The estrangement experience in travel and tourism

The co-presence of socially unrelated yet physically proximate strangers often constitutes a core aspect of travel and tourism experiences. In recent years, broader forces such as a global pandemic, regional armed conflicts, and ideological polarization have influenced how individuals — including travelers and tourists — perceive and navigate the spatial, ideological, and affective distances between themselves and strangers. These developments have amplified the visibility of estrangement behaviors, such as distancing and microaggressions, highlighting the relevance of estrangement in contemporary travel experiences. Across three studies using different samples from multiple countries, this research explores the phenomenon of estrangement in travel and tourism. Specifically, the research conceptualizes the notion of estrangement, distinguishes between self-initiated and other-imposed forms of estrangement, uncovers the primary relationships among perceptions, emotions, and behaviors related to estrangement, explores the subjective experience of estrangement, and investigates the impact of cultural and affective distances on the estrangement experience in travel and tourism.