Call for Papers
We invite you to join us for the Eleventh International Conference on Tourism & Leisure Studies, the annual meeting of the Tourism and Leisure Studies Research Network, taking place 15–17 June 2026 at the Department of Tourism Management, University of Patras, Greece, and online. The Network brings together researchers, industry professionals, policymakers, and community stakeholders to explore the economic, cultural, organizational, and social dimensions of tourism and leisure. We welcome proposals that engage tourism and leisure as complex, globally interconnected systems shaped by environmental change, technological transformation, cultural exchange, and social responsibility.
The tourism and leisure sector—central to global economies and cultural mobility—faces rapidly evolving challenges. Climate change, geopolitical instability, resource pressures, and shifting traveler expectations are reshaping how tourism is imagined, organized, and experienced. In 2026, our special focus asks how the sector can move beyond extractive and mass-tourism models toward more resilient, sustainable, and equitable pathways.
2026 Special Focus: Pathways to Resilience: Sustainable Practices in Tourism and Leisure
The 2026 Special Focus foregrounds the need for transformative approaches that enhance resilience while protecting ecological systems, empowering local communities, and preserving cultural heritage. We invite research that examines alternative tourism models—such as ecotourism and community-based tourism—that prioritize environmental stewardship, local participation, and long-term wellbeing.
The focus also engages the social dimensions of sustainability, exploring how tourism can foster inclusive growth, community resilience, and shared prosperity. Contributions may address questions of social justice, labor, governance, cultural commodification, and equitable benefit distribution, as well as the ethical challenges associated with overtourism and resource depletion.
At the same time, the Special Focus recognizes the growing role of technology—including artificial intelligence—in shaping tourism’s future. We encourage proposals that critically examine how digital systems, data-driven planning, and AI-enabled personalization can support sustainable resource management and responsible visitor experiences, while also addressing ethical risks, power asymmetries, and governance concerns.
Together, the Special Focus calls for research and practice that respond to visible and hidden risks facing tourism and leisure systems. By integrating sustainability into planning, policy, design, and everyday practice, the sector can enhance long-term viability and contribute to a more equitable, environmentally conscious global society.
Annual Themes
Alongside the Special Focus, we welcome proposals addressing the Network’s annual themes:
Changing Dimensions of Contemporary Tourism
Changing Dimensions of Contemporary Leisure
Tourism and Leisure Industries
Critical Issues in Tourism and Leisure Studies
Knowledge Experience and Format
The conference is organised as a hybrid knowledge experience, bringing in-person and online participation together in a unified scholarly environment. All accepted proposals become Presentation Pages in the CGScholar Event (KX) environment, where presenters upload abstracts, media, and reflections and where delegates continue conversation before, during, and after the event.
In-person presentations, live online sessions, and asynchronous contributions are woven into one integrated program. Regardless of participation mode, delegates have full access to the schedule, session media, and a growing digital archive. Across all formats, the emphasis is on human-scale exchange—conversation, reflection, and collaborative inquiry—rather than one-directional presentation.
Publication Pathways
Presenters are invited to develop their conference work for possible publication in the International Journal of Tourism and Leisure Studies, or in the Tourism and Leisure Studies Book Imprint, which publishes monographs and edited collections advancing research in the field. Both journals and books offer traditional and Open Access publication options, supporting the circulation of research across academic, professional, and policy contexts.
Membership and Community
We welcome new and returning members to the Tourism and Leisure Studies Research Network. By purchasing a Presenter Pass, you automatically become—or renew as—a Network Member for the year. Membership places you inside the Network’s online Knowledge Experience in practice: a shared scholarly space that connects preparation, presentation, reflection, peer review, and publication.
Members gain access to conference updates and media, calls for papers, programs, archives, journals, and books, as well as the CGScholar Online Knowledge Community Member Space, where research continues to circulate beyond the event itself. All member contributions undergo peer-facilitated review before being shared, reinforcing a culture of reciprocity, rigor, and collective knowledge-building.
Alongside this online experience, membership is activated through in-person conferences and events, where delegates meet peers, engage with host institutions, and develop new collaborations. Membership sustains the Research Network and ensures continued access to its programs, archives, journals, and books—keeping ideas in motion over time.
Join Us
We warmly invite you to submit a proposal and to join us—either in Patras or online—for the Eleventh International Conference on Tourism & Leisure Studies. Together, we will explore how tourism and leisure can navigate uncertainty, address hidden risks, and contribute to resilient, sustainable, and socially just futures.
Sincerely,
Apostolos Rafailidis, Conference Chair, Head of the Department of Tourism Management, University of Patras, Greece
Maria Argyropoulou, Conference Committee, Department of Tourism Management, University of Patras, Greece
Evangelia Chatzopoulou, Conference Committee, Department of Tourism Management, University of Patras, Greece
Bassiliki Karioti, Conference Committee, Department of Tourism Management, University of Patras, Greece
Elen-Paraskevi Paraschi, Conference Committee, Department of Tourism Management, University of Patras, Greece
Nikolaos Theocharis, Conference Committee, Department of Tourism Management, University of Patras, Greece
Esmeralda Crespo Almendros, Research Network Chair, University of Granada, Spain
Ana Isabel Polo-Peña, Research Network Chair, University of Granada, Spain