Sustainable Tourism Destination Research Articles

Heritage tourism in the Andes: the case of Cuenca, Ecuador

ABSTRACTHeritage tourism has been growing over the last few years, especially in cities that have been declared World Heritage Sites. This paper presents research that investigates the motivations for tourists to visit Cuenca. Fieldwork was used to create a predictive model to determine visitor satisfaction considering the motivations and the attributes of the city. Furthermore, the paper analyses the attributes a heritage site should have if it is to create a sustainable tourist destination which combines culture and economic growth. The results show that although overall satisfaction with visits to the city is high, tourists enjoy other interesting aspects that should be taken into consideration in order to improve the city’s image as a cultural destination.

Factors influencing the tourists’ intention to select sustainable tourism destination: a case study of Penang, Malaysia

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the factors of environmental attitude, motivation, destination image, word-of-mouth, and perceived service quality to predict the tourists’ intention to select sustainable tourist destination. It also aims to investigate the moderating effect of knowledge on the relationship between environmental attitude and the tourists’ intention to select sustainable tourist destination.Design/methodology/approachUsing survey design, 300 self-administrated questionnaires (both online/hard copy) were distributed to both local and international tourists at different tourism locations in Penang state in Malaysia. A total of 161 questionnaires were returned and analysed by using SPSS and smart PLS software.FindingsThe findings found that environmental attitude, motivation, and word-of-mouth significantly influenced the tourists’ intention to select sustainable tourism destination, while destination image and perceived service quality have not a significant influence in this study. Furthermore, this study proved that knowledge negatively moderates the positive effect of the environmental attitude on tourists’ intention to select sustainable tourism destination.Research limitations/implicationsThe findings offer important managerial implications for managers of tourism destinations and decision makers in understanding what motivates influence tourists’ intention in selecting sustainable tourism destination. The research scope was limited to convenient sampling and one city (Penang). Thus, the results could not be generalised to all Malaysia or other countries.Originality/valueThis research contributes to extending knowledge in sustainable tourism destination in the context of emerging markets, especially Malaysia. Moreover, this study found a way to examine the relationship between the environmental attitude and tourists’ intention to select sustainable tourism destination.

Cultural Centre, Destination Cultural Offer and Visitor Satisfaction

This paper aims to establish the link between tourists’ perceptions on cultural offers and their overall satisfaction, and explore the implication of this link for sustainable tourist destination management. Assessing online customers’ reviews, this study identifies a positive correlation between visitors’ perspectives and experiences at the on-site cultural centre and visitors’ destination satisfaction. It suggests that the on-site cultural centre plays a critical role in building up visitors’ perception on cultural attributes of the destination, and its impact on visitor satisfaction is a double-edged sword. Visitors’ positive perspectives on the cultural centre enhance visitors’ experiences and contribute to their destination satisfaction; however, not only does a negative perspective on their cultural and spiritual experience compromise visitors’ satisfaction, but also subsequent negative online reviews damage the destination image and discourage visitor return/visit. The findings help destination management organisations to better understand visitors’ preference for cultural centres and therefore to improve visitors’ cultural experience. This paper appeals for further study of on-site cultural centres’ role in forming destination cultural attributes, and of social media’s potential in enriching cultural experience.

The Hershey sugar mill in Cuba: from global industrial heritage to local sustainable tourism development

ABSTRACTAlthough now abandoned, the Hershey sugar mill represents much of Cuba’s history, heritage, culture, and economy. The associated company town, nature gardens, and electric rail line remain in use to date, albeit in deteriorating condition. This paper presents the history of Hershey investment and significance in Cuba, the current state of the site, and the results of an evaluation of the potential for developing the Hershey complex as a sustainable tourism destination and source of local employment. The study concludes that conservation of the site is a cultural imperative for Cuba, but with many obstacles and challenges. Incremental steps toward development may be feasible – particularly with growing potential for open tourism from the US.

Difficulties and Challenges in Applying the European Tourism Indicators System (ETIS) for Sustainable Tourist Destinations: The Case of Braşov County in the Romanian Carpathians

Tourist destinations are increasingly coming across multiple social, economic, cultural, and environmental challenges corroborated with a great urgency for sustainable development. In this context, the European Commission has launched in 2013 a unitary system of indicators for sustainable management of tourism destinations, called The European Tourism Indicators System (ETIS). More specifically, ETIS was configured initially with a total of 27 core indicators and 40 additional (optional) indicators. The purpose of this paper is to present the difficulties and challenges encountered in the application of ETIS, having as a case study, the county of Braşov, located almost entirely in the Romanian Carpathians. In this regard, a testing technique has been designed through an innovative Group Decision Support System (GDSS) that is applied to our destination. The results show that the selection of ETIS indicators is a flexible process that must be adequate with the particularities of each destination taking into account both the needs of the stakeholders, the information that is useful to them, and the existence and periodicity of the data available. Also, in some cases, when the available indicators are insufficient, additional indicators have to be introduced, and they must be subsequently adapted to the needs and specifics of the destination.

