smart tourism singapore

How a Singapore tourism destination became a 5G and automation testbed

By Sean Nolan

Interview with Michael Ma, Assistant Chief Executive, Sentosa Development Corporation.

5G and automation at work

Renewable energy and zero-waste fuel, enabling smart tourism.

3 reasons why Singapore is the smartest city in the world

Building a transportation network that integrates walking, cycling and public transport is a smart move Image:  REUTERS/Edgar Su - GF10000358413

.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo{-webkit-transition:all 0.15s ease-out;transition:all 0.15s ease-out;cursor:pointer;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;outline:none;color:inherit;}.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo:hover,.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo[data-hover]{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;}.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo:focus,.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo[data-focus]{box-shadow:0 0 0 3px rgba(168,203,251,0.5);} Sharmishta Sivaramakrishnan

.chakra .wef-9dduvl{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;font-size:1.25rem;}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-9dduvl{font-size:1.125rem;}} Explore and monitor how .chakra .wef-15eoq1r{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;font-size:1.25rem;color:#F7DB5E;}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-15eoq1r{font-size:1.125rem;}} Cities and Urbanization is affecting economies, industries and global issues

.chakra .wef-1nk5u5d{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;color:#2846F8;font-size:1.25rem;}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-1nk5u5d{font-size:1.125rem;}} Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale

Stay up to date:, cities and urbanization.

It’s official: Singapore is the world’s smartest city. That’s according to a new survey Published by Swiss business school IMD and the Singapore University of Technology and Design - the IMD Smart Cities Index - which looked at how well cities are adopting digital technologies and improving the lives of the people who live there.

Looking at aspects such as public safety, mobility, governance and health, the index measured cities’ performance on maintaining green spaces, improving existing local institutions, and digitalizing access to employment, all while maintaining the security of their citizens.

While there is no universal definition for the term ‘ smart city, ’ it is a concept that was devised at the advent of the internet of things (IoT). Smart cities are committed to improving the provision and development of urban services through the use of digital technology.

Here are three ways Singapore is smarter than the average city.

How a city’s leaders shape the future of healthcare will ultimately determine how the prosperity of the city itself and of its citizens. A healthcare ecosystem that celebrates continuous learning and innovation, builds communities and offers reliable specialist care is essential. Moreover, how well is a city’s leadership putting empathy at the heart of its healthcare infrastructure?

In Singapore, a key example of this is the development of Healthcity Novena - a masterplan for community-focused health in which infrastructure such as pedestrian walkways, underground car parks and outdoor green spaces exist to complement and ameliorate the citizen-patient experience. A city whose leaders proactively think about these aspects of healthcare provision will inherently be a healthier one.

Singapore’s Housing Development Board (HDB) offers all citizens access to free public housing. Furthermore, the country’s leaders have created public housing that is more than just an apartment space; it also stretches into larger community areas that integrate liveability, sustainability and growth. More than 80% of the country’s population lives in public housing , which means the provision and administration of housing is pivotal to the identity and character of a diverse city like Singapore. The country’s leadership is not only integrating crucial principles of community generosity, building family ties and racial harmony, it must also consider pragmatic factors needed for inclusive housing such as financial planning, allocation and insurance. By planning for the future, the city’s leaders can take an active role in adding heart to housing, ensuring that residents live in spaces characterized by vibrancy, self-sufficiency and connectivity.

Transportation determines much of the quality of life for residents in a smart city. In late October, the city’s Land Transit Authority (LTA) expanded a pilot area for autonomous vehicles (AVs) to cover the whole of western Singapore . The city’s leaders have realized that in order to build a resilient workforce and citizenry, mobility must be designed in a way that not only covers the last mile of a journey but also that allows everyone to participate in what the city has to offer.

In Singapore, the LTA is building a system of transport infrastructure in which daily commutes can integrate active mobility modes like walking and cycling with public transportation services like mass rapid transit (MRT) and buses. The ‘ Walk Cycle Ride ’ initiative offers national benefits: it encourages more liveable recreation spaces, promotes sustainable energy use and reduces pollution. By applying advanced technologies to mobility, the city enables citizens to lead more active lifestyles through convenient and cost-effective transportation.

Have you read?

Singapore crowned world's most open and competitive economy, what can the world learn about business from singapore, smart cities: world’s best don’t just adopt new technology, they make it work for people.

These practices demonstrate how much can be done when a city’s leaders focus on strong governance and the integration of citizens’ interaction, comfort and preferences. If these principles are adapted in other geographic contexts and are paired with the right amounts of investment, we may soon see a flourishing list of smart cities around the world. Transforming the ways in which citizens inhabit their cities by prioritizing health and mobility will, in turn, raise the growth potential of the world’s cities.

In autumn this year, the Forum of Young Global Leaders was able to host its first Executive Education module with the generosity and support of Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore. Focusing on the theme of smart cities, the module offered a series of expert-led seminars, workshops and site visits to allow 30 Young Global Leaders (YGLs) a chance to learn about Singapore as a case study in applying technology to urban development, management and leadership. During the week-long course, YGLs were able to examine the management of different sectors of Singapore's urban economy in order to prepare them to further improve and to invest in the urban development and livelihoods that will lead their own cities into the future. Overall, the module provided a broad overview of how Singapore has placed itself at the forefront of urban development, resilience and sustainability through futuristic policy making and regulations.

Don't miss any update on this topic

Create a free account and access your personalized content collection with our latest publications and analyses.

License and Republishing

World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

The Agenda .chakra .wef-n7bacu{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;font-weight:400;} Weekly

A weekly update of the most important issues driving the global agenda

.chakra .wef-1dtnjt5{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;-webkit-flex-wrap:wrap;-ms-flex-wrap:wrap;flex-wrap:wrap;} More on Cities and Urbanization .chakra .wef-17xejub{-webkit-flex:1;-ms-flex:1;flex:1;justify-self:stretch;-webkit-align-self:stretch;-ms-flex-item-align:stretch;align-self:stretch;} .chakra .wef-nr1rr4{display:-webkit-inline-box;display:-webkit-inline-flex;display:-ms-inline-flexbox;display:inline-flex;white-space:normal;vertical-align:middle;text-transform:uppercase;font-size:0.75rem;border-radius:0.25rem;font-weight:700;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;line-height:1.2;-webkit-letter-spacing:1.25px;-moz-letter-spacing:1.25px;-ms-letter-spacing:1.25px;letter-spacing:1.25px;background:none;padding:0px;color:#B3B3B3;-webkit-box-decoration-break:clone;box-decoration-break:clone;-webkit-box-decoration-break:clone;}@media screen and (min-width:37.5rem){.chakra .wef-nr1rr4{font-size:0.875rem;}}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-nr1rr4{font-size:1rem;}} See all

From São Paulo to Venice: 15 cities with ambitious zero-carbon projects

Victoria Masterson

April 12, 2024

The world is facing a 70% supply shortfall in low-carbon buildings, new report says – here’s why

April 11, 2024

How cities can flex their purchasing power to stimulate innovation

Sam Markey and Andrew Watkins

April 5, 2024

Global earthquakes underscore the importance of resilient infrastructure

H. Kit Miyamoto, Olivia Nielsen, Ommid Saberi and Guido Licciardi

March 27, 2024

Paris aims to host the most sustainable Olympics ever – here's how the city is preparing

March 26, 2024

City streets ranked, low-carbon building trends and other urban transformation stories you need to read

Lisa Chamberlain

March 25, 2024

• Board Of Directors
• Organisation Chart
• Achieving Quality Tourism
• Legislation
• Corporate Governance
• Invest in Tourism
• ASEAN Economic Community
• Media Releases
• Corporate Publications
• Newsletters
• Statistics & Market Insights Overview
• Tourism Statistics
• Industries Overview
• Arts & Entertainment
• Attractions
• Dining & Retail
• Integrated Resorts
• Meetings, Incentives, Conventions & Exhibitions
• Tourist Guides
• Travel Agents
• Assistance and Licensing Overview
• Tourism Sustainability Programme (TSP)
• Singapore Visitor Centre (SVC) Network Partnership
• Grants Overview
• Licensing Overview
• Tax Incentives Overview
• Other Assistance & Resources Overview
• SG Stories Content Fund Season 2
• Marketing Partnership Programme
• SingapoReimagine Marketing Programme
• Singapore On-screen Fund
• Hotel Licensing Regulations
• Data College
• Trade Events and Activities
• Trade Events Overview
• SingapoReimagine Global Conversations
• SingapoRediscovers Vouchers
• Made With Passion
• Joint Promotion Opportunities
• Procurement Opportunities for STB's Overseas Regional Offices
• Product And Industry Updates
• Rental of F1 Pit Building
• Singapore Tourism Accelerator
• Sponsorship Opportunities
• STB Marketing College
• Tourism Innovation Challenge
• Harnessing Technology to Emerge Stronger Post COVID-19
• Tourism Transformation Index (TXI)
• New Tourism Development in Jurong Lake District
• International Trade Events
• Singapore Familiarization Trips
• EVA-Ready Programme
• Tourism Industry Conference
• Expo 2025 Sponsorship and Partnership Opportunities
• Students & Fresh Graduates
• Professionals
• Attractions Operator
• Business/Leisure Event Organiser
• Media Professional
• Tourist Guide
• Travel Agent

Travel tech trends for 2023

2022 proved to be filled with ups and downs for Singapore's tourism sector. At the beginning of the year, the challenge lay in attracting tourists back to the country by providing social distance-friendly amenities and processes. Then, as regulations eased, “revenge travel” kicked in bringing with it a sudden flood of tourists. Yet, many businesses struggled to accommodate this surge in demand with fewer resources.

Technology emerged as one answer that helped us navigate these different challenges, from solutions that supported social distancing regulations to tools that helped boost capacity, with fewer staff.

As we head into 2023, it’s time to take stock of the changing trends across the sector and the emerging technologies that could provide both new solutions and opportunities for Singapore’s tourism businesses.

Here are four travel tech trends we believe will make a splash in 2023: 

Extended reality meets company retreats

Business travel will be back in full force in 2023.  Booking.com ’s Seven Predictions for the Reimagination of Travel in 2023 survey predicts that ‘survivor’ themed company retreats will help to rebuild team spirit and camaraderie after years apart. In fact, according to their survey:

• 44% of the global workforce is looking forward to ‘real life’ team-building work trips 
• 51% would like savings on remote/hybrid working models spent on corporate travel or retreats

Going more in-depth, American Express Global Business Travel published a white paper this year entitled  Why travel is the centre of the new company culture . In it, they explain how the switch to hybrid and remote work, the growing need to address burnout and employee wellbeing, and the never ending challenge to attract and retain key talent will make business travel a pivotal moment for building company culture. 

According to the group, a successful company retreat will: focus on employee wellbeing, include personal development, emphasise company values, and, most of all, drive a strong sense of company culture. 

So what kind of technologies can support company culture driven retreats?

Extended reality is a growing tech trend which we already  reported on last year . From Augmented Reality (AR) treasure hunts, where teams need to race across the city to discover company value related clues, to full on Virtual Reality (VR) experiences that help build teamwork and leadership skills, this tech offers new opportunities to create unique activities centred around company culture.

While this technology has been around for a while, the market has evolved with more and more companies offering solutions that are both customizable and accessible to businesses of all sizes.  Xctuality ,  CityGuyd , and  SmartGuide  are three cohorts of Singapore Tourism Board’s Accelerator program who conducted pilots with STB partners this year, enabling them to build virtual experiences for guests and customers. 

Read more about how you can create more immersive visitor experiences  here .

