Chapter 10: Novelty and Tourism

Novelty detection in the environment is an important mental ability for evolutionary survival. It is also critical for understanding emotional arousal and its effect on memories in tourism. Tourism takes place, by definition, in an unusual environment and therefore intimately involves this concept. This chapter discusses novelty definition, processing, and effects on attention, goals, memories and emotions, and role in tourist experiences. Theoretical and practical implications have been discussed, including the potential utilisation of aspects of novelty in tourism experience design and how its use can improve experiences. Future research should focus on its antecedents and consequences in tourism experiences, as well as the effect of degree of novelty on emotional arousal.