Cultural semiotics and tourism: some approaches

Abstract

Cultural Semiotics, developed by the Tartu-Moscow School, provides relevant theoretical tools for investigating the processes of signification in tourism, understood as a complex cultural phenomenon. This text proposes an approach between this theoretical field and tourism studies, aiming to establish a foundation for analysis within the framework of the Semiotics of Tourism. For this purpose, we rely on theoretical contributions from authors such as Culler (1988), Lotman (1990, 2019, 2022), Machado (2004), Gonçalves (2016), Panosso Netto & Gaeta (2010), and Mello (2019), among others. Methodologically, we adopt a qualitative and bibliographic approach, through which we outline the pathways to analyze and discuss how Cultural Semiotics enables a distinct interpretative framework for understanding the tourist phenomenon. As a result, we highlight the potential of this perspective to promote new readings and forms of analysis of the activities, destinations, and actors involved in the tourism process.