Mapping tourism’s contributions to the SDGs: a bibliometric and text mining analysis

Purpose This study analyzes tourism’s contributions to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), addressing a gap in existing research regarding the explicit link between tourism and the SDGs. Design/methodology/approach A mixed-method approach combining bibliometric and content analysis was applied to 195 articles published between 2015 and 2022 in 70 academic journals indexed in Web of Science. Bibliometrix was used to identify trends, co-authorship networks and keyword clusters. Text mining and SDG Mapper were employed to detect references to specific SDGs and targets. Findings Results show an exponential increase in research on tourism and SDGs since 2017, predominantly focusing on SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth, target 8.5) and SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production, target 12.b). Keyword co-occurrence analysis highlights emerging themes such as ecotourism, behavioral models and tourism’s role in social inclusion. Despite this growth, the findings reveal limited systematic integration of SDG targets. Practical implications Strengthening tourism’s alignment with specific SDG targets can enhance accountability and policy relevance. Stakeholders should prioritize underrepresented goals, adopt digital monitoring tools and support inclusive, sustainable tourism initiatives – especially in developing regions where tourism has the potential to drive transformative change. Originality/value This research introduces a novel and replicable methodological framework that links tourism literature to specific SDG targets. It expands prior bibliometric efforts by offering an integrated analysis across disciplines and presents actionable insights for researchers and decision-makers.