Innovative and sustainable tourism strategies

PurposeAccording to the United Nations World Tourism Organisation, sustainable tourism is a form of tourism that meets the needs of present tourists and host regions while protecting and enhancing the opportunity for the future. It is an industry that aims at having a low impact upon the environment and local culture, generating income and employment, and ensuring the conservation of local ecosystems. The aim of this paper is to examine the ways in which the development and promotion of a new tourism product based on unique rural heritage and traditions contribute to the development of sustainable tourism strategies in Romania.Design/methodology/approachThis paper includes a literature review on the topic of sustainable tourism in post-conflict destinations and provides arguments for the adoption and development of sustainable tourism. Using a case study methodological approach, this paper provides an example of a sustainable tourism destination from the Central development region of Romania (Alba County, Transylvania) to depict specific sustainable tourism practices and their impact on the place, in a post-communist and post-conflict context. The study uses a comprehensive desk-research based on secondary data from key industry and academic sources.FindingsThe research findings show that rural tourism can greatly support the (re)development of post-conflict destinations, and it makes a significant contribution to the sustainable development of the Romanian tourism industry, in general, and rural economies in particular, as shown in the case examined in this paper.Practical implicationsThis paper illustrates that fostering the unique rural heritage and traditions of a post-conflict destination can contribute to the revival and sustainable development of the place. Sustainable tourism practices contribute not only financially to a destination but also to its social infrastructures, jobs, nature conservation, adoption of new working practices and the revitalisation of passive and poor rural areas.Originality/valueThis paper examines and depicts rural tourism development as an innovative and sustainable strategy for Romania, a post-conflict destination that experienced severe political and social turmoil during the communist regime, and ethnic conflicts and violent events in the 1990s. The research findings may be applicable to other geographic regions and post-conflict destinations with similar contexts.

EVALUASI PENGEMBANGAN POTENSI “ANCIENT TRACK ONE” DENGAN MODEL CIPP DI DESA WISATA BEDULU DAN DESA BURUAN KABUPATEN GIANYAR

The study aims to evaluate the quality improvement activities in order to appeal tracking tours in Gianyar regency, Bali. The concept used in this study is the evaluation of the concept, the concept of tourism potential and attractions as well as the concept of rural tourism, village tourism concept, the concept of alternative tourism, archaeological tourism concept and the concept of alternative tourism. The theory is used to analyze this study is the evaluation theory, the theory of sustainable tourism development and tourism destination development theory are analyzed with models CIPP (Context, Input, Process, Product). Moreover, the constraints faced in the implementation of development Ancient Tracking One at the Tourism Village Bedulu and Villages Buruan. Associated with the constraints in the development of Ancient Track One can be seen from has not been established as a legal organization as a manager of a tourist attraction. Suggestions put forward in this study, namely: commitment required for the implementation of tourism activities Ancient Track One, with no synchronization between the aspects of context, input, process and product development of tourism in Ancient Track One, as a tourist attraction based on historical and archaeological heritage, tourist areas need to be set right brand that can distinguish between this region with other regions.

The Implementation of Green Marketing Tools in Rural Tourism: The Readiness of Tourists?

ABSTRACTEnvironmental sustainability is the key factor for the future development of the tourism industry, particularly in sensitive rural tourism destinations. Green tourism and green marketing are alternative practices that ensure the environmental sustainability of tourism destinations. However, green marketing has received little attention in the context of rural destinations. This is the first known study undertaken with the purpose of understanding the relationship between green marketing tools (eco-brand, eco-label, and environmental advertisement) and green purchasing behavior in rural tourism destinations from the perception of tourists. A sample of 252 respondents was selected to complete the questionnaires. To assess the developed model, SmartPLS (version 3.2.6) was applied based on path modeling, followed by bootstrapping. The results revealed that the three-dimensional constructs of green marketing tools were significantly and positively correlated with green purchasing behavior of rural tourism destinations from tourists’ perspectives. Several implications, limitations, and directions for future research were further discussed.

THE TOURIST BEHAVIOUR IN DIFFERENT ENVIRONMENTS: A LITERATURE REVIEW

In ensuring the tourism destinations are successful and sustained, good quality environments are needed. Furthermore, without an attractive environment, there would be no tourism activities. Nevertheless, people generate and encompass many different types and patterns of changes in the environment and in turn, the environment can facilitate and even reduce stress to people. In this context, it is necessary to understand the perspective of tourists and knowing what they look for in a particular destination to obtain a better understanding of spatial tourism behaviour and areas of sustainable tourist destinations. The primary focus of this paper is to understand the perceptions, expectations, experiences and motivations that tourists have when they choose to visit specific tourist destinations. Based on the literature, identifying and examining the elements of tourist attractions, tourist preferences, the values which characterize the tourism demand and their relationship to the environment would highlight challenges as well as implications for tourism development especially in Malaysia.

