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Tom Griffin

Dr. Tom Griffin

Associate Professor
DepartmentHospitality and Tourism Management
EducationBA, MA, PhD
OfficeTRS 3-060
Phone(416) 979-5000 x 557935

Tom is an Associate Professor in the School of Hospitality and Tourism Management. 

Tom has a PhD in Recreation and Leisure Studies at the University of Waterloo.  His research interests revolve around Visiting Friends and Relatives (VFR) travel in general, and specifically immigrants who host visitors and the implications for community development, individual well-being, and the tourism industry.  Tom is also interested in Virtual Reality and the impacts on the tourism industry. His research has been published in various tourism journals and presented at international conferences.

Previously Tom was the Manager of Research and Social Responsibility for Tourism Toronto, the regional destination marketer, and has held consultancy positions working for various tourism and community agencies in the UK, Australia, and Canada.

Tom has lectured at several higher education institutions in southern Ontario on subjects including tourism policy, tourism and sustainability, tourism concepts, destination marketing, and tourism research.  He strives to engage students in class using different activities and technology to help students be active in the learning process.

linkedin.com/in/tom-griffin (external link, opens in new window) 

Google Scholar Profile  (external link, opens in new window) 
Research Interests

Tourism, visiting friends and relatives (VFR) travel, immigration and tourism, destination marketing, virtual reality, tourism research, and tourism policy.

Peer-reviewed publications

Griffin, T., Guttentag, D., Lee, S. H. (M.), Giberson, J., & Dimanche, F. (2022). Is VR always better for destination marketing? Comparing different media and styles (external link) . Journal of Vacation Marketing. doi.org/10.1177/13567667221078252

Dubois, L., Griffin, T., Gibbs, C., & Guttentag, D. (2021). The impact of video games on destination image (external link) . Current Issues in Tourism, 24(4), 554-566. doi.org/10.1080/13683500.2020.1724082

Griffin, T., & Glover, T. (2020). The development of social and cultural capitals for immigrant hosts of VFR travellers (external link) . Leisure Sciences. 1-19. doi.org/10.1080/01490400.2020.1817201

Dubois, L., Griffin, T., Gibbs, C., & Guttentag, D. (2021). The impact of video games on destination image (external link) . Current Issues in Tourism, 24(4), 554-566. /doi.org/10.1080/13683500.2020.1724082

Griffin, T. & Glover, T. (2020). The development of social and cultural capitals for immigrant hosts of VFR travellers (external link) . Leisure Sciences. 1-19. doi.org/10.1080/01490400.2020.1817201

Griffin, T. & Muldoon, M. (2020). Exploring virtual reality experiences of slum tourism (external link) . Tourism Geographies, 1-20. doi.org/10.1080/14616688.2020.1713881

Griffin, T. & Guttentag, D. (2020). Identifying active resident hosts of VFR visitors (external link) . International Journal of Tourism Research, 22(5), 627-636. doi.org/10.1002/jtr.2361

Griffin, T. (2019). A discussion of video as a data collection tool (external link) . Current Issues in Tourism, 22(18), 2183-2196. doi.org/10.1080/13683500.2018.1501009

Griffin, T., & Dimanche, F. (2017). Urban tourism: The growing role of VFR and immigration (external link) . Journal of Tourism Futures, 3(2), 103-13. doi.org/10.1080/13683500.2018.1501009

Munoz, J., Griffin, T., & Humbracht, M. (2017). Towards a new definition of “visiting friends and relatives”. International Journal of Tourism Research, 19(5), 477-485. doi-org.ezproxy.lib.ryerson.ca/10.1002/jtr.2110
Undergraduate courses
  • HTT 150 - Tourism Demand, Supply and Distribution
  • HTT 509 - Who makes the rules? Issues in Tourism
  • HTT 510 - Sustainable Tourism: The Golden Goose? 
  • HTR 741 - Hospitality and Tourism Research Concepts
  • HTR 841 - Research and Data Analysis
Honours & Awards
2020 TRSM Research Recognition Awards
2019 Dean's Teaching Award
2017 TRSM Research Recognition Awards