Generative AI enters the tourism sector

Artificial intelligence is a technology that’s already being widely adopted by tourism businesses. AI based customer service robots,  online chatbots , and customer data analysis tools are helping speed up response times, relieve overburdened staff of certain tasks, and generate deeper insights into customer satisfaction in a matter of seconds.

Generative AI, also known as generative adversarial networks (GANs), is now taking the technology’s potential to the next level allowing AI, not just to copy and replicate, but to create original text, images, and more. Some of the most popular early examples include GPT-3, a language model that can produce fake stories in the style of famous writers, and DALL-E, an AI model that can create original images based on prompts. 

While this technology is still in its infancy, there are a number of exciting new opportunities Generative AI could offer travel businesses.

For example, the hospitality industry could use Generative AI to design new hotel concepts and layouts or develop virtual tours of their facilities for potential customers. MICE planners could use this technology to generate a number of personalised itinerary options for customers in just a few clicks. 

For both conference planners and attractions, being able to easily generate different layouts could help them to find the best options for minimising congestion at events, identify potential security concerns, and encourage foot traffic to certain locations. 

Making payments frictionless with biometric technology

The adoption of biometric identification and payment systems is a growing trend identified by Amadeus in their  2023 Travel Trends Report . With these smart systems, guests can check-in, upgrade their seats, and even shop with a simple fingerprint or retinal scan. 

For example, food and beverage provider Hudson has opened a number of “nonstop shops” across US airports using Amazon One biometric technology. With these systems, customers can pay by simply holding their hand over the kiosk sensor. 

You can’t get more personalised than that. 

Not ready for biometrics quite yet? Digital payment solutions, such as payment apps, digital wallets, buy now pay later, and account-to-account (A2A) payments, are making it even easier for customers to spend while on vacation. And that’s exactly what they want: effortless transactions. 

If you’re looking to adopt new technologies this year but don’t know where to start, Tcube can help you identify the right partners, develop a technology roadmap, and launch a successful pilot program.  Get in touch with us today . 

About the Organisation

What industry does your organization fall within, what best describes the key intent of the project that your organisation is seeking funding for, is your organisation a singapore-registered legal entity, is your organisation an association, is the project able to achieve one or more of the following outcome.

• Increase no. of sailings to/from Singapore
• Increase no. of foreign cruise passengers to Singapore through sailings to/from Singapore
• Increase no. of pre/post nights for cruise passengers sailing to/from Singapore
• Increase capability of industry players via cruise-specific industry training programmes
• Strengthen the potential/ attractiveness of cruising in Singapore and/or Southeast Asia

Is the project able to achieve one or more of the following?

• Improve visitor satisfaction (especially foreign visitors)
• Increase footfall
• Increase revenue
• Significant branding and PR value

Is the project able to attract foreign visitors and contribute to foreign visitors' spend?

Who will be the main target audience of your project, is your project innovative and/or a new event in singapore with tourism potential, what best describes your project, does the event have proven track records in singapore or overseas, and/or growth in tourism value such as growing foreign visitorship, and/or enhancement of precinct vibrancy etc, does the project have a clear tourism focus (e.g. tourism-related trainings, tourism companies taking on capability development initiatives or technology companies creating technology products and services for the tourism businesses), what best describes your market feasibility study project.

Based on your selection, the following STB grant/s may be applicable for your project:

Please note that projects that have commenced prior to Singapore Tourism Board's offer may not be eligible for grant support. Examples where projects are deemed as having commenced include:

• Applicant has started work on the project e.g. tender has been called.
• Applicant has made payment(s) to any supplier, vendor or third party.
• Applicant has signed a contractual agreement with any supplier, vendor or third party.

Government agencies communicate via .gov.sg websites (e.g. go.gov.sg/open) . Trusted website s

Look for a lock ( ) or https:// as an added precaution. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Smart Sentosa

Fun Sentosa

Sustainable Sentosa

Sentosa Climate Change Risk Assessment

Our Long-Term Ambitions

Our Focus Areas

1 - Sustainable Travel and Leisure Activities

2 - Decarbonisation and Closing the Waste Loop

3 - Integrative Planning, Design and Development

Beyond building the island as a fulfilling destination for all, SDC seeks to leverage new technologies and solutions to continuously enhance guest experience. As an active test-bed for innovations, Sentosa has established multiple collaborations with both the private and public sectors to create and test-bed new technologies and solutions. Visitors to the island can thus look forward to enhanced experiences in the near future as we develop a Smart Sentosa ecosystem.

MySentosa App

As the new-generation of travellers become increasingly connected, SDC sees a need to engage them more on this front. As such, we are developing the One Sentosa Platform (OSP), which is an over-arching digital platform that unifies all forms of guest touchpoints so as to enhance overall guest experience and to increase our operational efficiency.

A key feature of the OSP is the new version of the MySentosa app, which was first rolled out in 2012. Launched in January 2018, the revamped MySentosa app boasts features such as gamified trails and smart itinerary planning and smart navigation. Other mobile features in the development pipeline that appeal to new-gen travellers include a chatbot, mobile wallet and Augmented Reality experiences.

Tourism Information & Services Hub (TIH)

Created by the Singapore Tourism Board (STB), the Tourism Information & Services Hub (TIH) is a digital resource platform for tourism businesses to have access to relevant information on Singapore’s tourism offerings and travel software services. SDC is working closely with STB to contribute information like the opening hours, latest promotions and events, etc of our attractions and offerings to TIH to generate greater awareness of Sentosa’s offerings.

April 14, 2024

9th Annual Singapore OpenGov Leadership Forum 2024, 14 - 15 May 2024 - CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS

We are creating some awesome events for you. kindly bear with us., singapore tourism board partners for smart tourism.

• April 11, 2023

The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) and Asia’s largest travel and experiences platform have expanded their current collaboration by signing a ground-breaking two-year Memorandum of Cooperation (MOC). A first in the industry, this comprehensive MOC will concentrate on four major strategic thrusts: branding and marketing, inbound travel to Singapore, experience development, and data sharing and collaboration.

In the first quarter of 2023, Singapore’s tourism industry is projected to welcome an estimated 2.9 million international visitors. SingapoRediscovers and STB have effectively collaborated on numerous multifaceted projects, such as a joint marketing partnership to promote Singapore to visitors from Asia Pacific.

Since January 2023, the leading travel booking platform has been at the forefront of this robust recovery, with Singapore’s monthly inbound arrivals exceeding those of 2019. Also, in 2023, the average traveller expenditure for Singapore-based activities on the platform will have increased by 60% compared to pre-COVID times, because of the ongoing pursuit of high-quality tourists and joint marketing campaigns.

Keith Tan, Chief Executive Officer of STB, stated that they are thrilled to elevate their partnership with the foremost travel booking platform through this MOC, which represents a significant milestone in their joint efforts to increase tourism in Singapore.

To accomplish these objectives, the leading travel booking platform will collaborate closely with STB’s regional offices to launch a series of integrated marketing campaigns in key markets. The distribution of selected digital and social material, special deals with retailers, and customised experiences will make the trip to Singapore unforgettable.

STB and the leading travel booking platform will work to increase Singapore’s vitality and competitiveness as a destination by leveraging the leading travel booking platform’s track record of improving its products. This will entail collaborating to create, produce, and sell creative and exclusive experiences in areas such as cruises, events & entertainment, wellness, and tours.

• Cruise: Solidifying Singapore’s position as the Southeast Asia Cruise Hub;
• Events and Entertainment: Enhancing the liveliness of a destination and generating visitor traffic through event ticketing and marketing;
• Wellness: Making Singapore an Urban Wellness Mecca;
• Tours: Digitalisation is increasing the attractiveness and reach of tours.

Using the platform’s wealth of information about bookings and customers, the MOC will also increase the sharing of data, building capacity, and exchange of best practices between both parties to increase tourism returns.

This partnership builds on STB’s recent Data Transformation Programme (DTP) with the Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC), Sentosa Island Partners, and the leading travel booking platform to allow cross-sharing of data and insights to better understand how visitors behave in the island precinct.

In addition, with the assistance of the STB, the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) is establishing new Criteria for MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions) and Attractions. GSTC MICE and GSTC Attraction Criteria will serve as worldwide sustainability standards for both industries.

Following Singapore’s recent designation as a sustainable destination based on the GSTC’s Destination Criteria, STB is proving its commitment by bringing together Singapore’s tourist groups and stakeholders to support GSTC’s global efforts to drive sustainable tourism. This aligns with Singapore’s ambition of being a sustainable urban destination where large experiences are delivered in tiny packages.

GSTC’s industry criteria for MICE and attractions are being developed by GSTC, according to STB Chief Executive Keith. Such internationally recognised criteria are crucial because they assist destinations and tourism businesses in determining if their sustainability efforts are on track. STB is thrilled to collaborate with GSTC and industry groups to provide a Singaporean perspective and assist the tourism industry in contributing to a greener world.

Recommended Stories

Unveiling India’s Potential: World Quantum Day

Shaping Tomorrow: Vietnam’s Role in the Future of Cybersecurity

Innovative Digital Tools: Enhancing Affordability in Singapore

India: TRAI’s Blueprint for Innovation in Digital Communication

Navigating Waters: New Zealand’s Digital Defence Innovations

PolyU’s Signal Quality Tech: Future of Telecoms

Vietnam’s Comprehensive Strategy for AI Advancement

Thailand Combating Online Crime with Precision

© 2024 OpenGov Asia – CIO Network Pte Ltd.

Qlik’s vision is a data-literate world, where everyone can use data and analytics to improve decision-making and solve their most challenging problems. A private company, Qlik offers real-time data integration and analytics solutions, powered by Qlik Cloud, to close the gaps between data, insights and action. By transforming data into Active Intelligence, businesses can drive better decisions, improve revenue and profitability, and optimize customer relationships. Qlik serves more than 38,000 active customers in over 100 countries.

CTC Global Singapore, a premier end-to-end IT solutions provider, is a fully owned subsidiary of ITOCHU Techno-Solutions Corporation (CTC) and ITOCHU Corporation.

Since 1972, CTC has established itself as one of the country’s top IT solutions providers. With 50 years of experience, headed by an experienced management team and staffed by over 200 qualified IT professionals, we support organizations with integrated IT solutions expertise in Autonomous IT, Cyber Security, Digital Transformation, Enterprise Cloud Infrastructure, Workplace Modernization and Professional Services.

Well-known for our strengths in system integration and consultation, CTC Global proves to be the preferred IT outsourcing destination for organizations all over Singapore today.

Planview has one mission: to build the future of connected work. Our solutions enable organizations to connect the business from ideas to impact, empowering companies to accelerate the achievement of what matters most. Planview’s full spectrum of Portfolio Management and Work Management solutions creates an organizational focus on the strategic outcomes that matter and empowers teams to deliver their best work, no matter how they work. The comprehensive Planview platform and enterprise success model enables customers to deliver innovative, competitive products, services, and customer experiences. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, with locations around the world, Planview has more than 1,300 employees supporting 4,500 customers and 2.6 million users worldwide. For more information, visit www.planview.com .

SUPPORTING ORGANISATION

SIRIM is a premier industrial research and technology organisation in Malaysia, wholly-owned by the Minister​ of Finance Incorporated. With over forty years of experience and expertise, SIRIM is mandated as the machinery for research and technology development, and the national champion of quality. SIRIM has always played a major role in the development of the country’s private sector. By tapping into our expertise and knowledge base, we focus on developing new technologies and improvements in the manufacturing, technology and services sectors. We nurture Small Medium Enterprises (SME) growth with solutions for technology penetration and upgrading, making it an ideal technology partner for SMEs.

