World Tourism Organization Research Articles

Vietnam’s sustainable tourism and growth: a new approach to strategic policy modelling

The paper introduces a new approach to develop a model of endogenous tourism and growth for Vietnam and, estimated by official national accounting data, provides credible inputs for strategic policy analysis. The country is a major transition high-growth ASEAN economy and a WTO member with successful opening up policies since its Doi Moi (Renovation) reform in 1987. Significantly, due to these policies and its natural, historical and cultural attractions, Vietnam has also been receiving in recent years increasing tourist inflows with substantial contribution to its national income. In spite of these developments, appropriate and rigorous studies of Vietnam's tourism and impact on growth have been very limited. The paper addresses this gap. As a significant innovative feature, the study is carried out appropriately from an economic integration growth framework, which is also the expenditure (as opposed to conventional production or income) perspective of the United Nations System of National Accounts 1993/2008. The model is a multi-simultaneous equation model of Vietnam's endogenous growth and tourism determination. It explicitly incorporates gravity theory and classical consumer demand contributors, Ironmonger-Lancaster new commodity attributes and importantly Johansen policy impact add- and sub-factors in its specification. The model is then estimated by system methods with official 1997–2017 economic and tourism data from the World Tourism Organisation and other international agencies. The research will advance the literature and the findings will provide useful new, appropriate and evidence-based causal insights on the determination and contributors of tourism to Vietnam's growth. Recommendations will be made for key stake-holders such as tourism policy-makers, academic analysts and tourism operators for strategic policy analysis and practical implementation. The approach is of the economic integration modelling class and generic, and has wide applications in the field.

Specific aspects of the state regulation of the national market inclusive tourism

The article is devoted to the actual topic of inclusive tourism development in Ukraine. According to various sources, the number of tourists with special needs in developed countries is an average of 20%. Trends in the tourism industry development indicate an increase in this type of tourism, therefore, inclusive tourism has significant financial and economic potential. World tourism trends indicate that inclusive tourism shows the highest growth rates. The concept of “tourism for all” has a global character and are declared in the provisions of the international documents of the United Nations. A significant contribution to the development and promotion of inclusive tourism is made by the World Tourism Organization. The article analyzes the experience of Ukraine in the implementation of inclusion projects. The main regulatory documents, governing norms and standards to ensure barrier-free access are defined. Based on the analysis, the proposals for improving the effectiveness of state regulation of the inclusive tourism development in Ukraine based on the best international practices, considering problematic aspects and prospects for the introduction of inclusion in Ukraine, have been developed.

СУЧАСНИЙ СТАН РОЗВИТКУ ПІДПРИЄМСТВ ТУРИСТИЧНОЇ ГАЛУЗІ УКРАЇНИ

The article is devoted to the analysis of the current state, problems and further development of the tourism industry of Ukraine. A retrospective analysis of the dynamics of international tourist arrivals and cash inflows by regions of the world is conducted. Problems and prospects of development of tourist industry in Ukraine and the main factors that influenced the formation of problems were investigated. In particular, the dynamics of indicators of foreign and tourist flows for 2010–2018 was analyzed. The data of the State Statistics Service and the World Tourism Organization, the number of tourists (foreign and domestic tourists) and the importance of tourists in the European region are analyzed. It is revealed that the priority directions of development of the tourism industry, which influences the changing the quality of life in Ukraine for the better, the creation of new jobs, the improvement of the image of Ukraine in the international arena. Improving and improving the development of tourism enterprises in the regions in the current trends of the world economy provides motivation for related industries such as trade, food industry, construction, transport, agriculture, small and medium-sized enterprises and creates preconditions for sustainable socio-economic development of the country. The direct contribution of tourism to world GDP depends on the spending of residents and non-residents of all countries on tourism entertainment and business trips, as well as the government’s “individual” expenditures to support tourism-related sectors, such as cultural (museums, galleries) or entertainment (national) parks). Indirect contribution to GDP and job creation is estimated by the size of investment inflows into tourism and travel The main problems of low economic efficiency of the tourism industry in Ukraine are caused by seasonal nature of the work of the vast majority of enterprises in the tourism industry, poor competitiveness of certain services due to the limited quality of services, low quality assortment inflexible pricing, depreciation of fixed assets. The efficiency and effective functioning of the tourism industry in Ukraine depends on the quality work of all participants in the tourism industry and enterprises of related industries.

