NFTS: what opportunities and challenges in tourism?

Purpose In previous works we discussed the contribution of digital tourism not only to the improvement of the reputation of a Country (i.e. Sentiment Analysis) but also of the possibility to create opportunities for a new kind of online tourism. In recent times, with the development of the so-called Metaverse, also influenced by the pandemic emergency, Countries’ digital efforts in creating tourism opportunities gave new perspectives related to the possibility to capitalize on digital content, transforming them – jointly with physical tourism experiences – into possible further incomes and means to increase a Countries’ reputation. Specifically, in this context, we considered the enabling technology represented by Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs), an innovative application of blockchains creating a unique opportunity in several sectors, including tourism. This work aims to explore possible applications of NFTs in tourism, analyzing the experiences currently in place. Methodology Due to the innovative topic and the very few experiences in NFTs applications in tourism, this paper represents a preliminary review of current projects implementing the use of NFTs, so that the applied methodology consists mainly in qualitative analysis and discussion about the possible development of this technology in tourism. To this purpose, we introduced some applications currently in place, such as those of travel agencies like Travala, of some airlines (Air Europa, Emirates), Cruises companies (Norwegian Cruise Line), of the Economic Development Ministry of Slovenia (project “I Feel Nft”, presented at Expo Dubai 2020, representing the first of this kind in the world). The paper explores possible implications and further development of these initiatives, designing possible metrics to measure their success, paving the way for future quantitative analysis once data about the introduced case-studies is available. Findings Through the discussion of the cases found, it appears that the main benefits of digitisation through NFTs consist in promoting and presenting major tourist destinations, exhibitions, works of art and companies’ products in the form of tokens, digital content and souvenirs for visitors. However, some of the analysed cases also suggest possible applications for actual commerce in the tourism sector, including ticketing services and hotel bookings. Other possible applications can be hypothesised with regard to the certified training of staff working in the hospitality sector. Originality of the research The paper is highly innovative and currently unique in that the adoption of NFTs in tourism is recent and still open to proposals for implementation. The contribution is therefore very important, both in terms of operational proposals (applications, guidelines and good practices) and in terms of defining metrics for measuring the effectiveness of NFTs in the tourism economy.