Journal profile · Social Sciences-Geography, Planning and Development
Journal of Ecotourism
ISSN 1472-4049 · eISSN 1747-7638 · Taylor & Francis
Journal of Ecotourism: CAS Zone 4 · Management (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 3.3 (journal website); JCR Q2 (journal website); hybrid open access; APC charged, amount not published; median 222 days to acceptance (72 articles, last 24 months); acceptance rate 12% (journal website); 47 articles in 2025; indexed in ESCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Journal of Ecotourism is published by Taylor & Francis and is in Zone 4 of Management in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Diverse Aspects of Tourism Research, Recreation, Leisure, Wilderness Management and Tourism, Volunteerism, and Development, together about 46.9% of its articles. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The Journal of Ecotourism (JOE) is the world's only international journal on the topic of ecotourism and is considered to be the leading source for knowledge in this area. However, JOE also considers papers that investigate nature-based tourism, research on parks and protected areas, and the moral issues tied to the use of animals in tourism. The journal welcomes conceptual, theoretical, and empirical studies, particularly if these contribute to the dissemination of new ideas and models of ecotourism planning, development, management, and good practice. An additional aim is to publish papers at many different scales and from regions around the world in adopting a global approach to ecotourism. Examples of research topics include community development, ecotourism typologies, visitor management in parks and protected areas, the social, economic, and ecological impacts of tourism in natural areas, policy development, accreditation and certification, sustainability, risk management, green marketing, interpretation and education, poverty alleviation, issues of justice and rights at ecotourism destinations, aspects of demand and supply, and work on focal species and tourism. While fauna is especially important as an ecotourism attraction, the journal also accepts papers that delve into issues on flora as well as the physical world, in keeping with the aim of advancing knowledge on the natural history of destinations. Peer Review Statement: All Research Articles and Research Notes submitted to this journal undergo a “double-anonymous” peer review by two to three referees after initial screening by the editor or designate. Field Notes are reviewed by the Field Notes Editor or designate.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Social Sciences-Geography, Planning and Development
Editor-in-chief Kyle Maurice WoosnamPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 1 in mainland China (about 20%); most named United Kingdom 2, Mainland China 1, United States 1, Croatia 1 (5 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Diverse Aspects of Tourism ResearchSocial Sciences31%
- Recreation, Leisure, Wilderness ManagementPsychology9.6%
- Tourism, Volunteerism, and DevelopmentSocial Sciences6.3%
- Cruise Tourism Development and ManagementSocial Sciences6.1%
- Environmental Education and SustainabilityEnvironmental Science5.1%
- Economic and Environmental ValuationEconomics, Econometrics and Finance5.1%
- Conservation, Biodiversity, and Resource ManagementEnvironmental Science3.5%
- Environmental Sustainability in BusinessBusiness, Management and Accounting3.5%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Management Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Management | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Hospitality, Leisure, Sport & Tourism | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Management Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Management | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Hospitality, Leisure, Sport & Tourism | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
JCR / CiteScore quartiles on the journal's website
- JCR Q2 · best quartile · 2025
- CiteScore Q1 · 2025
Publisher-reported: JCR figures are Clarivate's and CiteScore figures Scopus's to confirm; both are a different system from the CAS zones.Publisher website
Database indexing
ESCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
Web of ScienceCAB AbstractsPublisher website
Other: ProQuest, OCLC, CABI - Agricultural Economics Database, Animal Breeding Abstracts (Online), Animal Production Database, Animal Science Database, Crop Science Database, Environmental Impact, Forest Science Database, Forestry Abstracts (Online), Global Health, Grasslands and Forage Abstract (Online), InfoTree, Leisure Tourism Database, Pig News and Information (Online), Plant Genetic Resources Abstracts (Online), Plant Genetics and Breeding Database, Plant Protection Database, Rural Development Abstracts (Online), Soil Science Database, Soils and Fertilizers (Online), Veterinary Science Database, VetMed Resource, EBSCOhost - Associates Program Source Plus, 1/1/2002-, TOC Premier (Table of Contents), 1/1/2004-, Elsevier BV - GEOBASE, CORE, Thomson Reuters – Zoological Record Online
As the journal's website lists them, not checked against each database; for Web of Science editions the records above apply.
