Plus size people can and will travel too: body positivity in travel and leisure

The tourism sector is increasingly moving towards equality, diversity, and inclusion, yet a systematic issue within the sector that largely hinders and excludes non-conforming, alternative bodies. Using a netnographic research approach framed by a poststructuralist perspective, this paper explores the body positive travel and leisure experiences of TikTok content creators, critically engaging with the narratives and discourses in circulation. The analysis of 200 TikTok videos and 977 comments reveals a multifaceted landscape of structural challenges, community support, and societal perceptions surrounding plus-size travel. The digital sharing of plus-size travel and leisure experiences is crucial in challenging traditional and homogeneous structures of what it means to be “a tourist”, disrupting scripted tourism and leisure narratives, and deconstructing normative embodiments of travel experiences. This paper provides a deeper understanding of how inequalities hinder the inclusion of alternative, non-conforming groups in travel, as represented in online discourses. It also offers empirical insights on advancing inclusivity in tourism and establishes a foundation for implementing changes that foster more equitable tourism experiences.