Creative Commons

This dissertation was written as part of the MSc in Hospitality and Tourism Management at the International Hellenic University. The purpose of the present thesis is to examine the possibility of alternative tourism as an antipode to the sustainable development. Sustainable tourism attracts the interest of academic and empirical researchers of the century as climate change and pandemic have shifted the previous model of mass tourism. Alternative forms of tourism are greener while most people are more aware of environmental problems in destinations with over tourism. The evolution of alternative forms of tourism is a way of making tourism enterprises viable and local communities’ survival sustainable without pushing tourists off or damage the environment. The current thesis examines the case of Rhodes Island and the impacts of alternative tourism policies and initiatives.