The transmedia tourist: A theory of how digitalization reinforces the de-differentiation of tourism and social life

Abstract

This article elaborates the post-tourist de-differentiation thesis in the light of digitalization and the coming of transmedia as the dominant mode of cultural circulation. It is argued that transmedia extends and provides new facets to the de-differentiation of tourism and social life. Based on an overview of previous research, three versions of the ‘transmedia tourist’ are theorized – the ubiquitous transmedia tourist, the decapsulated transmedia tourist and the streamable transmedia tourist – representing different trajectories of de-differentiation. The typology provides an argument for the continued relevance of the de-differentiation thesis and a research agenda for future research on tourism and digitalization.