Work

Sustaining the Modern Pilgrimage: Governance, Community Impacts, and Environmental Challenges on Korea’s Jeju Olle Trail

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: The Jeju Olle Trail has evolved from a grassroots initiative into a contested space where post-pandemic growth intersects with environmental limits and fragmented governance. Moving beyond environment-centric models, this study examines the trail as a transcultural walking tourism system. The authors triangulated 900 user-generated content (UGC) narratives from major travel platforms (Korean, Chinese, and English) with semi-structured interviews from three key institutional informants (NTO, RTO, and NPO). The analysis explores how sustainable experiences are negotiated in practice. Findings suggest that Self-Determination Theory (SDT) constructs like autonomy are not universal constants but are culturally mediated through Western “digital detox,” Korean “collective healing,” and Chinese chūxīn (original heart) narratives. Institutional and narrative data indicate that these experiences appear linked to managing governance tensions between national mandates and localized stewardship. The study concludes that experiential sustainability involves navigating trade-offs regarding narratively signaled environmental impacts and community capacity. By framing walking tourism as a governance-dependent practice, this research demonstrates how culturally embedded mechanisms shape destination viability.

Source: Sustainability

DOI: 10.3390/su18031540

Authors: Bradley S. Brennan, Daniel Kessler, Yiheng Luo, Kyung Mi Bae

Institutions: Inha University, Dongseo University, East University Of Heilongjiang

Language: English

Topic: Diverse Aspects of Tourism Research

Subfield: Sociology and Political Science

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $2,896

Funder: Inha University