HashiCorp provides infrastructure automation software for multi-cloud environments, enabling enterprises to unlock a common cloud operating model to provision, secure, connect, and run any application on any infrastructure. HashiCorp tools allow organizations to deliver applications faster by helping enterprises transition from manual processes and ITIL practices to self-service automation and DevOps practices. 

IBM is a leading global hybrid cloud and AI, and business services provider. We help clients in more than 175 countries capitalize on insights from their data, streamline business processes, reduce costs and gain the competitive edge in their industries. Nearly 3,000 government and corporate entities in critical infrastructure areas such as financial services, telecommunications and healthcare rely on IBM’s hybrid cloud platform and Red Hat OpenShift to affect their digital transformations quickly, efficiently and securely. IBM’s breakthrough innovations in AI, quantum computing, industry-specific cloud solutions and business services deliver open and flexible options to our clients. All of this is backed by IBM’s legendary commitment to trust, transparency, responsibility, inclusivity and service.

Search form

Smart Tourism

Spacetime Technology develops  “360” Tourist Experience Platform

Spacetime Technology’s Centre of Excellence announces an initiative to develop a “360” tourist experience using high precision Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) positioning technology.  This solution is the first locally created tourism platform in Singapore to offer high precision positioning technology and sub meter grade accuracy leveraging on GNSS technology such as the Beidou constellation.  The platform will provide a 360 tourist experience starting from before trip, during trip to after trip applications services such as air ticketing, navigational guides, local activities to dining experiences.  The solution will be piloted for the Chinese travellers before future expansion.  

With sophisticated precision positioning technology, tourists’ experience are enhanced with intuitive and personalised location-based services.  This brings about much business opportunities for local businesses such as retailers, service providers, F&B outlets, tourist sites, etc. to bring the most relevant and immediate services made possible by unprecedented location accuracy.

Solutions are designed based on the synchronization of GNSS & LBS technology with Singapore street level map which made possible the high precise positioning.  Spacetime Technology works with the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) to enable users to have access to useful street information such as building footprints, places of interest, taxi stands, amenities and others that can bring about hassle-free and up-to-date tourist information at the fingertips.

This project seeded from the GNSS & LBS Centre of Excellence (CoE) is a jointly supported initiative of GLAC and the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB).  GLAC launches its Global-First CoE in Singapore making the place its home for innovation where research & development in navigational satellite and location-based services solutions are conducted.  CoE combines the cross-border expertise of GLAC (consisting of about 2,000 experts and companies) and local practitioners to co-create GNSS & LBS solutions for testing and commercial implementation. This initiative solicits industry insights from the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) with the aim to enhance the overall visitor experience in Singapore. The STB encourages businesses and organisations in such initiatives that bring on wider benefits to the tourism landscape and growth opportunities.

Spacetime Technology Pte Ltd, the business connector of the CoE, bridges these co-create solutions with the business communities.  Beyond the testing phase, Spacetime will market these co-created solutions beyond Singapore for the regional and global markets.

Spacetime technology pte ltd

Centre of Excellence Supported by GLAC    3 Fusionopolis Way #13-21 Symbiosis Singapore 138633   Tel: +65 6635 8633 Email: [email protected]

Government agencies communicate via .gov.sg websites (e.g. go.gov.sg/open) . Trusted website s

Look for a lock ( ) or https:// as an added precaution. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Achievements

Transforming SG Through Tech

Our Key Pillars

Pillars of a Smart Nation

Digital Society

Digital Economy

Digital Government

Our Smart Nation Journey

A Secure Smart Nation

Protecting Data & Safeguarding Systems

Cybersecurity in the Public Sector

Government's Personal Data Protection Laws And Policies

Government's Personal Data Protection Initiatives

Report Data Incident

FAQs on Reporting Data Incidents

About Smart Nation Group

Our Vision and Mission

SNDGG Ministerial Committee

SNG Senior Management

Our Achievements

• 2023: Singapore rises to 3rd place in 2023 IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking
• 2023: Singapore moves up to 5th place in Global Innovation Index
• 2023: Singapore named Top Asian City in the 2023 IMD Smart City Index
• 2022: Singapore ranked among Top 5 global economies in the IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking 2022
• 2022: Singapore clinched 12th place in the UN e-Government Survey 2022
• 2021: Singapore topped the IMD-SUTD Smart City Index for 3rd year running
• 2021: Singapore ranked first in Roland Berger’s 2021 Digital Inclusion Index
• 2020/2021: Singapore climbed to the top of the Smart City Governments ranking
• 2021: Singapore ranked first in KPMG’s Global Ranking of leading technology hubs outside of Silicon Valley/San Francisco
• 2020: Singapore topped the IMD-SUTD Smart City Index for 2nd year running
• 2019: Singapore took top spot in the IMD-SUTD Smart City Index
• 2018: Singapore named Smart City of 2018 at the Smart City Expo World Congress

Singapore rises to 3rd place in 2023 IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking

Singapore has climbed to third place in the IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking (WDRC) for 2023. This year’s ranking provides a glimpse at how different countries facilitate the adoption of digital technologies, including AI, by governments, companies, and individuals.

The WDRC, which evaluates 64 countries, recognises Singapore’s consistent first-place ranking in the technology factor. This accomplishment is a testament to our investments in digital infrastructure, development of digital skills and talent, and promotion of research and innovation.

Click the link to find out more about the IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking 2023 .

Return to top

Singapore moves up to 5th place in Global Innovation Index

Singapore has moved up two spots to fifth place in the Global Innovation Index (GII), leading the Southeast Asia, East Asia and Oceania (SEAO) region.

The GII is a global ranking of the world’s most innovative economies. This year, the index used 80 indicators to track innovation trends in 132 economies. Singapore continued to top 11 out of 80 indicators, including government effectiveness, information and communications technology (ICT) access, and venture capital (VC).

Click here to find out more.

Singapore named top Asian city in the 2023 IMD Smart City Index

Published by Swiss business school Institute for Management Development (IMD), the 2023 Smart City index ranks 141 cities by how they use technology to address the challenges they face to achieve a higher quality of life. Singapore was recognized as the leading smart city in Asia and the seventh-smartest in the world.

In 2020 and 2021, Singapore was also ranked seventh in the world, three places up from its rank of 10th in 2019. Singapore was previously ranked first from 2019 to 2021, but these past rankings have now been adjusted according to a new methodology used for the 2023 index.

Click on the link to find out more about the 2023 IMD Smart City Index .

Singapore ranked among Top 5 global economies in IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking 2022

This annual ranking looks at how equipped global economies are at adopting new digital technologies in government practices, business models and society. In the 2022 edition of the IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking, Singapore surpasses Switzerland, clinching 4th place out of 63 global economies.

Singapore was recognised for its enhancement in tertiary education (improvement in pupil-teacher ratio), an increase in its share of employees working in research and development (R&D), and improvements in regulation conducive to overseas talent attraction and scientific research.

Click the link to find out more about the IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking 2022 .

Singapore clinched 12th place in the UN e-Government Survey 2022

Published biennially, the United Nations E-Government Survey assesses the e-government development status of all United Nations Member States. The assessment measures the e-government performance of countries relative to one another, and recognises that each country should decide upon the level and extent of its e-government initiatives in keeping with its own national development priorities and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Singapore came in 12th position after United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, followed by United Arab Emirates, Japan and Malta.

Click the link to find out more about the UN e-Government Survey 2022 .

Singapore topped the IMD-SUTD Smart City Index for 3rd year running

Published by Swiss business school Institute of Management Development (IMD) and the Singapore University of Technology and Design, the 2021 Smart City Index ranks 118 cities by how “smart” they are. The index takes into account input from the cities’ residents of how technology had improved their lives. About 120 residents from each city were surveyed and Singapore came up tops.

Click on the link to find out more about the 2021 IMD-SUTD Smart City Index .

Singapore ranked first in Roland Berger’s 2021 Digital Inclusion Index

Published by Roland Berger, the 2021 Digital Inclusion index ranks 82 countries. Singapore came up tops and was lauded for its inclusive measures such as free public WiFi and financial assistance schemes for digital skills training, which have been credited with supporting wider digital adoption, and narrowing the digital divide.

Click on the link to find out more about Roland Berger’s Digital Inclusion Index (2021) .

Singapore climbed to the top of the Smart City Governments ranking

In a biennial study that ranks the top 50 smart city governments in the world, Singapore eclipsed London to take the top spot. The Republic took the honours due to factors such as its technology infrastructure, digital initiatives and its “sterling” response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Click on the link to find out more about the 2021 Smart City Governments ranking .

Singapore ranked first in KPMG’s Global Ranking of Leading Technology Hubs Outside of Silicon Valley/San Francisco

The 2021 KPMG Technology Industry Survey surveyed more than 800 global leaders from various sub-sectors in the technology industry on the cities they see as leading technology innovation hubs over the next four years. Among the top factors seen as important in the ranking were an urban locale that attracts young professionals, a pipeline of skilled talent, and modern infrastructure (including high-speed bandwidth).

Singapore clinched the top spot in KPMG’s global ranking of leading technology innovation hubs outside of Silicon Valley/San Francisco in 2021. Singapore pulled ahead of other cities like New York, Tel Aviv, Beijing, and London for the second year running.

Singapore topped the IMD-SUTD Smart City Index for 2nd year running

Singapore, Helsinki and Zurich came up top in the 2020 Smart City Index. The 2020 Index ranked 109 cities, 7 more than in previous year’s inaugural edition, by using both economic and technological data, taken together with citizens’ perceptions of how “smart” their cities were.

In each city ranked, 120 citizens were asked questions on the technological provisions of their city across five key areas: health and safety, mobility, activities, opportunities and governance.

Click on the link to find out more about the 2020 IMD-SUTD Smart City Index .

Singapore took top spot in the IMD-SUTD Smart City Index

The first edition of the Smart City Index 2019, created by the IMD World Competitiveness Center’s Smart City Observatory, in partnership with SUTD, ranked 102 cities worldwide. The ranking focuses on how citizens perceive the priorities and effectiveness of smart city initiatives.

The top 10 cities in the IMD Smart City Index 2019 are Singapore, Zurich, Oslo, Geneva, Copenhagen, Auckland, Taipei City, Helsinki, Bilbao and Dusseldorf.

Click on the link to find out more about the 2019 IMD-SUTD Smart City Index .

Singapore named Smart City of 2018 at Smart City Expo World Congress

Singapore was named Smart City of 2018 at the Smart City Expo World Congress, the leading international summit on smart cities, in Barcelona.

Dionosio González, Director of Advocacy & Outreach at UITP, and a member of the World Smart City Awards 2018 honour jury, highlighted that Singapore came out strong for its clear strategy, its ability to implement digital initiatives nationwide, and its focus on placing citizens at the centre of its Smart Nation efforts.

Click on the link to find out more about the Smart City Expo World Congress 2018 .

Search form

Singapore: the world’s smartest city.

Share this article

We already know about the smart cities of New York  and Antwerp , but what does a smart city look like on the streets and in the homes of Singapore?

Singapore as a Smart City

Singapore is the smartest city in the world , according to the IMD’s inaugural Smart City Index .  

Its Smart Nation initiative was launched in 2014 by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, and three years later benefited from a government injection of SGD$2.4 billion (then equivalent to US$1.73 billion).  It has introduced a wide range of smart technologies in both its public and private sectors.

The aim is to create a city powered by digital innovation and technology that responds to citizens’ ever-changing needs.

Let's dig in.

5 ways Singapore is transforming its urban landscape:

#1. mobility as a shared community experience.

Land is at a premium in high-density Singapore, where just 12% has been set aside for transport infrastructure.

To optimize transport efficiency, utilizing sensor technology, the  Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star) has created an autonomous fleet to help the city’s elderly and disabled residents stay mobile.

