Pre-trip, during-trip and post-trip experiences are constantly shaped and reshaped depending on place, time and space, when we meet, when we travel and when we return back home. Throughout the entire journey experience, travel encounters are fully enriched with a variety of physical and virtual stimuli, some of which are discussed, lived and shared these days in Rhodes Island, Greece.

Actions and interactions are taking place among fellow-travellers, colleagues and researchers; different actors investigate the global tourism scene, inaugurating the stage of the 2nd International Scientific Conference “In search of excellence in tourism, travel & hospitality management” (TOURMAN 2018).

Chairing the session of service management and quality in tourism, the voyager voice calls for a deeper examination of “your world sophisticated travel map”, fostering the necessary conditions for the travel ecosystem to flourish (“En route to the travel service ecosystem: welcomers and travellers on the world map” presented by Dr. Antonios Giannopoulos and submitted in collaboration with Dr. George Skourtis).

Following this rationale, the voyager voice sets up the platform for the 4Ps of travel co-creation (Priceless, Places & People, Perspectives) amid a number of team research efforts with students and colleagues from University of the Aegean, Hellenic Open University (“Welcome to Rhodes! An empirical study on high-value hospitality services based on the institutional theory” presented by Alexandra Kalliga and submitted in cooperation with Dimitrios Dontas, Dimitris Paschalidis, Dr. Antonios Giannopoulos and Dr. George Skourtis), Business College of Athens (“An investigation of the effect of website performance on value co-creation! The mediating role of emotions” presented by Andromachi Andriopoulou, supervised by Dr. George Skourtis with the support of Dr. Antonios Giannopoulos) and Athens University of Economics and Business (“From service failure in restaurants to post-recovery behavioural intentions: the role of psychological needs” presented by Andromachi Andriopoulou and submitted in cooperation with Dr. George Skourtis, Dr. Ioannis Assiouras, Dr. Antonios Giannopoulos and Vasilis Papadis).

The joy of co-creation is multiplied through well-deserved awards, success and inspirational projects, such as the awarded dissertation submitted by Sophia Makrogianni and supervised by Dr. Sofoklis Skoultsos (“A demand-side approach of Corporate Social Responsibilities – CSR – practices in hotel businesses; the case of Greek market”), officially winning the 3rd Best Paper Award (BCA College).

People make the difference and hospitality is everywhere!

Research tracks are taking advantage of the Aegean backdrop in this part of the Eastern Mediterranean to focus on the agility and new ways of thinking after a welcome reception at the impressive Palace of the Grand Master. The Gala Dinner at the stunning Kallithea Springs (Terme di Calitea) is adding particular details of grandeur decorated with pebble mosaics and seaside patio atmospherics.

En route to the travel service ecosystem: welcomers and travellers on the world map…

Allons-y!