THE TOURIST BEHAVIOUR IN DIFFERENT ENVIRONMENTS: A LITERATURE REVIEW

In ensuring the tourism destinations are successful and sustained, good quality environments are needed. Furthermore, without an attractive environment, there would be no tourism activities. Nevertheless, people generate and encompass many different types and patterns of changes in the environment and in turn, the environment can facilitate and even reduce stress to people. In this context, it is necessary to understand the perspective of tourists and knowing what they look for in a particular destination to obtain a better understanding of spatial tourism behaviour and areas of sustainable tourist destinations. The primary focus of this paper is to understand the perceptions, expectations, experiences and motivations that tourists have when they choose to visit specific tourist destinations. Based on the literature, identifying and examining the elements of tourist attractions, tourist preferences, the values which characterize the tourism demand and their relationship to the environment would highlight challenges as well as implications for tourism development especially in Malaysia.

Los jardines de los lagos de las Azores como bien turístico: estudio por el método de las preferencias visuales

This paper discusses the touristic asset of the Azores Lake Gardens, analysing landscape transformations and testing the currently visual preferences of local people (C. Steinitz 1990; C. Castel-Branco et al. 2011). On the volcanic Islands of the Azores lake gardens built in the 19th century in the old craters of Furnas and Sete Cidades at S. Miguel Island had a naturally picturesque setting. Since then, they became cultural landscapes; encompassing extensive woodland gardens and romantic buildings (I. Albergaria 2000), these Lake Gardens have turned into iconic symbols of local identity becoming the subject of representations as part of the tourist attractions of the island. Albeit the high standards of environmental and landscape quality of the Azores, promoted in international publicity as the most sustainable tourist destination in the world (Global Sustainable Tourism Review, 2014), these two lakes are polluted due to an intensive dairy practice impact and became eutrophic. A long term goal of the project envisions to protect these lakes and landscapes to promote them through cultural landscape management and spatial planning within a sustainable tourism framework.

Managing Egyptian tourism through tourism governance

Egypt depends on the tourism sector as a main contributor to the country’s GDP and has been engaged in attempts to revive the ailing sector that has been reeling from years of political turmoil. Egyptian tourism has been hit by years of political upheaval and militant violence. Before 2011, Egyptian tourism was a rising star in the struggling economy. To deal with the tourism crisis, the Egyptian authorities agreed to allocate $5 million to support the sector. They agreed to launch a massive campaign to promote internal tourism. However, this is not enough, better management techniques should be adapted in Egyptian tourism industry. Tourism governance could be a useful tool for managing Egyptian tourism. The study overall objective is to analyze governance and positioning of local actors face to manage tourism, in order to establish parameters for more effective tourism management, giving answer at questions like What are the various issues of governance planning in relation to the development of Egypt as sustainable tourism destination?, and what is the level of commitment of stakeholders to get effectively and efficiently management?

Developing a system of territorial governance indicators for tourism destinations

ABSTRACTThere have been numerous previous attempts to develop indicator systems of sustainability in tourism destinations, but fewer in terms of territorial governance. The present article addresses the design of a System of Territorial Governance Indicators for Tourist Destinations. The proposed system is based around the roles of the public administration, tourism businesses and the local community. It enables the incorporation of the territorial governance perspective into sustainability and gauges destinations’ evolution over time, whilst also allowing any planning and management problems that require improvements to be easily detected. The paper presents a case study: Conil de la Frontera (Andalusian Atlantic seaboard, Spain). Forty-three indicators are used in a multicriteria decision analysis support method (scoring) with the five sub-system Analytical Hierarchy Process: quality of participatory process; effective policy tools and planning controls; trust in local government; tourism business sector; and growth management and urbanism. Applying this Indicator System can lead to better territorial governance and successful sustainability of destinations.

International Tourists’ Behaviors and Environmental Values for Sustainability in Tourism and Hospitality Business: A Systematic Review in Hurghada

The tourism industry has a dramatic impact on the world’s economy and development. The impacts of Travel and Tourism (T&T) on the natural and social environment have been a long-standing focus of tourism and hospitality researches. Sustainability is a critical business issue that is becoming a mandatory requirement for sustainable tourism and hospitality business. For this reason, it is important to study international tourist’ behavior, supporting sustainable production and consuming sustainable products and services that are functions of travel consumer’s values. The study presented a systematic analysis that focused on sustainability values (SVs) of tourists and the provision of hotels with respect to sustainability .The empirical study used a structural data from international tourists in Hurghada - as a sustainable tourist destination in Egypt. Data were obtained how Sustainable Values (SVs) predict tourist’s choice for sustainable tourism and hospitality businesses and how travel consumer’ values are important in making businesses more competitive. The sample of this study consisted of 450 international tourists stayed at hotels in Hurghada from the period of September 2016 to January 2017. The effect of those sustainability values (SVs), however, is partially mediated by the tourists’ environmental behaviors. Extending the respondents’ behavior, international tourists were grouped into an environment-supporting group called sustainable tourist(strong-sustainers) and an environment-normal group termed (neutral –sustainers). Based on these findings to the tourism market, stakeholders could offer targeted sustainability messages for the proposed tourists (strong-sustainer).