At the same time, students at the National University of Singapore can be ferried around campus on a self-driving shuttle.

The city-state has an electronic road pricing system that uses real-time traffic data to adjust toll rates and manage traffic congestion.

And there's more.

To help with transport optimization, public data – or ‘open data’ – is being used in a trial to facilitate transport planning. Data from fare cards to sensors in more than 5,000 vehicles, and the real-time tracking of busses, is analyzed.

The result? The trial has reduced the rate of over-crowded buses by 92%. 

More: download our latest infographics  How smart is your city?

Contactless payment technology is being used to streamline the movements and payments of the 7.5 million passengers who use public transport each day. As in an increasing number of cities, commuters can pay using contactless cards or mobile wallets. 

These are just some of the many transport projects in Singapore.

The city is also running a Smart Mobility 2020 initiative , a joint venture between the Land Transport Authority of Singapore (LTA) and the Intelligent Transportation Society of Singapore, to enhance commuters’ travel experience by the development of intelligent transport systems.

Meanwhile, the Travel Smart Programme aims to more evenly distribute morning peak hour travel demand on the rail network in three ways: encouraging citizens to re-think

• when they travel,
• how they travel (for example, switching to bicycles)
• reducing the amount they travel (encouraging working remotely).

#2. Healthier citizens

By 2050, 47% of Singapore’s population will be 65 or older.

To reduce the pressure of an aging population on the city’s care services, Singapore has digitized its healthcare system . 

Singapore's e-health initiative is a comprehensive digital platform that aims to improve the quality and accessibility of healthcare services in the country. The initiative is driven by the Ministry of Health (MOH) and the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), and it involves various stakeholders in the healthcare industry, including healthcare providers, technology companies, and patients. 

The e-health platform comprises several components that work together to provide a seamless healthcare experience for patients. Some of the key components include:

HealthHub: HealthHub is an online portal that allows patients to manage their health and wellness. It provides features such as appointment booking, prescription refills, and access to medical records.

Telemedicine: Telemedicine enables patients to consult with doctors remotely through video conferencing or messaging. This can be especially useful for patients who live far from healthcare facilities or have mobility issues.

 TeleRehab: TeleRehab allows patients to undergo exercises in their own home – wearable Internet of Things (IoT) devices monitor patients’ progress and transmit the data to their therapist over a wireless network. 

Robotics in Singapore is helping to reduce loneliness in an aging population.

How is that possible?

• Artificial intelligence (AI)-powered ‘chatbots’ talk to the elderly , tell them about community activities, and integrate messages that promote healthy living.
• The AI-powered  Smart Elderly Alert System monitors and learns people’s regular movements, alerting a caregiver when something out of the ordinary occurs, and urgent care might be required.  

#3. "There's an app for that"

The phrase became increasingly familiar as smartphone use grew, and in Singapore, this couldn’t be more apt, as an estimated  90% of its population own smartphones.

The Smart Nation app is a mobile application developed by the government of Singapore to provide citizens with a one-stop platform to access a wide range of government services and information. The app is designed to simplify and streamline the way citizens interact with the government, making it easier and more convenient to access important services and information.

Some of the features of the Smart Nation app include:

Digital Identity: The app allows users to create a digital identity, which can be used to access a range of government services, such as applying for permits and licenses.

Government Services: The app provides access to a wide range of government services, including payment of fines, renewal of passports, and booking of government facilities.

Feedback and Reporting: The app allows citizens to provide feedback and report issues such as broken public facilities or incidents of littering.

Personalized Information: The app provides personalized information based on the user's location and interests, such as news and events happening in the user's vicinity.

Emergency Information: The app provides real-time updates on emergencies and incidents happening in the user's area, such as traffic accidents or natural disasters.

Overall, the Smart Nation app is an important tool for citizens of Singapore to stay connected with their government and access important services and information.

#4. Supporting business

Singapore’s Punggol Digital District merges the Singapore Institute of Technology with a business park.

This district aims to foster development in cybersecurity and IoT technologies by enabling better integration between industry and academia,

A data-sharing collaborative, the  Data Innovation Programme Office , has also been established, to encourage transparent business interactions. And businesses that transact directly with the government can now do so through CorpPass, an online hub that enhances what the city calls “cyber hygiene”.

#5. Learning to be smart

Singapore is educating using artificial intelligence, under its TechSkills Accelerator programme,  Two initiatives  – AI for Everyone and AI for Industry – led by  AI Singapore – will support the upskilling of 12,000 professionals and students in AI.

These initiatives encourage citizens to be part of the change towards the city becoming “digitally ready”, and proactively spearhead this movement. 

The city also has a digital national identity system, a Smart National Sensor Platform, and Virtual Singapore – a 3D digital model of the city that can run simulations and support future planning – to name just a few hi-tech innovations.

More resources on smart cities

• Top 7 smart cities in the world
• Top 10 smart cities in the America
• How Sustainable Cities like Singapore Succeed in Green Urban Development
• India's Smart Cities Mission: The Indian Government's program for  smart city development
• Smart cities in India:  India's smart cities  challenge nominees
• The European innovation partnership on smart cities and communities ( the European Commission )
• Smart Dubai uses a dashboard to fight COVID 19 (Smart Cities World - 10 December 2020)
• Six essential technologies that make smart cities : smart energy, transportation, data, infrastructure, mobility, and devices. TechRepublic 
• Impact of the Internet of things on smart cities  ,  KPMG
• 7 ways cities are  getting smarter  by Thales
• Smart ports : Examples around the world

Beyond smart tourism cities – towards a new generation of “wise” tourism destinations

Journal of Tourism Futures

ISSN : 2055-5911

Article publication date: 18 April 2020

Issue publication date: 2 June 2021

The purpose of this trends paper is to offer insights into the technological changes affecting our cities and urban tourism destinations, and to explore avenues for further research and practice in the context of smart tourism destinations.

Design/methodology/approach

The literature on smart cities and smart tourism destinations is analysed in view of delivering a research agenda for a new generation of “post-smart” tourism destinations, beyond existing paradigms in this field.

Smart tourism research to date is found to be lacking in terms of addressing emerging (“post-smart”) social issues increasingly faced by global tourism cities, such as growing inequalities between host communities and visitors, wellness (e.g. slow tourism and slow cities) and resilience and mental health (e.g. digital detox), among others.

Practical implications

A post-smart approach to tourism city management and marketing calls for rethinking of existing tourism and urban policies that address wider sustainability issues exemplified by the urban transitions debate as well as adopting a more holistic networked approach to smartness involving entire regions. This also calls for the development of a new research agenda in urban tourism through a new prism – the post-smart “wise” tourism destination.

Originality/value

A new tourism futures construct – the “wise” tourism destination – is posited. This is done within the context of a new (“post-smart”) generation of tourism cities. It is argued that “wise” tourism cities will require novel attributes and adopt a visionary strategic positioning well beyond today’s smart tourism destination paradigms. Additionally, a tentative research agenda for “wise” tourism cities is discussed.

• Smart tourism
• Smart cities
• Tourism cities
• Urban transitions
• Wise destinations

Coca-Stefaniak, J.A. (2021), "Beyond smart tourism cities – towards a new generation of “wise” tourism destinations", Journal of Tourism Futures , Vol. 7 No. 2, pp. 251-258. https://doi.org/10.1108/JTF-11-2019-0130

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2020, J. Andres Coca-Stefaniak.

Published in Journal of Tourism Futures . Published by Emerald Publishing Limited. This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) license. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes) subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this license may be seen at http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode

Introduction: the rise of the smart tourism destination

The pace of technological change affecting the world today is unprecedented, with advances in computing power over the past five decades following largely Moore’s Law ( Li et al. , 2019 ), which is exponential in nature. Scholars have posited that disruptive technologies ( Bower and Christensen, 1995 ) have been key catalysts in what has been termed as humanity’s “fourth industrial revolution” ( Schwab, 2017 ) led by major advances in technology, which arguably affect (nearly) every single aspect of people’s daily life ( World Economic Forum, 2016 ). The application of “smart” principles to urban environments is a well-established sphere of knowledge, spanning three decades of research and practice in smart cities ( Vanolo, 2014 ; Cocchia, 2014 ; Ramaprasad et al. , 2017 ; Lytras and Visvizi, 2018 ; Ismagilova et al. , 2019 ), focussing on a myriad of urban management aspects, including energy management ( Calvino et al. , 2016 ), environmental sustainability ( Ahvenniemi et al. , 2017 ), transport infrastructure ( Lyons, 2018 ) or governance ( Meijer and Bolivar, 2016 ), amongst other strategic challenges. In spite of this, topics such as the marketing and branding of smart cities on their own merits of “smartness” remain in their infancy ( Molinillo et al. , 2019 ) and a rich vein for further research ( Coca-Stefaniak and Seisdedos, 2020 ).

Against this backdrop, a parallel concept has started to emerge in tourism – the smart tourism destination ( Buhalis, 2000 ). In a parallel vein to that of smart cities, the concept of smart tourism destinations has evolved over time from an initial focus on technology ( Huang et al. , 2012 ; Wang et al. , 2013 ) to the enhancement of tourists’ and visitors’ experiences ( Guo et al. , 2014 ; Zhu et al. , 2014 ; Buhalis and Amaranggana, 2015 ; Boes et al. , 2016 ; Trunfio and Campana, 2019 ; Buhalis, 2020 ). Similarly, special issues on this topic have been published in 2019 in Tourism Review ( Koo et al. , 2019 ), the Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology ( Rasoolimanesh et al. , 2019 ) and, three years earlier, in the International Journal of Tourism Cities ( Boes et al. , 2016 ). However, as smart cities research and practice continue to evolve, it is becoming increasingly apparent that smart tourism destination research has a lot more to offer than a mere focus on experience design or even sustainability, including the strategic dilemma of what contribution (if any) smart tourism destinations should make to place marketing – a topic explored further in a special issue on Overtourism and the Marketing of Smart Tourism Destinations recently published in the International Journal of Tourism Cities ( Coca-Stefaniak, 2019 ). This article ponders some of the options ahead in this context and posits the need for a new generation of post-smart tourism destinations with a broader strategic positioning agenda beyond mere “smart” principles – the wise tourism destination.

The next generation of smart tourism destinations

Although a focus on experience design and delivery is likely to remain at the heart of smart tourism destination research for the foreseeable future, the convergence of smart tourism destination research with that of smart cities ( Jasrotia and Gangotia, 2018 ) is likely to result in a refocussing of tourism research in this field, including a combination of more people-centred developments ( Lara et al. , 2016 ; Johnson and Samakovlis, 2019 ) with more radical and contested approaches such as degrowth ( March, 2018 ) to address issues such as overtourism ( Dodds and Butler, 2019 ), local community alienation ( Moreno-Gil and Coca-Stefaniak, 2020 ) and altogether more sustainable futures for urban tourism destinations ( Miller et al. , 2015 ; Wise, 2016 ; Maxim, 2016 ; Potsma et al. , 2017 ). In fact, this focus on sustainable futures is being increasingly adopted as a prerequisite of “smartness” with a growing consensus on this front among scholars in urban research ( Yigitcanlar et al. , 2019 ) as well as tourism ( Vargas-Sanchez et al. , 2019 ). Furthermore, the traditional domination of the “smart” concept by urban environments has been challenged recently by a new paradigm that revolves around rural locations with the emergence of the “smart village” concept ( Visvizi and Lytras, 2018 ; or de Viron and Mudri, 2019 ), which is also set to become a rich vein for smart tourism research.

