Even though Greece has had an agriculture-oriented economy for decades, recently it has relied heavily on tourism, which now constitutes 30% of the national GDP. Successful developmental synergies of tertiary and primary sectors are still in question. Sustainability practices are still in their infant stage in both sectors of the economy, preventing development. This paper aims to study the relationship between tourism and sustainability in wine-related enterprises in Greece. This is achieved through an examination of the successful business practices of Greek wineries from the leading wine-producing region of the Peloponnese and the impact of sustainability toward their operational practices. Many studies have related sustainability to the wine industry and have recognized that for most wine-related practitioners, the first priority is leaving the land in a better shape for the next generation. The study focuses on illustrative successful Greek wineries that participate in the “Peloponnesian wine routes” cluster. Data were gathered from multiple sources, including secondary data, company records, internet information, face-to-face interviews and on-site observations. The analysis of data revealed a number of aspects between the sustainable wine tourism business practices explored and the way that innovation has evolved. Further studies on common denominators and distinguishing criteria between sustainable business practices would be valuable to researchers and practitioners, destination management organizations and regional development policy makers.

Overtourism has become a critical problem in many popular destinations around the world, leading to negative impacts on the environment, local communities, and the quality of the visitor experience. This article explores the potential of the metaverse, a virtual world that combines elements of augmented reality and virtual reality, and other new digital technologies for addressing the challenges of overtourism. Drawing on a systematic literature review of recent studies, the currently available technologies are listed, and their potential implications for the tourism industry and local communities are portrayed. It was found that while there is some evidence to suggest that the metaverse and its associated digital technologies such as the extended realities/XR (virtual reality/VR, augmented reality/AR, mixed reality/MR), can help mitigate overtourism, further research is necessary to investigate their effectiveness in reducing overtourism and their potential unintended consequences. This article makes an original contribution to overtourism research and adds to existing knowledge by providing a practical list of currently available technologies that could help DMOs and tourism professionals mitigate the negative effects of overtourism. The article concludes with suggestions for future research and practice in the field, highlighting the importance of continued exploration and innovation in this area.

This article investigates place marketing and strategic planning processes in the case of Malta Island as a competitive tourist destination. The article focuses on the main ingredients that compose the marketing and strategic planning performance and presents the repositioning process of Malta's image in the international tourism market. The article concludes that place marketing is a strategic process with particular phases of development that leads to the creation of a competitive and attractive destination. Finally, the article supports that strategic planning and place marketing could not operate by themselves, but they need to be built on partnerships among local actors and decision-makers.

For the tourism industry, the COVID-19 pandemic has acted as an accelerator towards the 4th industrial revolution by creating new and innovative solutions, which have transformed management, finance, planning and opened new avenues for the introduction of innovative sales and marketing technologies. As the tourism industry in Greece faces significant challenges and opportunities posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, additional needs have arisen for tourism businesses, as confirmed in this research, to adapt faster to digital operations and strengthen digital marketing through multi-channel distribution and use of digital assistants. This study aims to investigate the use of digital marketing tools by tourism companies as well as the overall satisfaction of the companies with its use and the areas of impact of digital marketing from the COVID-19 pandemic, and then to highlight all those features that stand out from those of their competitors, as well as the creation of an appropriate marketing strategy that will ensure the flow of new customers and increased revenue. To meet this purpose, an empirical survey was conducted in tourism companies in order to provide answers to research questions. As tourism businesses have not yet made sufficient use of digital media as a strategic marketing tool, this research is the basis for further research into the use of technology and digital tools to reach customers and create a more personalized experience for them.

This paper aims to define the meaning of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the context of the European framework and examine three different European countries. The main elements which encompass the meaning of CSR focus on activities with social and environmental sensitiveness, on a voluntary basis. The paper analyses the dimensions of CSR and presents its benefits. Furthermore, the paper provides a brief description of the recent CSR activities in the European Union, and attempts a comparative analysis of CSR activities and their respective impacts on three European countries: Greece; Denmark; and Hungary. Finally, the paper concludes that the effective implementation of CSR strategy cannot follow strict rules and should be adjusted to the culture, needs and particularities of each country.