New institute for tourism, travel and culture

The aims of the Institute are to support the local tourism industry which is the cornerstone of the Maltese economy through the Institute’s teaching and research programmes; to support the local cultural entities through such programmes and to carry out and disseminate research which is valuable to the Maltese tourism, travel and culture sectors and the University of Malta, as well as the international tourism community.

The Institute seeks to establish professional guidelines and maintain professional status of tourism, travel and culture industries and to attract funded research, including establishing the Institute as a centre of excellence in tourism, travel and culture research in the Mediterranean.

Over the years, the Tourism Studies unit at the University has been active in research and its members have assisted the Ministry of Tourism and the Ministry for Culture in developing a sustainable tourism product. The current team of lecturers and researchers is involved in cultural heritage, cultural routes, cultural products, media and arts, tourism SMEs, tourism employment issues, labour studies, island sustainability and tourism economics.

The Institute works closely with local tourism stakeholders such as hotels, restaurants, respective government entities and ministries, heritage agencies and craft organizations. It is also a member of AIEST, EUTO, Tourism Networks and the National Rural Development Agency.  Its members were instrumental in setting up the Slow Food Movement in Malta.

The Institute for Tourism, Travel and Culture (and the former Department) participates in EU funded projects such as EUROMED Heritage II Programme, with two major projects on cultural heritage, namely Med Voices and DELTA. Currently the Institute is participating in a Leonardo Pilot Project, VOCMAT.  Other programmes include the Marie Curie Intra-European Fellowship programme and the Life Long Learning Programme. The Institute is also very active in the ERASMUS programme and has exchange agreements with universities in the UK, France, Finland and Germany.