Valorizacija teritorijalnog kapitala u funkciji razvoja ruralnog turizma - studija slučaja opštine Kneževo

The main goal of the research presented in the paper is to analyse the current state and level of development of rural area, in Kneževo municipality, as well as to define the possibilities of development of certain forms of rural tourism based on the territorial capital. In other words, the capital of space consists of natural and created capital. For the purposes of the valorisation of tourist potentials, the qualitative-quantitative methodology of the World Tourism Organization was used, which includes conducting a survey using standard forms of a questionnaire. Based on this survey, resource scoring was performed according to all external and internal factors, i.e. criteria. According to the results of the research, the indicator of tourist value for Kneževo municipality is estimated with 98.74 points out of a possible 400 points, or 25% of its potential tourist value.

СИСТЕМНЫЙ ПОДХОД К РАЗВИТИЮ ТУРИЗМА ЛИЦ ТРЕТЬЕГО ВОЗРАСТА

The world tourism organization (UNWTO) highlights an increase in the number of older tourists among the trends in the tourism industry. This segment is very important for the development of the entire industry, since every year the number of people of retirement age who have a sufficient number of characteristics that are conducive to travel is growing. An unprecedented change in the demographic structure of the population will lead to changes in the tourist services market. This article discusses the main factors that affect tourism for older people, the state of the modern market for tourism of the third age, the problems of development of this type of tourism in Russia, as well as the prospects for this direction in the tourism industry. From the position of comparative analysis of foreign experience, the authors consider the system of social travel in Spain and Germany. Based on the results of the research, the article substantiates a number of practical recommendations based on a systematic analysis of the current situation in the industry under study. Based on the study of the current situation in the domestic market of tourist services, the conclusion is made about the economic attractiveness of studying, investing and developing this segment.

Сучасні тенденції маркетингових досліджень у туристичній галузі

Currently, the tourism industry continues to outpace the global economy despite deteriorating global economic prospects, tensions in international trade, social worries, geopolitical uncertainty, instability and the COVID-19 pandemic. The article is aimed at identifying modern trends of marketing research as part of the complex of marketing instruments in the tourism sphere. To achieve this aim, the article uses the following research methods: abstract-logical; situational analysis; mean, absolute and relative values; comparison, graphic, sociological; statistical analysis; economic-mathematical; expert surveys and estimations. Based on the data of the World Tourism Organization, the indicators of development of the world market of tourist services are analyzed. Performed were the following: analysis of the dynamics of the number of subjects of tourism activity (tour operators and travel agents) in Ukraine; total average number of full-time employees; income from the provision of tourist services; operating expenses for the provision of tourist services; number of tourists served by tour operators and travel agents in Ukraine. The content of marketing research is disclosed as a multi-stage process, which should include the collection, registration and analysis of data in the sphere of tourism business. Marketing researches should be conducted according to 8 stages: determining the problem; development of the concept of research; cabinet marketing research; field market research; analysis of market conditions (supply and demand); research of foreign markets; simulation modeling; formation of a marketing information system. In order to determine the rating of tour operators of the mass segment of the tourism market in 2020, a questionnaire containing 16 questions is specified. Its results can be used when evaluating tour operators in terms of customer comfort and cooperation with travel agents. It is proved that marketing research in the tourism industry is advisable to be carried out systematically. This will provide for substantiating and elaborating managerial solutions in order to maximize the satisfaction of the needs of consumers of tourist services and solve the problems of significant seasonal fluctuations in demand.

Development of the region based on the activation of internal factors

The state of the economy of the Russian regions is to a considerable extent determined by the external environment, in the conditions of the negative impact of which on the socioeconomic processes, it is necessary to search for internal sources that reduce these restrictions. Their stimulation could minimize dependence on energy exports and fluctuations in the external economic situation, change the reproductive structure of the economy, and thereby ensure the socioeconomic development of the regions. The aim of the study is identifying and scientifically substantiating the activation of such internal factor as tourism, the potential of the latter being not fully utilized, but can stimulate regional development. The object of the research is the European North of Russia, where economy is dependent on the export of power resources. The subject of the study is the internal factors that ensure the development of regional socioeconomic systems. The information base of the study has been the statistical data of the Federal State Statistics Service, the data of sociological surveys conducted by the Federal State Budgetary Institution of Science Vologda Research and the information of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). The study is based on the work of domestic and foreign scientists involved in ensuring economic growth and development of territories on the basis of tourism, in particular. The authors suggests a scientific approach that allows identifying reserves for stimulating regional development based on using the potential of internal factors of the socioeconomic subsystems of the region. The author stresses determines that for the European North of Russia the tourism subsystem with significant potential is a substantional factor of regional development.. Based on the analysis, it has been revealed that insufficient influence of tourism on the region’s economy is associated with the weak demand of the population for domestic tourism due to a lack of funds. In conclusion, areas that promote the consumption of tourist goods and services in the region are proposed.

