Smart Geosite-Enabled Community-Based Tourism for Sustainable Destination Diversification in Ijen UNESCO Global Geopark, Indonesia
Published:
2026-11-04Downloads
Abstract
Smart tourism is often framed as technology-intensive destination management, but rural geopark villages require digital tools that reinforce community ownership and local interpretation. This study develops a Smart Geosite-Enabled Community-Based Tourism (SG-CBT) framework for five buffer villages of the Ijen UNESCO Global Geopark, Indonesia. It asks how village readiness shapes digital priorities, which smart-geosite functions can connect dispersed tourism assets, and how digital governance can retain benefits within communities. The article re-analyzes the 2026 mixed-method dataset comprising 300 household respondents, five participatory mapping focus groups, 13 institutional interviews, 60 tourism potentials, and GIS-based accessibility analysis. Results show an average CBT Readiness Index of 77.6, with substantial inter-village variation. Internet-connectivity readiness averages 72.6 and signage/interpretation readiness 73.2, indicating that digitalization must be sequenced with capacity building. Community priorities reinforce this conclusion: skills training ranks first (79.0%), followed by product development and packaging (70.8%), marketing and promotion (70.2%), and infrastructure improvement (67.0%). The SG-CBT framework integrates differentiated village readiness, WebGIS spatial intelligence, QR-based and narrative digital interpretation, local-enterprise and multi-village route integration, and community-controlled governance with socio-ecological monitoring. The contribution is a place-based smart-tourism model that shifts Smart Geosite development from a technology-first approach to a community-governed destination ecosystem for rural UNESCO Global Geoparks.
Keywords:
Smart Geosite Community-Based Tourism WebGIS Tourism Diversification Ijen UNESCO Global GeoparkReferences
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