Heather Gibson

Professor | University of Florida

Gainesville, FL, UNITED STATES

Heather Gibson's work sits at the intersection of tourism, leisure, and sport (sport tourism).

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Biography

Heather Gibson teaches and researches tourism, treating it as an experience that contributes to wellbeing and can be transformative, particularly in forms such as solo travel, study abroad, and when marking life transitions such as retirement. She has a particular expertise in women's solo travel and sport tourism as her expertise encompasses both sport and leisure. In particular, her work examines active sport tourism such as participation in the Senior Games, or the role of leisure in retirement. She is interested in how people create a sense of identity, meaning, and community through their leisure and tourism. Since 2007, she has led an interdisciplinary study abroad program for UF focused on sustainability. In her research, she has documented the transformative nature of such travel experiences.

Areas of Expertise (11)

Educational Tourism

Participatory Sport Events

Retirement and Leisure

Older Adults

Tourist Behavior

Solo Women's Travel

Sport Tourism

Tourism

Later Life Leisure

Physical Activity Later Life

Study Abroad

Media Appearances (3)

The Benefits of Gentler Hobbies

Next Avenue online

2024-04-12

Google anything related to health and wellbeing, and your search will turn up generic recommendations. These will range from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's MyPlate dietary resources to the CDC's suggested 150 minutes of weekly activity. You may also find academic studies, like Harvard's recent news brief discussing the importance of hobbies for older adults.

Solo Travel to Florida – Women Lead the Way

Visit Florida online

2024-02-26

In just the last year, searches for the term “solo travel” have increased by 100% according to Google Trends. Airline booking aggregator Kayak reports a 36% increase in solo-traveler flights. Group tour company Intrepid Travel says its latest data shows 73% of their solo travelers are female.

Why women are drawn to solo travel and how the tourism industry is responding

PBS News tv

2024-01-18

A majority of people traveling abroad alone these days are women, and demand for women-led tour groups is rising. Stephanie Sy takes a closer look at the reasons why women are drawn to solo travel and how the hospitality industry is taking notice.

Articles (3)

The impact of resilience on community variations in the relationships between tourism and quality of life

Journal of Destination Marketing & Management

Eunjung Yang, et. al

2024-09-01

Tourism aims to enhance community quality of life, but its impacts can be positive and/or negative by community. Under increasing uncertainty from multiple crises, this study links tourism sectors with the concepts of community resilience and quality of life to support sustainable development.

Using study abroad memories to foster sustainable tourists and global citizens

Journal of Sustainable Tourism

Hongping Zhang, et. al

2024-01-18

There is increasing interest in exploring how education abroad can contribute to enhancing sustainable behaviors. We adopted a functional approach to autobiographical memory to investigate the relationship between the directive function of study abroad memories (directing travel behavior, and directing life trajectory) and sustainable tourist behaviors (environmental, economic, social, and cultural).

Towards an understanding of family travel decision-making processes in the context of youth sport tourism