Tourism embraces blockchain towards the smart tourism era

Abstract

Blockchain, also known as Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), has attracted a considerable lot of attention from academics and industry professionals. When it comes to the tourism industry, the exploitation of blockchain technology could result in significant gains. Among the possible uses are digital identity management, tokenization of frequent flyer programs, accommodation, and transportation. After conducting a comprehensive review of the scientific literature published in this field over the past five years, we identify the most significant blockchain-enabled services and uses of this technology within the context of smart tourism. We analyze the benefits of blockchain technology for the travel industry, local economies, and tourists, laying the groundwork for future studies. Moreover, we present a novel context-aware mobile application that uses artificial intelligence and blockchain to create a hybrid cyber-smart tourist application.