Progress in creative tourism research: a review for the period 2002–2023

Creative tourism is based on the tourists' active participation and co-creation. This manuscript reviewed the literature for the period 2002–2023 on creative tourism through a mixed methodology. The bibliometric assessment revealed the past publication trend and identified the five clusters of the research areas. The systematic literature review of creative tourism in urban areas revealed four thematic areas: Creative tourists, Hard factors, Soft factors, and Governance. The study has identified future research avenues on these thematic areas based on comprehensive review. The identified research gaps through this review can pave the future path of creative tourism, focusing on inter-thematic studies.