Outi Rantala

Is adventure tourism a coherent concept? A review of research approaches on adventure tourism

ABSTRACT The boundaries between adventurous activities and tourism are blurring as evidenced in the diffuse usage of concepts, such as, wilderness, safari, nature guiding, adventurous and adventure with regard to tourism. This blurring is also reflected in research associated with adventure tourism. In our paper, we ask, how is adventure tourism defined and categorized in tourism and associated literature? Our study involved a literature review, including development of a systematic methodology for creating a comprehensive list of articles. The first amount of references that resulted from the literature review totalled 2119. This number highlights that adventure tourism has been widely studied. However, those studies have been dispersed among different disciplines and journals. Based on our literature review, we argue that the term ‘adventure tourism’ as used in tourism research is more like a category than an analytical concept. Hence, we conclude that a reconceptualization of adventure tourism is required.

The softening of adventure tourism

ABSTRACT As a consequence of diversification with regard to tourists and their perceptions on adventure tourism, there has been a supposed softening of Arctic adventure tourism. To determine if any such changes were occurring, a study of adventure tourism services from Finnish Lapland was undertaken. This study incorporated methodological triangulation and used two different data sets drawn from an on-site survey of tourists (nu2009=u2009308) and thematic interviews with tourism actors (nu2009=u20095). With respect to Lapland, the study determined that a softening of adventure tourism and diversification in tourists’ groups was occurring. Specifically, the study found that tourists possessed inadequate competencies and knowledge regarding Arctic destinations; entrepreneurs demonstrated increased preparedness to pull out mid-activity and that there was a need for multi-skilled, service-oriented actors within destinations. Subsequently, more research is needed on the soft dimensions of tourism in the Arctic, in order to address, for example, what kind of competencies are needed from different actors.