From Fire to Light: Technological Innovation and Sustainability in Christmas Celebrations of Domestic Regenerative Tourism
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.59072/rper.vi75.861Keywords:
Regenerative sustainable tourism, clean technologies, territorial tourism development, social inclusion, festive eventsAbstract
This study analyzes the interaction between technological innovation and regenerative, sustainable tourism planning in the Chilean cities of Valparaíso and Iquique. It examines how Christmas celebrations—traditionally centered on fireworks—are being transformed through the adoption of clean technologies such as drone light shows and LED lighting, generating interconnected economic, social, environmental, and governance-related impacts at the local level. Using a qualitative methodology grounded in hermeneutic analysis and grounded theory, discourses from seven key informants representing public, private, and social sectors were analyzed through a process of systematic triangulation. Four interrelated guiding categories emerged: Economic Representation of Domestic Tourism (ERDT), Social Perspectives of Domestic Tourism (SPDT), Environmentally Friendly Domestic Tourism (EFDT), and Technology in Local Sustainable Tourism (TLST). The results reveal that the integration of sustainable technologies not only reduces perceived environmental and acoustic impacts but also acts as a catalyst for local economic dynamization by strengthening SMEs, generating temporary employment, and increasing visitor flows during the festive period. Simultaneously, these practices foster social inclusion, community participation, and cultural identity, reinforcing collaborative and territorially embedded governance models. Technology emerges as a transversal enabling factor that connects sustainability objectives with data-informed decision-making and innovative tourist experiences. Overall, the findings demonstrate that Christmas tourism can be reconceptualized as a strategic tool for regenerative territorial development when guided by sustainability principles, participatory governance, and technological innovation. This approach contributes to the advancement of multiple Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly those related to health and well-being, decent work and economic growth, responsible consumption and production, sustainable cities and communities, and climate action.
References
Acevedo-Duque, Á.; Prado-Sabido, T.; Gomes Ramires, T.; Ovalles-Toledo, L.V.; Sandoval Barraza, L.A (2022)New Year’s Eve Show: An Opportunity to Further Develop Sustainable Local Tourism in Chile. Sustainability 2022, 14, 3962. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14073962
Acevedo-Duque, Á.; Gonzalez-Diaz, R.; Vega-Muñoz, A.; Fernández Mantilla, M.M.; Ovalles-Toledo, L.V.; Cachicatari-Vargas, E. The Role of B Companies in Tourism towards Recovery from the Crisis COVID-19 Inculcating Social Values and Responsible Entrepreneurship in Latin America. Sustainability 2021, 13, 7763. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13147763
Aigneren, M. (2009). La técnica de recolección de información mediante grupos focales. La Sociología En Sus Escenarios, (6). Recuperado a partir de https://revistas.udea.edu.co/index.php/ceo/article/view/1611
Basnyat, S., Shrestha, S., Shakya, B., Byanjankar, R., & Basnyat, S. (2020). Domestic tourism in Nepal: issues and challenges. Tourism Review International, 24(1), 37-49.DOI10.3727/154427220X15791346544770
Báez-Montenegro, A., Centeno, A. B., Lara, J. Á. S., & Prieto, L. C. H. (2016). Contingent valuation and motivation analysis of tourist routes: Application to the cultural heritage of Valdivia (Chile). Tourism Economics, 22(3), 558-571.10.5367/te.2015.0459
Christou, P. A., & Pericleous, K. (2023). Domestic Tourism and the Domestic Tourist Experience: Complexities, Idiosyncrasies, and Understandings. Tourism: An International Interdisciplinary Journal, 71(4), 659-676.DOI10.37741/t.71.4.1
Dong, Z. X., & Wu, Y. (2013). Study on tourism environment with strategic research on the tourism development of Hunan Low-Carbon. Advanced Materials Research, 788, 387-391.DOI10.4028/www.scientific.net/AMR.788.387
Elorrieta, B., Cerdan Schwitzguébel, A., & Torres-Delgado, A. (2022). From success to unrest: the social impacts of tourism in Barcelona. International journal of tourism cities, 8(3), 675-702.DOI10.1108/IJTC-05-2021-0076
Fiorentin, P., Bettanini, C., & Bogoni, D. (2019). Calibration of an autonomous instrument for monitoring light pollution from drones. Sensors, 19(23), 5091.DOI 10.3390/s19235091
Gan, C., Wang, K., Voda, M., Ye, J., & Chen, L. (2023). Analysis on the impact of technological innovation on tourism development: The case of Yangtze River Delta Urban Agglomeration in China. Tourism Economics, 29(5), 1251-1271.DOI10.1177/13548166221102590
Godovykh, M., Alvarez, S., & Fyall, A. (2024). Objective vs perceived environmental impacts of tourism. Tourism and Hospitality Research, 14673584241304285.DOI10.1177/14673584241304285
He, W. (2012). Sustainable Rural Tourism Development and Environment Protection. Advanced Materials Research, 347, 2893-2896.DOI10.4028/www.scientific.net/AMR.347-353.2893
Hiltunen, M. J., Pitkänen, K., & Halseth, G. (2016). Environmental perceptions of second home tourism impacts in Finland. Local Environment, 21(10), 1198-1214.DOI10.1080/13549839.2015.1079701
