutionizing Tourism Through Technology: the Digital Transformation of Travel and Tourism. International Journal of Research Publication and Reviews, 5(2), 3643–3648. https://doi.org/10.55248/gengpi.5.0224.0626

Praničević, D. (2021). Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality-based Technology in Cultural Tourism. Entrenova - Enterprise Research Innovation, 7(1), 314–322. http://dx.doi.org/10.54820/MHNY8236

Sfeir, M. (2009). Tripoli: Heritage and Urban Identity. Beirut: Lebanese Academic Press.

Stock, O. (2001). Language-Based Interfaces and Their Application for Cultural Tourism. AI Magazine, 22(1), 85-85.

Taha, S. (2018). Cultural Tourism in Lebanon: Case Studies from Tripoli. Journal of Middle Eastern Tourism Studies, 14(2), 32-46.

Wahdiniwaty, R., & Gafarina, V. (2023). E-commerce as a Medium for Tourism Promotion. In the Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Business Economics Social Sciences and Humanities (Vol. 3). UNIKOM, 353–355.

Wang, H. (2023). Models and Approaches for the Integration of the Digital Economy and the Cultural Tourism Industry Journal of Innovation and Development, 2(1), 14-19.

https://doi.org/10.54097/jid.v2i1.5117

Xinyu, D. (2023). Research on the Integration and Development of Digital Art and Cultural Tourism in Zhejiang. Frontiers in Art Research, 5(18), 38-45. https://doi.org/10.25236/FAR.2023.051807

Xu, L. (2023). Construction of a Digital Cultural Tourism Integration Holiday System Based on a Differential Equation Model. Applied Mathematics and Nonlinear Sciences, 9(1), 1-16.

https://doi.org/10.2478/amns.2023.2.01080

Xu, W., & Li, Y. (2023). Optimization of Consumer Satisfaction towards Tourism Attractions through Text Mining. Advances in Economics Management and Political Sciences, 3(1), 651–662. http://dx.doi.org/10.54254/2754-1169/3/2022852


Article Metrics

Metrics Loading ...

Metrics powered by PLOS ALM

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright (c) 2025 Rayan Najjar, Mohamed Amer, Mahmoud Charafeddine, Abeer Abu Raed

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

 

 

SCIRES-IT, e-ISSN 2239-4303

Journal founded by Virginia Valzano