While contemporary popular discourses dismiss gender and feminism as passé, patriarchy and sexism continue to limit human possibilities around the globe. The tourism industry can be a force for empowerment but it can also shore up exploitative gendered practices. At the same time, tourism enquiry itself continues to be dominated by western, masculinist approaches.This collection of studies seeks to advance feminist and gender tourism studies with its focus on embodiment. Broad themes include the construction of narratives, how discourses of desire, sensuality and sexuality pervade the tourism experience, the use of the body to represent femininity, masculinity and sensuality, and finally how travel and tourism allow for empowerment, resistance and carnivalesque opportunities.