Food and tourist experiences: Insights from Macau

ABSTRACT Despite acknowledging that tourists are the primary actor in food-tourism activities, how their experiences are influenced and created by the consumption of food in their traveling destination is largely ignored. Filling this gap, this research examines how the food that tourists consume in a destination help create tourist experiences. The data for this study were collected through in-depth semi-structured interviews with 20 tourists in Macau, China who were willing to share their dining experiences. The findings of this study reveal that food that tourist consumes in a destination has the potential to create tourist experience holistically by creating unique and memorable traveling as well as dining experiences. The implications of the findings for the tourism industry are provided.