RT Article
T1 Recovery Strategies to Sustain Religious Tourism Post-COVID-19: Evidence from Iran
JF The international journal of religious tourism and pilgrimage
VO 10
IS 1
SP 61
OP 78
A1 Bagheri, Moslem
A1 Mobasheri, Ali Asghar
A1 Nikbakht, Amin
LA English
PB Dublin Institute of Technology
YR 2022
UL https://www.ixtheo.de/Record/1801063230
AB Religious tourism, as one of the most significant types of tourism, is among the most seriously affected economic sectors worldwide as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. This study sought to identify and prioritise the strategies for sustaining post-COVID-19 religious tourism. The study was an applied survey that drew on a mixed research design. The results of the qualitative data analysis obtained through a systematic literature review revealed that the recovery strategies to boost businesses in the field of religious tourism in the post-COVID-19 future could be divided into four main strategies (dimensions) and 24 sub-strategies (criteria). Furthermore, the quantitative analysis, conducted through the R-SWARA technique, showed that ‘making it mandatory to maintain a distance from sacred monuments (e.g., tombs) and prohibiting touching or having any physical contact with such monuments’, ‘Understanding religious tourists’ health-related expectations’, ‘making it mandatory to use masks and other health-related equipment in sacred/religious locations’, and ‘reducing the capacity for welcoming tourists in sacred and tourism sites while holding religious ceremonies with a small number of attendants’ were the most significant strategies that could boost religious tourism post-COVID-19. These factors were prioritised by experts and activists in the industry who shared their opinions in this study.
K1 R-SWARA technique
K1 coronavirus pandemic
K1 post-COVID-19 future
K1 Religious Tourism
K1 Systematic literature review