This theoretical paper conceptualises the role of tourism providers in facilitating creative tourism experiences by focusing on their ingenious enterprise, which we argue can help capture the tourism potential of intangible archaeological heritage. Intangible archaeological heritage can be understood as knowledge emanating from actors' own interpretation of archaeological sites that have either become physically inaccessible or been destroyed since initial exploration. Archaeological heritage is often equated with tangibility, which results in an omission of experiences that intangible archaeological heritage can offer. By proposing a rethinking of the archaeological tourism framework, we argue that the touristic value of both tangible and intangible archaeological heritage is better realised and can be further utilised to study the easily overlooked aspect of providers' ingenuity. HIGHLIGHTS  Archaeological tourism fails to capture the intangibility of archaeological heritage  Creative tourism is proposed as a more suitable framework for archaeological tourism  Co-creation between tourists and providers is central to achieving creative tourism  A proposed framework underlines providers' creativity in delivering memorable experiences

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This paper discusses the impact of co-creation in the context of heritage tourism. By examining co-creative strategies that promote participative interpretation of archaeological heritage, the emphasis is on understanding how tour guides balance tourists' individual interpretations and the scientific narrative. The study conducts a qualitative analysis of the tour guiding activity of cultural tourism companies in Alentejo, Southern Portugal. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with local tour guides and from online reviews of archaeological tours in Alentejo. Findings evidence that despite widely employing co-creative strategies for heritage interpretation that tap into tourists' operant resources and encourage creative discussion, tour guides often dismiss individual interpretations in favour of the established authorized heritage discourse. It is argued that, in doing so, the potential of co-creation for delivering a meaningful experience is hindered. The study contributes towards a critical conceptualization of the use of co-creation strategies in heritage tourism, with particular focus on the implications at deeper meaningmaking levels. In practice, the findings can lead cultural tourism providers to reassess their approach to personalization in order to increase their appeal to potential clients holding alternative sets of beliefs and motivations.

The paper discusses conditions and format of a cluster model to support the management of a potential creative tourism destination in a setting where regional cross-sectoral collaboration is lacking. Creative tourism development requires a flexible framework and healthy collaboration environment, more so when associated to resources shared by several stakeholders. This article focuses on the tourism potential of archaeological knowledge discovered during the environmental impact assessment of the Alqueva dam (Alentejo, Portugal). Interviews were conducted with 38 regional actors in the tourism and heritage sectors, as well as the dam developers and the companies responsible for archaeological interventions. Findings indicate that the lack of specific local policy addressing archaeological heritage hampers its potential use for tourism development, which is further aggravated by the absence of stakeholder communication and cooperation. A conceptual cluster model for the management of creative tourism destination based on heritage resources and other local resources is proposed.

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The paper studies the impact of the Alqueva Multi-Purpose Dam on the Alentejo region (Portugal), focusing on tourism development. In 2002, the Alqueva dam originated the largest artificial lake in Europe and was widely believed to bring a great number of benefits for the region by creating conditions for intensive irrigated farming and enhancing a new tourism destination in interior Portugal. The aim of this study is to assess to what degree the latter has been achieved. Interviews were held with 35 local and regional stakeholders of the tourism and cultural heritage sectors to understand their perception regarding the changes that occurred in the regional tourism industry since the dam's construction. Findings show that, against initial expectations, the tourism industry is still largely underdeveloped, partly due to a lack of investment and an inadequate tourism planning model. Furthermore, conflicts were observed concerning the balance between the value of the traditional montado landscape for tourism and irrigated farming development.

The study aims to determine how the knowledge obtained from the study of prehistoric heritage found during the construction of the Alqueva dam and irrigation system (Portugal) can enhance the current tourist experience of the destination. A new approach is necessary given the inaccessibility of the archaeological remains, thus creative tourism and experience economy frame the theoretical basis of this paper. Semi-directed interviews were carried out to 35 tourism stakeholders in order to assess their view of the regional tourism experience, their interest in ex-situ and virtual products based on the archaeological knowledge and how these may add to the Alqueva destination. Findings show that stakeholders are still firmly attached to the conventional approach to archaeology but that, even though unaware of the archaeological findings, they believe that they could benefit from the introduction of creative products as a way of complementing the current offer.

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