Behind the invisible walls: Understanding constraints on Muslim solo female travel

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the challenges faced by solo-female travelers in Iranian societies and proposes measures to improve their experiences. To achieve this objective, a mixed-methods research design was employed in three phases. First, two-phased exploratory surveys were conducted to identify seven key constraints that affect the behavioral intentions of solo-female tourists, namely sociocultural, interpersonal, intrapersonal, religious, physical safety, practical, and structural factors. Furthermore, cross-impact-balanced analysis was employed to generate four consistent scenarios for the development of solo female tourism in Iran. The findings of this study provide valuable insights for policymakers and tourism industry stakeholders to enhance the experiences of solo-female travelers in Iran. The study's plausible scenario presents a number of measures that hold promise for mitigating constraints and improving the experiences of solo female travelers. These measures include online-community-building, mutual-adaptation, self-psychological empowerment, the establishment of female free zones, the overcoming of travel fears, technological-empowerment, and feminist-participatory-action.