Kallou, S., Kikilia, A., & Kalogiannakis, M. (2023, August). Tourism Education and Digital Learning Environments: The Contribution of Transformative Learning. In International Conference of the International Association of Cultural and Digital Tourism (pp. 143-161). Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland.DOI10.1007/978-3-031-54342-5_9
Lam-González, Y.E.; Suárez-Rojas, C.; León, C.J. Factors Constraining International Growth in Nautical Tourism Firms. Sustainability 2019, 11, 6846. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11236846
Lee, C. G. (2021). Tourism‐led growth hypothesis: International tourism versus domestic tourism‐Evidence from China. International Journal of Tourism Research, 23(5), 881-890.DOI10.1002/jtr.2450
Lv, W., Fan, W., & Wang, Z. (2024). How to enhance the resilience of domestic tourism?. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management, 61, 165-177.10.1016/j.jhtm.2024.10.002
MacNeill, T., & Wozniak, D. (2018). The economic, social, and environmental impacts of cruise tourism. Tourism Management, 66, 387-404.DOI10.1016/j.tourman.2017.11.002
Manzano Nunez, R., & García Perdomo, H. A. (2016). Sobre los criterios de inclusión y exclusión. Más allá de la publicación. Revista chilena de pediatría, 87(6), 511-512.http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.rchipe.2016.05.003
Mora-Rivera, J., Cerón-Monroy, H., & García-Mora, F. (2019). The impact of remittances on domestic tourism in Mexico. Annals of Tourism Research, 76, 36-52.DOI10.1016/j.annals.2019.03.002
Nguyen, C. P., & Nguyen, B. Q. (2023). Does the shadow economy matter for tourism consumption? New global evidence. Empirical Economics, 65(2), 729-773.10.1007/s00181-022-02354-x
Ordóñez Ordóñez, S. P., & Quiroga Coronel, E. D. (2023). Análisis de la gobernanza del turismo vinculada a criterios de liderazgo, participación e involucramiento de los stakeholders. Caso de estudio: Cuenca, Ecuador.http://dspace.ucuenca.edu.ec/handle/123456789/43278
Parker, M., Spennemann, D. H., & Bond, J. (2024). Using destination reviews to explore tourists’ sensory experiences at Christmas markets in Germany and Austria. Journal of Heritage Tourism, 19(2), 172-200.10.1080/1743873X.2023.2284332
Pegkas, P. (2020). Interrelationships between tourism, energy, environment and economic growth in Greece. Anatolia, 31(4), 565-576.DOI10.1080/13032917.2020.1795893
Picken, F. (2023). Tourism and the blue economy. Tourism Geographies, 1-9.10.1080/14616688.2023.2291821
Reyes, N. R. M. (2012). Reseña metodológica sobre los grupos focales. Diá-logos, (9), 47-53.https://doi.org/10.5377/dialogos.v1i9.15651
Seyfi, S., Hall, C. M., & Saarinen, J. (2024). Rethinking sustainable substitution between domestic and international tourism: A policy thought experiment. Journal of Policy Research in Tourism, Leisure and Events, 16(4), 560-574.10.1080/19407963.2022.2100410
Su, L., Huang, S., & Huang, J. (2018). Effects of destination social responsibility and tourism impacts on residents’ support for tourism and perceived quality of life. Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research, 42(7), 1039-1057.DOI10.1177/1096348016671395
Thurmond, V. A. (2001). The point of triangulation. Journal of nursing scholarship, 33(3), 253-258. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1547-5069.2001.00253.x
Vujičić, M. D., Kennell, J., Stankov, U., Gretzel, U., Vasiljević, Đ. A., & Morrison, A. M. (2022). Keeping up with the drones! Techno-social dimensions of tourist drone videography. Technology in Society, 68, 101838.DOI 10.1016/j.techsoc.2021.101838
Viana-Lora, A., Nel-lo-Andreu, M. G., & Anton-Clavé, S. (2023). Advancing a framework for social impact assessment of tourism research. Tourism and Hospitality Research, 23(4), 494-505.DOI10.1177/14673584221105007
Warner, S. C., Sagovac, S., Godwin, C., Xia, T., & Batterman, S. (2023). Community's Perception on Ambient Air and Noise Pollution: A Qualitative Study in Southwest Detroit. Environmental Justice, 16(4), 286-296.10.1089/env.2021.0085
Wang, S., Zhou, Y., Guo, J., & Mao, J. (2023). Did high speed rail accelerate the development of tourism economy?–Empirical analysis from Northeast China. Transport Policy, 143, 25-35.10.1016/j.tranpol.2023.09.004
Weng, K. C., Lin, S. T., Hu, C. C., Soong, R. T., & Chi, M. T. (2023). Multi-view approach for drone light show. The Visual Computer, 39(11), 5797-5808.DOI 10.1007/s00371-022-02696-8
World Tourism Organization (UNWTO 2025). (n.d.). UN Tourism World Tourism Barometer. Retrieved from https://www.unwto.org/es/barometro-del-turismo-mundial-de-onu-turismo
Yasir, A., Hu, X., Aktan, M., Farías, P., & Rauf, A. (2024). Domestic tourism and the effects of behavioral changes, government-media trust and moderation of “maintenance of country image”: theoretical analysis. Kybernetes.10.1108/K-02-2023-0303
Zhang, J., & Zhang, Y. (2023). Does tourism contribute to the nighttime economy? Evidence from China. Current Issues in Tourism, 26(8), 1295-1310.10.1080/13683500.2022.2053073
Zhao, Y. (2022). Study on the relationship of leisure sports tourism with the health of the elderly. Revista Brasileira de Medicina do Esporte, 28, 432-435.DOI10.1590/1517-8692202228052021_0520
Zhao, H., Jiang, S., & Ke, X. (2023). Elderly tourism management: A bibliometric approach. Innovative Marketing, 19(3), 211.DOI10.21511/im.19(3).2023.18
Zhang, Y., Xu, H., Zhang, S., Jiang, Y., & Fang, Y. (2024). The impact of different dependency levels on elderly tourism decisions: a study based on the social impact theory and the stimulus-organism-response theory. Current Issues in Tourism, 1-25.DOI10.1080/13683500.2024.2314142
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
RPER is the official journal of the 