Does artificial intelligence improve accessibility in cultural and heritage tourism? Evidence from a design-led review and the Inclusive Human–AI Mediation (IHAM) framework

Accessibility and inclusion remain persistent challenges in cultural and heritage tourism, particularly as artificial intelligence (AI) increasingly mediates visitor experience and destination management. While prior research has examined AI-enabled personalisation and smart tourism development, less attention has been paid to how accessibility is shaped through the collaborative relationship between human users and AI systems in public cultural environments. This paper presents a design-led review of 66 peer-reviewed journal articles published between 2022 and 2026, identified through a PRISMA-guided search of Web of Science, Scopus, and the ACM Digital Library. Drawing on perspectives from human–AI collaboration, inclusive design, and human–data interaction, the review synthesises how AI-enabled systems interpret user data, mediate cultural experiences, and distribute agency across tourism service ecosystems. Building on this synthesis, the paper proposes the Inclusive Human–AI Mediation (IHAM) model, a theoretical framework that conceptualises accessibility as an emergent outcome of data interpretation, AI mediation, human agency, and governance. The model advances tourism technology research by reframing accessibility as a systemic and design-mediated challenge, and provides guidance for designing inclusive, ethical, and sustainable AI-enabled cultural and heritage tourism systems.