Mehrnoosh Bastenegar
Abstract
Tourist development today, coupled with advancements in information and communication technology, has rendered the traditional tourism value chain inefficient. Certain segments of the chain lack functionality or exhibit very weak functionality, failing to create added value. Among these segments are ...
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Tourist development today, coupled with advancements in information and communication technology, has rendered the traditional tourism value chain inefficient. Certain segments of the chain lack functionality or exhibit very weak functionality, failing to create added value. Among these segments are distribution channels (intermediaries), often comprising tour guides and travel agencies. Today's tourists, within the paradigm of creative tourism, seek more than mere leisure; they aim to discover the unknown and gain unique experiences through interaction with the destination and local people. In this study, conducted using qualitative and ethnographic methods, involving deep interviews and participatory observation by the researcher during a trip to Western Europe organized by the MANZAR Society in 2015, a creative and research-oriented journey was undertaken. The author endeavors to identify the role of intermediaries (tour leaders) in this journey as a theoretical framework within a dynamic and creative unified system. This framework suggests that the role of tour leaders has evolved from its traditional state to encompass a system involving activities before, during, and after the journey. The details of each activity were identified and elucidated in this study. It is worth noting that this framework was validated through a two-stage Delphi method involving experts.