Has Traditional Georgian Hospitality Been Sustained Under Tourism Development? Evidence from the High-Mountain Regions of Georgia

Mountain Research and Development

article

Temur Gugushvili¹  Gvantsa Salukvadze²  Joseph Salukvadze² 

[1] Department of Sociology, Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University;Department of Human Geography, Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University

关键词: hospitality;    augmented product;    tourism;    mountain;    tradition;    commodification;    digital travel data;    hybrid approach;    Georgia.;   

DOI  :  10.1659/MRD-JOURNAL-D-19-00011.1

来源: BioOne

【 摘 要 】

People in the mountainousregions of Georgia haveembraced new developmentpathways in recent years.Residents are takingadvantage of the area’s rapidincrease in tourism, assettlements on the CaucasusMountain slopes constitute some of the most visited touristdestinations in the country. The specific objective of this study wasto determine whether the long-standing tradition of Georgianhospitality has sustained its cultural identity or has beencommodified under accelerated tourism development. A groundedtheory approach was used as a theoretical basis to explore primaryfindings. Empirical data were collected through interviews,participant observation, and guest reviews from the websitebooking.com. Texts were processed using qualitative data analysissoftware. The open-coded narratives revealed new forms ofGeorgian hospitality in guesthouse services amid waves ofcommodification of guest–host relationships. Maintenance ofdeeply rooted traditional behavior of the host communities underrapidly increasing tourism constitutes a firm foundation forsustainable development.

【 授权许可】

CC BY