Resilience and sustainability: a complementary relationship? Towards a practical conceptual model for the sustainability–resilience nexus in tourism

ABSTRACT“Sustainability” has endured as an important concept for tourism scholars, and volumes have been written about how to achieve this holy grail of the tourism industry. Sustainable tourism destinations are often promoted as the ethical choice for discerning travellers, with some marketers taking full advantage of the widely acknowledged ambiguities implicit in the term. More recently “resilience” has generated appeal in the academic tourism literature as a term that might capture core aspects of sustainability, while acknowledging the considerable influences that multiple contexts have on the capacity of communities to adapt and ultimately sustain their tourism enterprises. The resilience concept encompasses an inclusive and integrative “social ecological systems” approach which gives it a firm interdisciplinary underpinning in its application in tourism. While in a tourism context sustainability and resilience are kindred terms, relatively little scholarly effort has been committed to a critical treatment of these concepts. Addressing this deficiency, we present a conceptual model to discuss the relationship between sustainability and resilience in tourism. Drawing on examples from New Zealand's nature-based tourism sector, this conceptual paper explores the insights that a critical treatment of the sustainability–resilience nexus might offer both academics and practitioners in the field of tourism studies.

Banje Republike Srpske kao održive turističke destinacije

Banje Republike Srpske kao održive turističke destinacije

Tourism destination management in sustainability development perspective, the role of entrepreneurship and networking ability: Tourist Kit

In the recent decade, the tourist destination management is considered as a destination in which a complex product composed of different elements required a coordination system. This implies that this destination should be organised in the sustainability perspective. We propose an interdisciplinary paper that is built following both a managerial and organisational perspective. The approach is the resource-based view theory and the concept of capabilities. The method used is the desk analysis spread in two phases: review of the literature on the main topics, destination management and coordination system; presentation of a case study. The finding of the work is that a sustainable tourist destination is possible if we start from definition of tourist destination as integrated and multilevel, where all main actors of the territory aim for sustainable development. This study presents the main characteristics for a developed country destination.

An analysis of the social media practices for sustainable medical tourism destination marketing

Despite the numerous studies investigating the wide adoption of social media by tourists and tourism providers, literature focusing on the analysis of social media strategies in the context of medical tourism is still limited. This research investigated the usage of social media for the marketing and promotion of four medical tourism destinations in Asia. Contents of corporate websites and social media platforms used by 70 international medical care providers in the region were examined. Findings suggest that most of the medical tourism providers are not fully utilising the potential of social media for tourism marketing. Medical tourism marketers should initiate more interactive forms of communication and promotion through social media and other online platforms. Online visitor's comments, reviews, and queries must be monitored, and adequate responses have to be posted promptly to generate a positive destination image among medical tourists, residents, travel and tourism operators and other stakeholders to ensure sustainable growth in this sector. The study contributes to both theory and practice by examining the utilisation of social media in medical tourism, a rapidly growing segment of the tourism and hospitality industry.

An analysis of the social media practices for sustainable medical tourism destination marketing

An analysis of the social media practices for sustainable medical tourism destination marketing

The Entry Points to Sustainable Tourism Destination Competitiveness (STC); Philosophical Approach

This paper is a philosophical approach towards sustainable destination competitiveness. It gives a logical analysis with an abridged view of the wide world argument on STC into condensed entry points. Needless to say that it is a bliss to have everything that matters for STC, it is practically impossible to have everything at disposal and this paper starts by proposing a premise that nations cannot afford to implement the exhaustive list of the determinants of STC. Therefore, the paper argues that it is necessary to melt the whole idea into shortlisted critical variables. The best way to melt it down is through classification, as one cannot do science without classifying the components of a system into a working model by scaling down the disconnected points to a classified generic entry points. Hence, this paper has classified the whole lot of lists in to leveraging areas so others can be transformed along with the process. These leveraging areas are stated in this paper as Entry Points for STC. They are Institutional Capacity and Sustainability. These catch all entry points with their own specific sub-postulates, the competing viewpoints and the logical appropriation of the arguments for experimentation in the eye of science and are discussed in detail with clear lines of sequential ideas.