The COVID-19 pandemic is responsible for a health crisis and, at the same time, for a sharp drop in activities of economic sustainability, particularly in tourism management, and has consequences in most countries that are still difficult to measure. The objective of this research is to identify restaurant entrepreneurs’ perceptions about the future, government measures, strategies they will apply, and lessons learned for the future after the mandatory lockdown of restaurants and hospitality establishments related to pandemics. The framework was developed through content analysis with line-by-line coding applied to questionnaires collected online from Portuguese restaurant entrepreneurs. The results reveal the existence of common concerns to all entrepreneurs in the restaurant business for the post-pandemic period, about the measures that the governments should implement, and about the strategies and lessons learned for the future. Resilience in face of the future, fear of a lack of appropriate government measures, strategies designed for markets with greater immediate availability, and the creation of working capital are visible concerns in the restaurant business.

Fascination for modern forms of creativity in the kitchen constitutes a differentiating factor in restaurants and for chefs in a particular destination. It finds its maximum expression in fine dining restaurants and more specifically in restaurants with Michelin Star chefs. This study explores the culinary creativity of Michelin Star chefs, with the assumption that the cuisine prepared by them can be considered art, or at least, that it has an artistic component which makes each restaurant unique. This research analyses creativity in haute cuisine through an exploratory qualitative approach that included in-depth personal structured interviews with eighteen Michelin Star chefs in Portugal. The research method based on oral narratives was chosen to evaluate emotions, to explore desires and to understand chefs’ creative processes, from the initial idea to the conception of the dish. The study shows that although there is a consensus regarding the different forms of inspiration and generation of ideas, there are also many different perspectives on the creative process, which differentiate culinary artisans.

This research was designed to analyze tourists’ perception of food markets in an urban context, specifically in the case of Time Out Market Lisbon. The sample included participants who visited and experienced the market food court. The data were collected using a questionnaire assessing the respondents’ perceptions of the location, food quality, food neophilia, market engagement, and the cultural attractiveness of the locale. The purpose was also to analyze how these factors contribute to visitor satisfaction and their intention to revisit the local area. The findings showed that food neophilia was the characteristic of Time Out Market Lisbon that had the highest impact on visitors’ satisfaction which, accordingly, positively influenced their intention to revisit the market. Visitors’ perception of the place as a cultural attraction was also found to moderate the relationship between visitors’ satisfaction and intention to revisit Time Out Market Lisbon. The findings provide an important contribution to the scientific community regarding the important role of modern food markets in urban city regeneration and more specifically as a tourist attraction. This research has significant management implications regarding the emotions of tourists’ food experience and can be used for stakeholders engaged in the tourism development process.

Tourism makes destinations adapt to receive those who visit them, with a great impact among traditional residents. Overtourism affects picturesque places, and these areas end up losing their authenticity, submitting themselves to the consumption needs of tourists. Neighborhoods’ traditional residents also see their routine completely changed due to the different habits of tourists, and displacement rates rise. This study aims to understand how local people perceive tourism in Alfama, one of the most unique and tourist-oriented neighborhoods of Lisbon. Our study involves a questionnaire to old long-term residents and content analysis of their responses. We used Leximancer software to create categories of analysis depending on frequency of mentions and the way themes are related. Our interviewees testified that overtourism in Alfama generates perceptions that range from a generalized acceptance for the benefits that an improved safety associated to an increased street-life and a cleaner neighborhood generate, and on the other hand the grievance for the loss of a pre-existing community. We also conclude that the benefits of tourist-led gentrification are relevant for the gentrification analysis because they show the contradictions that the remaining residential community experience as tourist-led gentrification unfolds.

This research is aimed at analyzing the perception of future tourism professionals about the presence of robots in the hospitality industry. It was based on data obtained from undergraduate and master students in tourism and hospitality, through a questionnaire that sought to assess their perceptions regarding hospitality, novelty, culture, robot performance management in the tourism industry, and their willingness to work in a partially robotized environment in the future. The analysis of the perceptions of future tourism and hospitality professionals was performed based on a structural equation model and revealed that perceptions of novelty and performance management have a significantly positive impact on the willingness of participants to work in a partially robot environment in the future. When the intention to use robots in the future is included in the model, this positive effect decreases. The current existing research on the application of artificial intelligence in hospitality and tourism has, mainly, focused on the customer or the hotelier, making it important to understand how generations of future employees in hospitality and tourism view the use of this type of technology, anticipating any future less favorable situations.

The purpose of this study is to understand how future employees in the hospitality and tourism industry envision the use of artificial intelligence in the organizations where they wish to work in the future. Through open-ended questions applied to undergraduate and master’s students in the area of tourism and hospitality, we capture their opinions when thinking about the partial or total use of robots in hospitality. Despite the increasing implementation of artificial intelligence in hospitality and tourism, existing research mainly focuses on current hoteliers and/or customers. However, anticipating how digital generations expect their future roles in a close engagement with robots allows researchers to predict and focus their attention on future problems. Their statements were subjected to a qualitative content analysis methodology, based on themes and sentiment. Participants expressed a negative view of the presence of robots in hospitality, mostly associated with a fear of job loss. Many also reported that interacting with robots is negative for both staff and customers due to robots’ lack of emotions. However, there is some division concerning the impact of robots on service quality: some believe that the service will be more efficient and with fewer failures; others believe that the limitations of robots will lead to worse service. The findings suggest that the acceptability and desirability of robotization may vary depending on the level of robotization in hotels, on the type of customer, and on the level of service provided.