Geotourism is gaining momentum in the tourism sector as tourist appetites trend towards niche products, new experiences, and guided tours¹. Geology landscapes have a long history of being popular with tourists. However, there is still more to be done. While many countries have regional geotourism strategies that include Geosites and Geoparks, destinations like Iceland and Australia have embraced geotourism on a national scale. In 2021 the Australian GeoScience Council launched a “National Geotourism Strategy” that sets the standard going forward. In this talk, geotourism strategy models will be reviewed along with a case study of how Iceland leveraged its geodiversity to rebuild its economy post-2008. Currently, the pandemic has prompted extensive tourism research and data-driven forecasting to boost economic recovery in the sector. Capitalizing on predicted traveler preference is the backbone of the tourism industry. Tourist motivations are often the basis for; product development, marketing campaigns, and commercial success. These themes will be tied to geotourism using extant academic research and real-world examples. In general, tourism is at the precipice of change. Demand for conservation, sustainability, and responsible travel were trending pre-pandemic. Added to this, post-pandemic trends are emerging and competition is fierce to attract tourism dollars. Destinations are in need of well-researched and executed product offerings, which creates an excellent opportunity to advance the field of geotourism.

¹Ipsos MORI and TripAdvisor, 2022, Travel in 2022: A look ahead, <https://www.tripadvisor.com/TravelTrendsReportJan2022>.