Strengthening the Theoretical of Geotourism
A Systematic Literature Review
Keywords:
geotourism, geopark, theoretical frameworks, sustainable tourismAbstract
Over the past two decades, geotourism and geoheritage have gained increasing recognition as essential components of sustainable tourism and geological heritage conservation. Nevertheless, most existing reviews remain limited to site inventories or mapping publication trends. Few studies have engaged deeply with theoretical and conceptual frameworks across disciplines, and the research landscape continues to be dominated by work conducted in Europe and East Asia. This study aims to systematically examine how theoretical frameworks have been applied in geotourism and geoheritage research, while also analyzing the geographical distribution of publications to identify opportunities for advancing knowledge in the Global South. The research employed a systematic literature review following the PRISMA 2020 protocol. Scopus served as the primary database, yielding 718 records at the identification stage. After screening and applying inclusion and exclusion criteria, a total of 43 articles were included in the final analysis. The findings reveal that most studies continue to emphasize geosite inventories and geoheritage assessments, whereas the application of behavioral theories, conceptual models, and interdisciplinary approaches remains limited. Geographically, the literature is heavily concentrated in Europe and East Asia, with Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America remaining underrepresented. This study contributes by highlighting conceptual and spatial gaps that have not been comprehensively addressed in prior reviews. The implications suggest the need for stronger theoretical foundations and expanded research in the Global South to promote a more inclusive and globally sustainable development of geotourism.
References
Brilha, J. (2015). Inventory and quantitative assessment of geosites and geodiversity sites: a review. Geoheritage, 7(2), 119–134. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12371-014-0139-3
Bussard, J., & Reynard, E. (2022). Geotourism and geomorphosites: A review of publications. Geoheritage, 14(2), 45. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12371-022-00700-9
Dowling, R., & Newsome, D. (2005). Geotourism. Elsevier.
Gray, M. (2018). Geodiversity: Valuing and conserving abiotic nature (2nd ed.). Wiley-Blackwell.
Gupta, V., Anand, S., Wei, D., Wang, G., & Tripathi, S. C. (2024). Exploring applied sustainable strategies through geoheritage and geotourism: A systematic literature review. International Journal of Geoheritage and Parks, 12, 660–677. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijgeop.2024.11.009
Hose, T. A. (1995). Selling the story of Britain’s stone. Environmental Interpretation, 10(2), 16–17.
Newsome, D., & Dowling, R. (2010). Geotourism: The tourism of geology and landscape. Goodfellow.
Nyulas, J., Dezsi, S., Niță, A.-F., Magyari-Sáska, Z., Frey, M.-L., & Horváth, A. (2025). Twenty-five years of scientific production on geoparks from the perspective of bibliometric analysis using PRISMA. Sustainability, 17(5), 2218. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17052218
Ólafsdóttir, R., & Tverijonaite, E. (2018). Geotourism: A systematic literature review. Geosciences, 8(7), 234. https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences8070234
Quesada-Valverde, M. E., & Quesada-Román, A. (2023). Worldwide trends in methods and resources promoting geoconservation, geotourism, and geoheritage. Geosciences, 13(2), 39. https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences13020039
Quesada-Valverde, M. E., & Quesada-Román, A. (2023). Worldwide trends in methods and resources promoting geoconservation, geotourism, and geoheritage. Geosciences, 13(2), 39. https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences13020039