Post-smart “wise” tourism cities – towards a research agenda

Smart cities and smart tourism destinations are not a panacea. In fact, the applicability of smart initiatives to places has been critiqued on a number of fronts ( Kitchin, 2015 ; Sadowski and Bendor, 2019 ), including arguments positing that the smart city concept bears an uncanny resemblance to earlier constructs ( Hollands, 2008 ), including the entrepreneurial city. The dependence of smart tourism destinations on technology and the growing influence of social media on the brand of urban tourism destinations ( Mistilis et al. , 2014 ; Harrigan et al. , 2017 ; Gretzel and Collier de Mendonça, 2019 ; Gretzel et al. , 2019 ) have also led some scholars to question their vulnerability to new forms of terrorism ( Barbe et al. , 2018 ; Coca-Stefaniak and Morrison, 2018 ), fake news ( Cassinger et al. , 2018 ) and online data security ( Silva et al. , 2018 ), which can have a considerable negative impact on the reputation of tourism destinations in the short- and medium-term. As a result, it is becoming increasingly apparent that the future of smart cities and smart tourism destinations will be intimately linked to their resilience to future challenges [ Mboup and Oyelaran-Oyeyinka (2019) and Zhu et al. (2019) for perspectives from Africa and China, respectively], rather than merely their technological prowess. Moreover, the on-going debate of whether cities (and a number of urban destinations that herald themselves as “smart”) should reconsider their stance and become “dumb” instead ( Boulton et al. , 2011 ; Höjer and Wangel, 2015 ; Saxe, 2019 ) is unlikely to fizzle away any time soon. Regardless, and perhaps on a more serious note, issues such as overtourism ( Seraphin et al. , 2018 ; Dodds and Butler, 2019 ; Milano et al. , 2019 ), ageing populations in technologically advanced nations (e.g. Japan, China, Germany, South Korea, Spain and Italy) and the rise of inequality in some of our global (and often “smart”) cities ( Willis, 2019 ; Marchetti et al. , 2019 ), among other long-term strategic challenges, are the factors that will need to be addressed by a new generation of, arguably, “wise” cities – a concept first posited within the context of smart cities by Hambleton (2015) and Carrera (2016) .

For this “post-smart” generation of tourism destinations, one of the key challenges to be addressed relates to a fundamental change in strategic mindset. In other words, although sustainability will remain a key issue, wise tourism cities will need to look beyond it ( Young and Lieberknecht, 2019 ) through a more comprehensive understanding of developing trends, including the need for tourists and residents alike to switch off from digital media ( Jovicic, 2019 ) and perform regular digital detox routines ( Brabazon, 2016 ; Li et al. , 2018 ) to boost their mental health and resilience ( Wiederhold, 2017 ; Hunt, 2019 ). In some cases, big data analytics may be part of the solution for these needs ( Azevedo Guedes et al. , 2018 ). In other instances, slow tourism initiatives will help to deliver some of these post-smart urban destination thinking, which will become increasingly sophisticated ( Tocci, 2017 ). These topics remain underresearched in tourism, particularly when considering perspectives such as urban transitions ( Hodson et al. , 2017 ; Frantzeskaki et al. , 2017 ) and social innovation ( Baccarne et al. , 2014 ; Sauer et al. , 2016 ).

A new generation of wise tourism destinations could be the first to address these long-term challenges, often adopting a networked – though still people-centred – approach involving cooperation across a wider regional ecosystem of smart tourism destinations in a manner not dissimilar from existing urban innovation initiatives ( Ernstson et al. , 2010 ). In fact, one of the defining characteristics of wise tourism destinations will be in their ability to build on this wider more regional concept of smartness by going beyond the urban sphere and creating symbiotic relationships with nearby “smart villages” ( Visvizi and Lytras, 2018 ), which would close the loop of smart tourism research by linking the urban with the rural using a more integrated regional approach ( Gretzel, 2018 ). This is, again, a topic that very few studies have explored to date ( Garau, 2015 ).

The advent of “wise” post-smart tourism cities will require research into the strategic approaches adopted by destinations culminating in a typology that helps to classify these approaches and define the salient characteristics that delineate a “wise” tourism destination. In this respect, a quantitative indicator-based approach would help to rank these destinations along the “wise” tourism city continuum. Similarly, an assessment of their approaches to delivering long-term visionary processes beyond liveability for residents or merely satisfied visitors may require novel and more interdisciplinary research frameworks. Some of these research prisms, though, already exist and include the study of transformational and inspiring experiences ( Robledo and Batle, 2017 ) or the mechanisms involved in the development of people-centred living laboratories that foster people’s creativity and intellectual inquisitiveness ( Voytenko et al. , 2016 ). However, one of the biggest challenges for these technology-savvy destinations with an advanced (e.g. big data) understanding of human nature with all its nuances will remain to facilitate processes that empower people to achieve purposeful and fulfilling lives and, above all, addressing growing levels of loneliness among different age groups in a hyper-connected world.

In essence, wise tourism destinations will be more people-centred in their use of technology but will also seek to build their resilience by contributing to the wellness of their residents and visitors as well as adopting a wider ranging regional ecosystem approach to sustainable development and innovation. It will be attributes arising from these initiatives that will make wise tourism destinations not only more attractive to visitors as short-term destinations but also inherently more liveable and, therefore, attractive for potential new residents too. Given that these characteristics will be linked closely to the DNA or “personality” ( Coca-Stefaniak, 2013 ) of these city-regions, this will also make their marketing much more competitive as it will be based at least partly on their uniqueness and, crucially, directly related to their smartness, even if this will be a “wiser” and more advanced type of smartness than the techno-centric approaches, which continue to prevail in today’s smart city research and practice.

Ahvenniemi , H. , Huovila , A. , Pinto-Seppä , I. and Airaksinen , M. ( 2017 ), “ What are the differences between sustainable and smart cities? ”, Cities , Vol. 60 , pp. 234 - 245 .

Azevedo Guedes , A.L. , Carvalho Alvarenga , J. , Dos Santos Sgarbi Goulart , M. , Rodriguez , R. , Vicente , M. and Pereira Soares , C.A. ( 2018 ), “ Smart cities: the main drivers for increasing the intelligence of cities ”, Sustainability , Vol. 10 No. 9 , p. 3121 .

Baccarne , B. , Mechant , P. , Schuurman , D. , Colpaert , P. and De Marez , L. ( 2014 ), “ Urban socio-technical innovations with and by citizens ”, Interdisciplinary Studies Journal , Vol. 3 No. 4 , pp. 143 - 156 .

Barbe , D. , Pennington-Gray , L. and Schroeder , A. ( 2018 ), “ Destinations’ response to terrorism on Twitter ”, International Journal of Tourism Cities , Vol. 4 No. 4 , pp. 495 - 512 .

Boes , K. , Buhalis , D. and Inversini , A. ( 2016 ), “ Smart tourism destinations: ecosystems for tourism destination competitiveness ”, International Journal of Tourism Cities , Vol. 2 No. 2 , pp. 108 - 124 .

Boulton , A. , Brunn , S.D. and Devriendt , L. ( 2011 ), “ 18 Cyberinfrastructures and ‘smart’world cities: physical, human and soft infrastructures ”, International Handbook of Globalization and World Cities , Edward Elgar Publ , Cheltenham , pp. 198 - 215 .

Bower , J.L. and Christensen , C.M. ( 1995 ), “ Disruptive technologies: catching the wave ”, Harvard Business Review , Vol. 1 , pp. 27 - 37 .

Brabazon , T. ( 2016 ), Digital Dieting: From Information Obesity to Intellectual Fitness , Routledge , London .

Buhalis , D. ( 2020 ), “ Technology in tourism-from information communication technologies to eTourism and smart tourism towards ambient intelligence tourism: a perspective article ”, Tourism Review , Vol. 75 No. 1 , available at: https://doi.org/10.1108/TR-06-2019-0258

Buhalis , D. ( 2000 ), “ Marketing the competitive destination of the future ”, Tourism Management , Vol. 21 No. 1 , pp. 97 - 116 .

Buhalis , D. and Amaranggana , A. ( 2015 ), “ Smart tourism destinations enhancing tourism experience through personalisation of services ”, in Tussyadiah I. and Inversini A. (Eds), Information and Communication Technologies in Tourism , Springer , New York , pp. 377 - 389 .

Calvino , C.F. , Sánchez-Miralles , A. and Villar , J. ( 2016 ), “ Energy management and planning in smart cities ”, Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews , Vol. 55 , pp. 273 - 287 .

Carrera , F. ( 2016 ), “ Wise cities: ‘old’ big data and ‘slow’ real time ”, Built Environment , Vol. 42 No. 3 , pp. 474 - 497 .

Cassinger , C. , Eksell , J. , Mansson , M. and Thufvesson , O. ( 2018 ), “ The narrative rhythm of terror: a study of the Stockholm terrorist attack and the ‘last night in Sweden’ event ”, International Journal of Tourism Cities , Vol. 4 No. 4 , pp. 484 - 494 .

Coca-Stefaniak , J.A. ( 2013 ), Successful Town Centres: Developing Effective Strategies , Gloucester First Local Enterprise Partnership , London .

Coca-Stefaniak , J.A. ( 2019 ), “ Marketing smart tourism destinations – a strategic dilemma ”, International Journal of Tourism Cities , Vol. 5 No. 4 , pp. 513 - 518 .

Coca-Stefaniak , J.A. and Morrison , A.M. ( 2018 ), “ City tourism destinations and terrorism–a worrying trend for now, but could it get worse? ”, International Journal of Tourism Cities , Vol. 4 No. 4 , pp. 409 - 412 .

Coca-Stefaniak , J.A. and Seisdedos , G. ( 2020 ), “ Smart urban tourism destinations at a crossroads – when ‘smart’ and urban are no longer enough ”, in Morrison A.M. and Coca-Stefaniak J.A. (Eds), Routledge Handbook of Tourism Cities , Routledge , London .

Cocchia , A. ( 2014 ), “ Smart and digital city: a systematic literature review ”, in Dameri R.P. and Rosenthal-Sabroux C. (Eds), Smart City – How to Create Public and Economic Value with High Technology in Urban Space , Springer International Publ , New York, NY , pp. 13 - 43 .

de Viron , C.K. and Mudri , G. ( 2019 ), “ Integrated approach to sustainable EU smart villages policies ”, Smart Villages in the EU and Beyond , Emerald Publication , Bingley , pp. 13 - 27 .

Dodds , R. and Butler , R. ( 2019 ), “ The phenomena of overtourism: a review ”, International Journal of Tourism Cities , Vol. 5 No. 4 , pp. 519 - 528 .

Ernstson , H. , Van der Leeuw , S.E. , Redman , C.L. , Meffert , D.J. , Davis , G. , Alfsen , C. and Elmqvist , T. ( 2010 ), “ Urban transitions: on urban resilience and human-dominated ecosystems ”, AMBIO , Vol. 39 No. 8 , pp. 531 - 545 .

Frantzeskaki , N. , Broto , V.C. , Coenen , L. and Loorbach , D. ( 2017 ), (eds) Urban Sustainability Transitions , Vol. 5 , Taylor & Francis Publication , London .

Garau , C. ( 2015 ), “ Perspectives on cultural and sustainable rural tourism in a smart region: the case study of Marmilla in Sardinia (Italy) ”, Sustainability , Vol. 7 No. 6 , pp. 6412 - 6434 .

Gretzel , U. ( 2018 ), “ From smart destinations to smart tourism regions ”, Investigaciones Regionales , Vol. 42 , pp. 171 - 184 .

Gretzel , U. and Collier de Mendonça , M. ( 2019 ), “ Smart destination brands: semiotic analysis of visual and verbal signs ”, International Journal of Tourism Cities , Vol. 5 No. 4 , pp. 560 - 580 .

