A Decade of Olive Oil Tourism: A Bibliometric Survey

Abstract

Olive oil tourism is a recent type of rural tourism; hence, it remains a field of research that is still overlooked. Therefore, it is fitting to provide a quantitative overview of the literature regarding this promising area. Drawing on an analysis of 42 articles on olive oil tourism indexed in the Web of Science, it becomes clear that olive oil tourism is predominantly a Spanish phenomenon, as the large majority of the authors are affiliated with academic entities located in Spain. The outlets with the highest number of papers published on olive oil tourism include Sustainability, Tourism and Hospitality Management, and the International Journal of Gastronomy and Food Science, which confirms the multidisciplinarity of this phenomenon. The demand approach and particularly the focus placed on tourists’ psychological traits have garnered considerable attention. In contrast, the offer approach is still in an incipient stage, which hinders the understanding of the strategies used by the stakeholders in the field. Considering the potential that olive oil tourism represents for the sustainability of rural areas, there is a need for further research in the field, particularly focusing on the product itself and on institutional frameworks and governance.