AI-Driven Digital Transformation in Tourism: Implications for Organizational Change and Tourist Experience
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.65205/jmsr.2026.e286715Keywords:
Artificial Intelligence, Digital Transformation, Tourism Industry, Organizational Transformation, Business Model Innovation, Tourist ExperienceAbstract
Artificial intelligence (AI) and digital technologies are reshaping how tourism services are organized and experienced. However, much of the existing scholarship documents post-adoption outcomes without explaining the organizational mechanisms through which AI generates value or how those changes are interpreted by tourists themselves. This study aims to address that gap. It pursues two objectives: first, to examine how AI adoption drives organizational transformation and business model innovation in tourism firms; and second, to analyze how these internal changes shape the tourist experience along the dimensions of service efficiency, personalization, and engagement.
The study adopts a qualitative research approach combining document analysis and reflexive thematic analysis. Forty-seven publicly available documents (industry reports, government policy papers, and media articles published between 2020 and 2025) were analyzed, supplemented by eighteen semi-structured interviews conducted with three stakeholder groups: eight tourists, six tourism managers, and four technology providers. Participants were recruited through purposive sampling, and interview transcripts were coded thematically. Trustworthiness was established through data triangulation, member checking, and an audit trail.
Three findings emerged. First, AI adoption is associated with reorganization of workflows and cross-departmental coordination rather than mere task automation. Second, firms are migrating from product-centric to platform-based and data-driven business models that enable real-time service personalization. Third, these internal changes translate into a tourist experience characterized by faster service delivery, individually tailored recommendations, and a more participatory role for tourists in co-creating their journeys.
The study contributes to service-dominant logic and experience economy theory by showing how AI mediates value co-creation between firms and tourists. Practically, it offers tourism managers a framework for aligning AI investment with organizational redesign and customer-experience strategy.
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