Gretzel , U. , Zarezadeh , Z. , Li , Y. and Xiang , Z. ( 2019 ), “ The evolution of travel information search research: a perspective article ”, Tourism Review , Vol. 75 No. 1 , available at: https://doi.org/10.1108/TR-06-2019-0279

Guo , Y. , Liu , H. and Chai , Y. ( 2014 ), “ The embedding convergence of smart cities and tourism internet of things in China: an advance perspective ”, Advances in Hospitality and Tourism Research , Vol. 2 No. 1 , pp. 54 - 69 .

Hambleton , R. ( 2015 ), “ From smart cities to wise cities ”, AAG Annual Meeting , Chicago, IL , 21-26 April .

Harrigan , P. , Evers , U. , Miles , M. and Daly , T. ( 2017 ), “ Customer engagement with tourism social media brands ”, Tourism Management , Vol. 59 , pp. 597 - 609 .

Hodson , M. , Geels , F. and McMeekin , A. ( 2017 ), “ Reconfiguring urban sustainability transitions, analysing multiplicity ”, Sustainability , Vol. 9 No. 2 , pp. 1 - 20 .

Höjer , M. and Wangel , J. ( 2015 ), “ Smart sustainable cities: definition and challenges ”, ICT Innovations for Sustainability , Springer , Boston , pp. 333 - 349 .

Hollands , R.G. ( 2008 ), “ Will the real smart city please stand up? ”, City , Vol. 12 No. 3 , pp. 303 - 320 .

Huang , X.K. , Yuan , J.Z. and Shi , M.Y. ( 2012 ), “ Condition and key issues analysis on the smarter tourism construction in China ”, Multimedia and Signal Processing , Springer Publiction , Berlin : pp. 444 - 450 .

Hunt , E. ( 2019 ), “ Blue spaces: why time spent near water is the secret to happiness ”, The Guardian, 3 November , available at: www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2019/nov/03/blue-space-living-near-water-good-secret-of-happiness (accessed 4 November 2019 ).

Ismagilova , E. , Hughes , L. , Dwivedi , Y.K. and Raman , K.R. ( 2019 ), “ Smart cities: advances in research – an information systems perspective ”, International Journal of Information Management , Vol. 47 , pp. 88 - 100 .

Jasrotia , A. and Gangotia , A. ( 2018 ), “ Smart cities to smart tourism destinations: a review paper ”, Journal of Tourism Intelligence and Smartness , Vol. 1 No. 1 , pp. 47 - 56 .

Johnson , A. and Samakovlis , I. ( 2019 ), “ A bibliometric analysis of knowledge development in smart tourism research ”, Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology , Vol. 10 No. 4 , available at: https://doi.org/10.1108/JHTT-07-2018-0065

Jovicic , D.Z. ( 2019 ), “ From the traditional understanding of tourism destination to the smart tourism destination ”, Current Issues in Tourism , Vol. 22 No. 3 , pp. 276 - 282 .

Kitchin , R. ( 2015 ), “ Making sense of smart cities: addressing present shortcomings ”, Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society , Vol. 8 No. 1 , pp. 131 - 136 .

Koo , C. , Mendes Filho , L. and Buhalis , D. ( 2019 ), “ Smart tourism and competitive advantage for stakeholders ”, Tourism Review , Vol. 74 No. 1 , pp. 1 - 128 .

Lara , A.P. , Da Costa , E.M. , Furlani , T.Z. and Yigitcanla , T. ( 2016 ), “ Smartness that matters: towards a comprehensive and human-centred characterisation of smart cities ”, Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity , Vol. 2 No. 1 , p. 8 .

Li , J. , Pearce , P.L. and Low , D. ( 2018 ), “ Media representation of digital-free tourism: a critical discourse analysis ”, Tourism Management , Vol. 69 , pp. 317 - 329 .

Li , M.Y. , Su , S.K. , Wong , H.S.P. and Li , L.J. ( 2019 ), “ How 2D semiconductors could extend Moore’s law ”, Nature , Vol. 567 No. 7747 , pp. 169 - 170 .

Lyons , G. ( 2018 ), “ Getting smart about urban mobility–aligning the paradigms of smart and sustainable ”, Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice , Vol. 115 , pp. 4 - 14 .

Lytras , M. and Visvizi , A. ( 2018 ), “ Who uses smart city services and what to make of it: toward interdisciplinary smart cities research ”, Sustainability , Vol. 10 No. 6 , pp. 1998 .

March , H. ( 2018 ), “ The smart city and other ICT-led techno-imaginaries: any room for dialogue with degrowth? ”, Journal of Cleaner Production , Vol. 197 , pp. 1694 - 1703 .

Marchetti , D. , Oliveira , R. and Figueira , A.R. ( 2019 ), “ Are global North smart city models capable to assess Latin American cities? A model and indicators for a new context ”, Cities , Vol. 92 , pp. 197 - 207 .

Maxim , C. ( 2016 ), “ Sustainable tourism implementation in urban areas: a case study of London ”, Journal of Sustainable Tourism , Vol. 24 No. 7 , pp. 971 - 989 .

Mboup , G. and Oyelaran-Oyeyinka , B. (Eds) ( 2019 ), Smart Economy in Smart African Cities: sustainable, Inclusive, Resilient and Prosperous , Springer , New York, NY .

Meijer , A. and Bolivar , M.P.R. ( 2016 ), “ Governing the smart city: a review of the literature on smart urban governance ”, International Review of Administrative Sciences , Vol. 82 No. 2 , pp. 392 - 408 .

Milano , C. , Cheer , J.M. and Novelli , M. (Eds) ( 2019 ), Overtourism: Excesses, Discontents and Measures in Travel and Tourism , CABI , Wallingford .

Miller , D. , Merrilees , B. and Coghlan , A. ( 2015 ), “ Sustainable urban tourism: understanding and developing visitor pro-environmental behaviours ”, Journal of Sustainable Tourism , Vol. 23 No. 1 , pp. 26 - 46 .

Mistilis , N. , Buhalis , D. and Gretzel , U. ( 2014 ), “ eDestination marketing of the future: the perspective of an Australian tourism stakeholder network ”, Journal Travel Research , Vol. 53 , pp. 1 - 13 .

Molinillo , S. , Anaya-Sánchez , R. , Morrison , A.M. and Coca-Stefaniak , J.A. ( 2019 ), “ Smart city communication via social media: analysing residents’ and visitors’ engagement ”, Cities , Vol. 94 , pp. 247 - 255 .

Moreno-Gil , S. and Coca-Stefaniak , J.A. ( 2020 ), “ Overtourism and the sharing economy – tourism cities at a crossroads ”, International Journal of Tourism Cities , Vol. 6 No. 1 .

Potsma , A. , Cavagnaro , E. and Spruyt , E. ( 2017 ), “ Sustainable tourism 2040 ”, Journal of Tourism Futures , Vol. 3 No. 1 , pp. 13 - 22 .

Ramaprasad , A. , Sánchez-Ortiz , A. and Syn , T. ( 2017 ), “ A unified definition of a smart city ”, International Conference on Electronic Government , Springer , London , pp. 13 - 24 .

Rasoolimanesh , S.M. , Law , R. , Buhalis , D. and Cobanoglu , C. ( 2019 ), “ Progress on information technology in hospitality and tourism ”, Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology , Vol. 10 No. 4 , pp. 481 - 844 .

Robledo , M.A. and Batle , J. ( 2017 ), “ Transformational tourism as a hero’s journey ”, Current Issues in Tourism , Vol. 20 No. 16 , pp. 1736 - 1748 .

Sadowski , J. and Bendor , R. ( 2019 ), “ Selling smartness: corporate narratives and the smart city as a sociotechnical imaginary ”, Science, Technology, & Human Values , Vol. 44 No. 3 , pp. 540 - 563 .

Sauer , T. , Elsen , S. and Garzillo , C. (Eds) ( 2016 ), Cities in Transition: Social Innovation for Europe’s Urban Sustainability , Routledge , London .

Saxe , S. ( 2019 ), “ I’m an engineer, and I’m not buying into ‘smart’ cities ”, The New York Times , 16 July , available at: www.nytimes.com/2019/07/16/opinion/smart-cities.html (accessed 1 November 2019 ).

Schwab , K. ( 2017 ), “ The fourth industrial revolution ”, Currency. [find full reference]

Seraphin , H. , Sheeran , P. and Pilato , M. ( 2018 ), “ Over-tourism and the fall of Venice as a destination ”, Journal of Destination Marketing & Management , Vol. 9 , pp. 374 - 376 .

Silva , B.N. , Khan , M. and Han , K. ( 2018 ), “ Towards sustainable smart cities: a review of trends, architectures, components, and open challenges in smart cities ”, Sustainable Cities and Society , Vol. 38 , pp. 697 - 713 .

Tocci , G. ( 2017 ), “ Slow and intelligent cities: when slow is also smart ”, In: Slow Tourism, Food and Cities , Routledge , London : pp. 126 - 144 .

Trunfio , M. and Campana , S. ( 2019 ), “ Drivers and emerging innovations in knowledge-based destinations: towards a research agenda ”, Journal of Destination Marketing & Management , Vol. 14 , pp. 100 - 370 .

Vanolo , A. ( 2014 ), “ Smartmentality: the smart city as disciplinary strategy ”, Urban Studies , Vol. 51 No. 5 , pp. 883 - 898 .

Vargas-Sanchez , A. , Abbate , T. and Perano , M. ( 2019 ), “ Smart destinations: towards a more sustainable tourism industry ”, Management and Sustainability: Creating Shared Value in the Digital Era, Sinergie-SIMA Conference , Sapienza University , Rome , 20-21 June , pp. 95 - 112 .

Visvizi , A. and Lytras , M.D. ( 2018 ), “ Rescaling and refocusing smart cities research: from mega cities to smart villages ”, Journal of Science and Technology Policy Management , Vol. 9 No. 2 , pp. 134 - 145 .

Voytenko , Y. , McCormick , K. , Evans , J. and Schliwa , G. ( 2016 ), “ Urban living labs for sustainability and low carbon cities in Europe: towards a research agenda ”, Journal of Cleaner Production , Vol. 123 , pp. 45 - 54 .

Wang , D. , Li , X. and Li , Y. ( 2013 ), “ China’s ‘smart tourism destination’ initiative: a taste of the service-dominant logic ”, Journal of Destination Marketing & Management , Vol. 2 No. 2 , pp. 59 - 61 .

Wiederhold , B.K. ( 2017 ), “ How digital anxieties are shaping the next generation’s mental health ”, Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking , Vol. 20 No. 11 , p. 661 .

Willis , K.S. ( 2019 ), “ Whose right to the smart city ?”, The Right to the Smart City , Emerald Publ ., Bingley : pp. 27 - 41 .

Wise , N. ( 2016 ), “ Outlining triple bottom line contexts in urban tourism regeneration ”, Cities , Vol. 53 , pp. 30 - 34 .

World Economic Forum ( 2016 ), “ The future of jobs: employment, skills and workforce strategy for the fourth industrial revolution ”, Global Challenge Insight Report , World Economic Forum , Geneva .

Yigitcanlar , T. , Kamruzzaman , M. , Foth , M. , Sabatini-Marques , J. , da Costa , E. and Ioppolo , G. ( 2019 ), “ Can cities become smart without being sustainable? A systematic review of the literature ”, Sustainable Cities and Society , Vol. 45 , pp. 348 - 365 .

Young , R.F. and Lieberknecht , K. ( 2019 ), “ From smart cities to wise cities: ecological wisdom as a basis for sustainable urban development ”, Journal of Environmental Planning and Management , Vol. 62 No. 10 , pp. 1675 - 1692 .

