The politics of urban tourism (im) mobilities: Critical perspectives on inequalities and social justice

Abstract

This editorial introduces a collection of papers that engage with the emerging political dimension of tourism in urban development issues from multiple transversal perspectives. It provides a brief overview of the evolution of tourism as a research object concerning urban studies and political economies of place. Subsequently, we cover the various epistemological ‘turns’ – and their corresponding critiques – which have drawn interest towards tourism as a transformative force over urban communities in recent years. On this matter, the COVID-19 pandemic brought to the fore the intricate interplay between tourism mobilities and immobilities, as well as dependence and vulnerability and structural inequalities and multiscale material agencies. Based on these insights, we advocate a political-economy approach to the study of cities and their tourism-driven transformations that address the key structural factors and dynamics contributing to inequality in urban communities. Finally, we present the contributions in this collection and the insights that stem from a range of different interdisciplinary perspectives with regard to such a political-economy approach. Following on from this, we argue for a stronger transversal perspective, both in research and in practice with regard to tourism (im)mobilities.