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 3.3Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 3.6Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 8.4LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 8.4Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.76LetPub ·
- SJR (publisher) 2025
- 0.76Publisher website ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.48LetPub ·
- SNIP (publisher) 2025
- 1.48Publisher website ·
- h-index
- 64OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 348OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 3.2OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 12.1%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 8.74%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 45LetPub ·
- Downloads per year (publisher)
- 80,000Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 611 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 25 | 7 | 7 |
| 2025 | 47 | 12 | 121 |
| 2024 | 32 | 12 | 205 |
| 2023 | 28 | 8 | 348 |
| 2022 | 35 | 9 | 744 |
| 2021 | 38 | 3 | 662 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Review time from article dates manuscript dates registered with Crossref · to
222 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 158 days – 307 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 14 days (72 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 253 days
- Sample
- 72 articles with submission and acceptance dates (79 in the window); the latest was accepted on
Only articles that were accepted and published are counted, not the time spent on rejected manuscripts, so this usually runs longer than a publisher's "time to first decision".
Other sources
- Acceptance rate (publisher)
- 12%Publisher website ·
- Submission to first decision
- 6 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 80 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 16 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Double anonymous peer reviewPublisher website
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Hybrid open accessLetPub
A subscription journal in which authors can pay to publish their article open access.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Publisher website | Yes, amount not published | — | — |
A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
Article types accepted3
- field notesField Notes are reviewed by the Field Notes Editor or designate.Length not stated
- research articlesAll Research Articles and Research Notes submitted to this journal undergo a “double-anonymous” peer review by two to three referees after initial screening by …Length not stated
- research notesAll Research Articles and Research Notes submitted to this journal undergo a “double-anonymous” peer review by two to three referees after initial screening by …Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteOpen access, Peer review
- Open access Open access
Journal of Ecotourism is a hybrid open access journal that is part of the Taylor & Francis Open Select publishing program, giving you the option to publish open access. Publishing open access means that your article will be free to access online immediately on publication, increasing the visibility, readership, and impact of your research. Why choose open access? Increase the discoverability and r…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review
Double-anonymous peer review by two to three referees after initial screening by the editor or designate for Research Articles and Research Notes. Model summary
All Research Articles and Research Notes submitted to this journal undergo a “double-anonymous” peer review by two to three referees after initial screening by the editor or designate.
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Taylor & Francis
- ISSN
- 1472-4049
- Electronic ISSN
- 1747-7638
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 25, Issue 3 (2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗LetPub
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Journal of Ecotourism
What CAS zone is Journal of Ecotourism in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Journal of Ecotourism is in Zone 4 of Management, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Hospitality, Leisure, Sport & Tourism. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Management. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Journal of Ecotourism?
The journal's website gives an impact factor of 3.3 (2025); this is the journal's own figure, as LetPub lists none for it; CiteScore 8.4, h-index 64.
How long does peer review take at Journal of Ecotourism?
Based on the dates recorded on 72 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 222 days (interquartile range 158–307 days); the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 12%. Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
What JCR quartile is Journal of Ecotourism in?
The journal's website gives JCR Q2 (best quartile). JCR quartiles are Clarivate's to confirm and a different system from the CAS zones; in the CAS ranking the journal is in Zone 4 of Management.
Where are the editorial board members of Journal of Ecotourism based?
Of the 5 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 1 (about 20%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United Kingdom (2), Mainland China (1) and United States (1). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Journal of Ecotourism?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Journal of Ecotourism is indexed in ESCI and Scopus. The journal's website also lists Web of Science and CAB Abstracts; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Journal of Ecotourism open access, and what is the APC?
Journal of Ecotourism is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC charged, amount not published.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-26). Last updated: .