Zhu , S. , Li , D. and Feng , H. ( 2019 ), “ Is smart city resilient? Evidence from China ”, Sustainable Cities and Society , Vol. 1 , pp. 101 - 636 .

Zhu , W. , Zhang , L. and Li , N. ( 2014 ), “ Challenges, function changing of government and enterprises in Chinese smart tourism ”, in Xiang Z. and Tussyadiah L. (eds.), Information and Communication Technologies in Tourism , Springer Publication , Dublin .

Corresponding author

About the author.

Dr J. Andres Coca-Stefaniak is based at the Department of Marketing, Events and Tourism, University of Greenwich, London, UK. He is an Associate Professor of Tourism and Events at the University of Greenwich (UK) and advisor to the China-based World Tourism Cities Federation. He is Co-editor-in-chief of the International Journal of Tourism Cities and formerly Head of Research, Thought Leadership and International Partnerships at the Association of Town and City Management. His research interests include urban tourism, place marketing and branding, smart tourism destinations, smart cities, the management and competitiveness of places (including high streets and town centres) and the management of sustainability in events and tourism destinations. Andres has an 18-year track record of securing and managing large EU-funded projects with combined budgets to date in excess of €12m and serves on the editorial boards of various journals, including the Journal of Tourism Futures, Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Research Sustainability and the Journal of Place Management and Development , among others. He is Co-editor (with Professor Alastair M Morrison) of the Routledge Handbook of Tourism Cities , due to be published in the Summer/Autumn of 2020.

Related articles

We’re listening — tell us what you think, something didn’t work….

Report bugs here

All feedback is valuable

Please share your general feedback

Join us on our journey

Platform update page.

Visit emeraldpublishing.com/platformupdate to discover the latest news and updates

Questions & More Information

Answers to the most commonly asked questions here

Handbook of Technology Application in Tourism in Asia pp 451–470 Cite as

Technology in Smart Tourism: Concepts and Applications

• Hengky Sumisto Halim 2  
• Reference work entry
• First Online: 10 July 2022

887 Accesses

The development of tourism competitiveness at this time is largely determined by the support of technology applications in terms of tourism information communication between tourists. Ease of access ranging from transportation’s order transaction information (aircraft transportation, ships, and online taxis), accommodation (resort or five-star hotel), destinations, and events are subjects for consideration. This book chapter discusses the concept of smart tourism supported by information communication technology. These two parameters are an element of the strength of the attraction of cultural tourism and tourist sites, which are equipped with the potential for handicrafts supported by the potential strength of culinary tourism (gastronomy). This book chapter also discusses the potential of information technology that increases tourism competitiveness and hospitality with ease and friendliness, which contributes to strengthen the factor of choice of tourists for tourist travel decisions. In addition, the strength of future tourism market trends is caused by industrial innovation and shifting tourist behavior due to communication technology support. All this greatly increases the potential for smart tourism.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution .

Buying options

• Available as PDF
• Read on any device
• Instant download
• Own it forever
• Available as EPUB and PDF
• Durable hardcover edition
• Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
• Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Adeola, O., & Evans, O. (2019). ICT, infrastructure, and tourism development in Africa. Tourism Economics, 26 (1), 97–114.

Article   Google Scholar  

Ahmad, I., & Mohan Agrawal, A. (2012). An empirical study of problems in implementation of electronic commerce in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. International Journal of Business and Management, 7 (15), 70.

Al Mulla, S., & Nobanee, H. (2020). Green Banking: A Mini-Review. SSRN Electronic Journal . Retrieved from: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3538658 . Accessed 1 June 2020.

Alford, P., & Clarke, S. (2009). Information technology and tourism a theoretical critique. Technovation, 29 (9), 580–587.

Anwar, S., & Hamilton, J. (2005). Tourism into the future - Towards 2020, and beyond. Tourism Recreation Research, 30 (3), 77–85.

Arsenault, J., Dresselhaus, A., Tokoro, S., & Twardowski, K. (2020). The authentication landscape in 2019: One does not simply walk into order. Serials Librarian .

Google Scholar  

Bettinger, P., & Merry, K. (2019). Land cover transitions in the United States South: 2007–2013. Applied Geography, 105 , 102–110.

Bueno, A. R., Urbistondo, P. A., & del Alcázar Martínez, B. (2020). The MICE tourism value chain: Proposal of a conceptual framework and analysis of disintermediation. Journal of Convention and Event Tourism, 21 (3), 177–200.

Buhalis, D. (2019). Technology in tourism-from information communication technologies to eTourism and smart tourism towards ambient intelligence tourism: A perspective article. Tourism Review, 75 (1), 267–272.

Buhalis, D., & Amaranggana, A. (2015). Smart tourism destinations enhancing tourism experience through personalisation of services. In I. Tussyadiah & A. Inversini (Eds.), Information and communication technologies in tourism 2015 (pp. 377–389). Springer.

Buhalis, D., & Cheng, E. S. Y. (2020). Exploring the use of Chatbots in Hotels: Technology providers’ perspective. In J. Neidhardt & W. Wörndl (Eds.), Information and communication technologies in tourism 2020 (pp. 231–242). Springer.

Chapter   Google Scholar  

Buhalis, D., Harwood, T., Bogicevic, V., Viglia, G., Beldona, S., & Hofacker, C. (2019). Technological disruptions in services: lessons from tourism and hospitality. Journal of Service Management, 30 (4), 484–506.

Buhalis, D., & O’Connor, P. (2005). Information communication technology revolutionizing tourism. Tourism Recreation, 30 (3), 7–16.

Ciftci, O., Choi, E. K., & Berezina, K. (2020). Customer intention to use facial recognition technology at quick-service restaurants. e-Review of Tourism Research, 17 (5), 753–763.

Davidovic, V., Ilijevic, D., Luk, V., & Pogarcic, I. (2015). Private cloud computing and delegation of control. Procedia Engineering, 100 (January), 196–205.

Dwyer, L., Edwards, D., Mistilis, N., Roman, C., Scott, N., & Cooper, C. (2008). Megatrends underpinning tourism to 2020: Analysis of key drivers for change . CRC for Sustainable Tourism Pty Ltd.

Edmunds, M., Hass, C., & Holve, E. (2019). Back to the future: Emerging technology, social, and cultural trends affecting consumer informatics. In M. Edmunds, C. Hass, & E. Holve (Eds.), Consumer informatics and digital health (pp. 377–398). Springer.

Fan, A., Wu, L., (Laurie), Miao, L., & Mattila, A. S. (2020). When does technology anthropomorphism help alleviate customer dissatisfaction after a service failure? – The moderating role of consumer technology self-efficacy and interdependent self-construal. Journal of Hospitality Marketing & Management, 29 (3), 269–290.

Feijóo, C., Gómez-Barroso, J. L., Ramos, S., & Rojo-Alonso, D. (2006). Active policy measures against the digital divide based on mobile/wireless connectivity development: The Latvian experience. International Journal of Mobile Communications, 4 (6), 727–742.

GENÇ, R. (2020). Artificial intelligence and the development of smart tourism. Journal of Tourism and Hospitality Education, 10 , 1–7.

González-Rodríguez, M. R., Díaz-Fernández, M. C., & Gómez, C. P. (2020). Facial-expression recognition: An emergent approach to the measurement of tourist satisfaction through emotions. Telematics and Informatics, 51 , 101404.

Gretzel, U., Sigala, M., Xiang, Z., & Koo, C. (2015). Smart tourism: foundations and developments. Electronic Markets, 25 (3), 179–188.

Gretzel, U., Zhong, L., & Koo, C. (2016). Application of smart tourism to cities. International Journal of Tourism Cities, 2 (2).

Halaweh, M. (2019). Model of Emerging Technology Adoption (META): Virtual reality as a case study. Journal of Information and Knowledge Management, 18 (2), 1950020.

Haldén, F. J., & Yao Håkansson, J. (2020). A comparison between Chatbots for handling administrative healthcare tasks . Retrieved from: http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:kth:diva-269421 . Accessed 1 June 2020.

Huang, W., Wang, P., Lv, L., Wang, L., & Wang, H. H. (2020). An inventive high-performance computing electronic information system for professional postgraduate training. International Journal of Computers and Applications, 42 (4), 422–428.

Huang, Y. C., Backman, K. F., Backman, S. J., & Chang, L. L. (2016). Exploring the implications of virtual reality technology in tourism marketing: An integrated research framework. International Journal of Tourism Research, 18 (2), 116–128.

Inanc-Demir, M., & Kozak, M. (2019). Big data and its supporting elements: Implications for tourism and hospitality marketing. In M. Sigala, R. Rahimi, & M. Thelwall (Eds.), Big data and innovation in tourism, travel, and hospitality: Managerial approaches, techniques, and applications (pp. 213–223). Springer.

Isler, C. A., & Widmer, J. A. (2020). Parallel genetic algorithm and high performance computing to solve the intercity railway alignment optimization problem. In M. Marinov & J. Piip (Eds.), Sustainable rail transport. Lecture notes in mobility (pp. 159–186). Springer.

Ivanov, S. (2020). The first Chatbot of a tourism/hospitality journal: Editor’s impressions. European Journal of Tourism Research, 24 , 1–6.

Jovicic, D. Z. (2019). From the traditional understanding of tourism destination to the smart tourism destination. Current Issues in Tourism, 22 , 276–282.

Khan, M. S., Woo, M., Nam, K., & Chathoth, P. K. (2017). Smart city and smart tourism: A case of Dubai. Sustainability, 9 (12), 2279.

Khezri, K., Saeedi, M., Morteza-Semnani, K., Akbari, J., & Rostamkalaei, S. S. (2020). An emerging technology in lipid research for targeting hydrophilic drugs to the skin in the treatment of hyperpigmentation disorders: kojic acid-solid lipid nanoparticles. Artificial Cells, Nanomedicine, and Biotechnology, 48 (1), 841–853.

Kim. (2017). A semantic network analysis of big data regarding food exhibition at convention center. Culinary Science and Hospitality Research, 24 (3), 22–32.

Kim, D., & Kim, S. (2017). The role of mobile technology in tourism: Patents, articles, news, and mobile tour app reviews. Sustainability, 9 (11), 2082.

Kim, S., Park, S., Sun, M.-R., & Lee, J.-H. (2016). A study of smart beacon-based meeting, incentive trip, convention, exhibition and event (MICE) services using big data. Procedia Computer Science, 91 , 761–768.

Kim, Y., Kim, C.-k., Lee, D. K., Lee, H.-w., & Andrada, R. I. T. (2019). Quantifying nature-based tourism in protected areas in developing countries by using social big data. Tourism Management, 72 , 249–256.

Kusumawardani, A. M., & Aruan, D. T. H. (2019). Comparing the effects of service quality and value-for-money on customer satisfaction, airline image and behavioural intention between full-service and low-cost airlines: Evidence from Indonesia. International Journal of Tourism Policy, 9 (1), 27–49.

Lama, S., Pradhan, S., & Shrestha, A. (2020). Exploration and implication of factors affecting e-tourism adoption in developing countries: a case of Nepal. Information Technology and Tourism, 22 (1), 5–32.

Li, Y., Hu, C., Huang, C., & Duan, L. (2017). The concept of smart tourism in the context of tourism information services. Tourism Management, 58 , 293–300.

Li, Z., Yang, C., Liu, K., Hu, F., & Jin, B. (2016). Automatic scaling hadoop in the cloud for efficient process of big geospatial data. ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information, 5 (10), 173.

Liao, T. (2016). Is it “augmented reality”? Contesting boundary work over the definitions and organizing visions for an emerging technology across field-configuring events. Information and Organization, 26 (3), 45–62.

