Solo travel research and its gender perspective: a critical bibliometric review

Abstract

Solo travel continues to be an under-researched area in the field of tourism, hospitality, and events. After the COVID-19 pandemic, it has become necessary to review the knowledge acquired so far. In addition, the 2030 Agenda calls for more studies to understand the relationship between gender and tourism. Because of these facts, and with the aim of analyzing the progress and gaps in academic publications on solo travel in recent years, a bibliometric and content analysis review of the existing scientific literature on solo travel published in Scopus, ProQuest, and the Web of Science in the last 5 years was carried out, focusing the analysis on the gender perspective applied to these investigations. The results showed that research focused on solo travel should increase; this research should segment solo travelers, and comparisons should be realized between those segments and with other tourists who travel accompanied. To do so, a consensual definition of solo travelers is necessary. In addition, research should be extended to other regions and expand the field of analysis beyond motivations, experiences, or constraints. Research focused on solo female travelers should continue because while women cannot travel under the same conditions as men effective gender equality cannot be achieved.