Line, N. D., Dogru, T., El-Manstrly, D., Buoye, A., Malthouse, E., & Kandampully, J. (2020). Control, use and ownership of big data: A reciprocal view of customer big data value in the hospitality and tourism industry. Tourism Management, 80 , 104106.

Liu, Y., Teichert, T., Rossi, M., Li, H., & Hu, F. (2017). Big data for big insights: Investigating language-specific drivers of hotel satisfaction with 412,784 user-generated reviews. Tourism Management, 59 , 554–563.

Mariani, M., Baggio, R., Fuchs, M., & Höepken, W. (2018). Business intelligence and big data in hospitality and tourism: a systematic literature review. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 30 , 3514–3554.

Melián-González, S., Gutiérrez-Taño, D., & Bulchand-Gidumal, J. (2019). Predicting the intentions to use chatbots for travel and tourism. Current Issues in Tourism .

More, N., Nikam, V. B., & Banerjee, B. (2020). Machine learning on high performance computing for urban greenspace change detection: Satellite image data fusion approach. International Journal of Image and Data Fusion .

Moreno, I. S., & Xu, J. (2011). Customer-aware resource overallocation to improve energy efficiency in realtime Cloud Computing data centers. In 2011 IEEE International Conference on Service-Oriented Computing and Applications (SOCA) (pp. 1–8).

Natalia, S. (2017). The internationalization of the Meetings-, Incentives-, Conventions- and Exhibitions- (MICE) industry: Its influences on the actors in the tourism business activity. Journal of Economics & Management, 27 , 96–103.

Navío-Marco, J., Ruiz-Gómez, L. M., & Sevilla-Sevilla, C. (2018). Progress in information technology and tourism management: 30 years on and 20 years after the internet - Revisiting Buhalis & Law’s landmark study about eTourism. Tourism Management, 69 , 460–470.

Neuhofer, B., Buhalis, D., & Ladkin, A. (2015). Smart technologies for personalized experiences: a case study in the hospitality domain. Electronic Markets, 25 (3), 243–254.

Nuryyev, G., Wang, Y.-P., Achyldurdyyeva, J., Jaw, B.-S., Yeh, Y.-S., Lin, H.-T., & Wu, L.-F. (2020). Blockchain Technology Adoption Behavior and Sustainability of the Business in Tourism and Hospitality SMEs: An Empirical Study. Sustainability, 12 (3), 1256.

Ølnes, S. (2016). Beyond bitcoin enabling smart government using blockchain technology. In H. J. Scholl, O. Glassey, M. Janssen, B. Klievink, I. Lindgren, P. Parycek, E. Tambouris, M. A. Wimmer, T. Janowski, & D. S. Soares (Eds.), Electronic Government. EGOV 2016. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 9820 (pp. 253–264). Springer.

Parwekar, P., & Gupta, G. (2020). Cloud data for marketing in tourism sector. Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies, 165 , 143–153.

Peceny, S. U., Urbančič, J., Mokorel, S., Kuralt, V., & Ilijaš, T. (2020). Tourism 4.0: Challenges in Marketing a Paradigm Shift . Retrieved from: https://www.intechopen.com/books/consumer-behavior-and-marketing/tourism-4-0-challenges-in-marketing-a-paradigm-shift . Accessed 1 June 2020.

Pesonen, J., & Horster, E. (2012). Near field communication technology in tourism. Tourism Management Perspectives, 4 , 11–18.

Pesonen, J., Komppula, R., & Riihinen, A. (2015). Typology of senior travellers as users of tourism information technology. Information Technology and Tourism, 15 (3), 233–252.

Prasath, J. S., Ramachandraiah, U., & Muthukumaran, G. (2020). Modified hardware security algorithms for process industries using internet of things. Journal of Applied Security Research .

Prentice, C., Opes, S. D., & Wang, X. (2020a). Emotional intelligence or artificial intelligence– an employee perspective. Journal of Hospitality Marketing and Management, 29 (4), 377–403.

Prentice, C., Lopes, S. D., & Wang, X. (2020b). The impact of artificial intelligence and employee service quality on customer satisfaction and loyalty. Journal of Hospitality Marketing and Management .

Puertas-Martín, S., Banegas-Luna, A. J., Paredes-Ramos, M., Redondo, J. L., Ortigosa, P. M., Brovarets, O. O., & Pérez-Sánchez, H. (2020). Is high performance computing a requirement for novel drug discovery and how will this impact academic efforts? Expert Opinion on Drug Discovery .

Qu, T., Lei, S. P., Wang, Z. Z., Nie, D. X., Chen, X., & Huang, G. Q. (2016). IoT-based real-time production logistics synchronization system under smart cloud manufacturing. International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Technology, 84 (1–4), 147–164.

Rajan, K., & Saffiotti, A. (2017). Towards a science of integrated AI and Robotics. Artificial Intelligence, 247 , 1–9.

Raut, R. D., Gardas, B. B., Jha, M. K., & Priyadarshinee, P. (2017). Examining the critical success factors of cloud computing adoption in the MSMEs by using ISM model. Journal of High Technology Management Research, 28 (2), 125–141.

Ross, P. K., & Blumenstein, M. (2015). Cloud computing as a facilitator of SME entrepreneurship. Technology Analysis and Strategic Management, 27 (1), 87–101.

Saglam, R. B., & Nurse, J. R. C. (2020). Is your chatbot GDPR compliant? Open issues in agent design . Retrieved from: http://arxiv.org/abs/2005.12644 . Accessed 2 June 2020.

Sánchez, L., Lanza, J., & Muñoz, L. (2020). From the internet of things to the social innovation and the economy of data. Wireless Personal Communications , 1–15.

Singh, H., Garg, R. D., Karnatak, H. C., & Roy, A. (2019). Spatial biodiversity modeling using high-performance computing cluster: A case study to access biological richness in Indian landscape. Geocarto International .

Sivarajah, U., Kamal, M. M., Irani, Z., & Weerakkody, V. (2017). Critical analysis of Big Data challenges and analytical methods. Journal of Business Research, 70 , 263–286.

Song, H., & Liu, H. (2017). Predicting tourist demand using big data . In Z. Xiang & D. R. Fesenmaier (Eds.), Analytics in smart tourism design: Concepts and methods . Springer.

Steinbauer, A., & Werthner, H. (2007). Consumer behaviour in e-Tourism. In M. Sigala, L. Mich, & J. Murphy (Eds.), Information and communication technologies in tourism 2007 (pp. 65–76). Springer.

Timms, M. J. (2016). Letting artificial intelligence in education out of the box: Educational cobots and smart classrooms. International Journal of Artificial Intelligence in Education, 26 (2), 701–712.

Tussyadiah, I. P., Jung, T. H., & Tom Dieck, M. C. (2018). Embodiment of wearable augmented reality technology in tourism experiences. Journal of Travel Research, 57 (5), 597–611.

Ukpabi, D. C., Aslam, B., & Karjaluoto, H. (2019). Chatbot adoption in tourism services: A conceptual exploration. In C. Webster & S. Ivanov (Eds.), Robots, artificial intelligence, and service automation in travel, tourism and hospitality (pp. 105–121). Emerald.

Underwood, S. (2016). Blockchain beyond bitcoin. Communications of the ACM, 59 (11), 15–17.

Del Vecchio, P., Mele, G., Ndou, V., & Secundo, G. (2018). Creating value from social big data: Implications for smart tourism destinations. Information Processing and Management, 54 (5), 847–860.

Webster, C., & Ivanov, S. (2020). Robotics, artificial intelligence, and the evolving nature of work. In B. George & J. Paul (Eds.), Digital transformation in business and society (pp. 127–143). Springer.

Willie, P. (2019). Can all sectors of the hospitality and tourism industry be influenced by the innovation of Blockchain technology? Worldwide Hospitality and Tourism Themes, 11 (2), 112–120.

Xiang, Z. (2018). From digitization to the age of acceleration: On information technology and tourism. Tourism Management Perspectives, 25 , 147–150.

Xiang, Z., Du, Q., Ma, Y., & an Fan, W. (2017). A comparative analysis of major online review platforms: Implications for social media analytics in hospitality and tourism. Tourism Management, 58 , 51–65.

Xiang, Z., Schwartz, Z., Gerdes, J. H., & Uysal, M. (2015). What can big data and text analytics tell us about hotel guest experience and satisfaction? International Journal of Hospitality Management, 44 , 120–130.

Xu, F., Nash, N., & Whitmarsh, L. (2020). Big data or small data? A methodological review of sustainable tourism. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 28 (2), 147–166.

Yang, C., Huang, Q., Li, Z., Liu, K., & Hu, F. (2017). Big Data and cloud computing: innovation opportunities and challenges. International Journal of Digital Earth, 10 (1), 13–53.

Yassine, H. M., & Shah, Z. (2020). Hadi M Yassine & Zubair Shah (2020) How could artificial intelligence aid in the fight against coronavirus? Expert Review of Anti-infective Therapy, 18 (6), 493–497.

Zhong, R. Y., Newman, S. T., Huang, G. Q., & Lan, S. (2016). Big Data for supply chain management in the service and manufacturing sectors: Challenges, opportunities, and future perspectives. Computers and Industrial Engineering, 101 , 572–591.

Download references

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

Bina Darma University, Palembang, Indonesia

Hengky Sumisto Halim

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Editor information

Editors and affiliations.

Tourism Consultants Network, The Tourism Society, London, UK

Azizul Hassan

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2022 Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

About this entry

Cite this entry.

Halim, H.S. (2022). Technology in Smart Tourism: Concepts and Applications. In: Hassan, A. (eds) Handbook of Technology Application in Tourism in Asia. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-2210-6_21

Download citation

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-2210-6_21

Published : 10 July 2022

Publisher Name : Springer, Singapore

Print ISBN : 978-981-16-2209-0

Online ISBN : 978-981-16-2210-6

eBook Packages : Business and Management Reference Module Humanities and Social Sciences Reference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences

Share this entry

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

• Publish with us

Policies and ethics

• Find a journal
• Track your research

CenterSmartTourism

HOME » FOR TOURISTS » Destinations for Smart Tourism

THE SMART CITIES

We present to your attention a list of cities that are most suitable for independent travel. In our opinion, these cities can be called smart cities. It means that they provide a sufficient number of online services for smart travel. Using your mobile device, you can find in each of these cities everything you need for a complete travel.

Many experts who study the impact of high technology on the population recognize Singapore as one of the smartest cities in the world.

Amsterdam is known as the Smart city capital because it has more than 200 mobile apps from toilet map to canals scheme.

Greece capital fits the requirements of Smart city, you can plan your travel to Athens yourself following links on our website.

Bangkok is great for smart tourism. Due to the wide range of Internet services we can say with confidence it is a smart city.

Like any other tourist city, there are big queues. We recommend to buy tickets online. It is simple as Barcelona is a Smart city and friendly for Smart tourism.

Berlin is a Smart City. Smart Tourism is very popular here. You can easily make a trip to this distinctive city yourself.

Budapest is perfect for independent travel, and links on our website will help you to plan it.

• Expert Opinion
• Tourism Technology News
• Destination News
• Ecology and Sustainability

FOR TOURISTS

• Technologies for Tourists
• Mobile Technologies
• A Responsible Tourist
• Destinations for Smart Tourism
• Useful Tips
• Travel Bloggers

FOR TOURISM ORGANISATIONS

• Open Lessons on Smart Tourism
• Educational and Methodical Materials
• Consultations
• Audit and Monitoring of Online Work
• Technologies for Business
• Production of Audio Guides
• Our Initiatives
• Our Mission
• [email protected]
• + 49 30 52015140

Privacy policy

Terms and conditions, © 2020. all rights reserved and belong to "center smart tourism gmbh".