A contribution of fuzzy logic to sustainable tourism through a case analysis in Brazil

Society is increasingly concerned about environmental, social and economic issues. According to the World Tourism Organization, over the past six decades, tourism has experienced a continuous expansion and diversification to become one of the fastest-growing economic sectors in the world. Furthermore, studies affirm the complexity of the tourism sector and the fact that sustainable development depends on various topics that are not correctly identified by managers and policymakers. For these reasons, this paper aims to reflect on the effects of tourism and to propose alternatives that can be sustainably managed. In terms of results, knowledge gaps have been identified and, through a case analysis in Brazil, the forgotten effects of tourism activity that can have an impact on sustainable development have been exposed. Also, an algorithm has been presented to manage uncertainty and facilitate decision-making.

Estimation of the Size of Dengue and Zika Infection Among Korean Travelers to Southeast Asia and Latin America, 2016-2017.

ObjectivesTo estimate the number and risk of imported infections resulting from people visiting Asian and Latin American countries.MethodsThe dataset of visitors to 5 Asian countries with dengue were analyzed for 2016 and 2017, and in the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam, imported cases of zika virus infection were also reported. For zika virus, a single imported case was reported from Brazil in 2016, and 2 imported cases reported from the Maldives in 2017. To understand the transmissibility in 5 Southeast Asian countries, the estimate of the force of infection, i.e., the hazard of infection per year and the average duration of travel has been extracted. Outbound travel numbers were retrieved from the World Tourism Organization, including business travelers.ResultsThe incidence of imported dengue in 2016 was estimated at 7.46, 15.00, 2.14, 4.73 and 2.40 per 100,000 travelers visiting Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam, respectively. Similarly, 2.55, 1.65, 1.53, 1.86 and 1.70 per 100,000 travelers in 2017, respectively. It was estimated that there were 60.1 infections (range: from 16.8 to 150.7 infections) with zika virus in Brazil, 2016, and 345.6 infections (range: from 85.4 to 425.5 infections) with zika virus in the Maldives, 2017.ConclusionThis study emphasizes that dengue and zika virus infections are mild in their nature, and a substantial number of infections may go undetected. An appropriate risk assessment of zika virus infection must use the estimated total size of infections.

Domestic Tourists’ Unethical Behaviors in Package Tours

Today, ethics has become extremely remarkable almost in all areas. Many studies have been conducted especially on consumer ethics. Minimizing consumers’ unethical behaviors is essential for tourism sector, just as for other sectors. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine unethical behaviors of domestic tourists participating in package tours. For this purpose, 8 package tours were participated and by using participatory observation method, it was aimed to reveal unethical behaviors of domestic tourists. With unethical behaviors revealed in observations, it is thought to facilitate the work of travel agencies and tourist guides, help tourists behave more consciously and avoid behaviors that will disturb other tourists or local people. While determining unethical behaviors, Ethical Codes of World Tourism Organization, museum-archeological site rules, laws and ethical values were taken into consideration. The most repeated unethical tourist behaviors in the research were; throwing litter in museums-archeological sites or gas stations, interfering, not listening or doing something else while tour guide was narrating. Besides, those who left the group during the tour without considering the need to act together and informing, and those who made other tourists and tour officials wait by being late for the meeting time constituted a remarkable amount.

Towards Smarter Management of Overtourism in Historic Centres Through Visitor-Flow Monitoring

Historic centres are highly regarded destinations for watching and even participating in diverse and unique forms of cultural expression. Cultural tourism, according to the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), is an important and consolidated tourism sector and its strong growth is expected to continue over the coming years. Tourism, the much dreamt of redeemer for historic centres, also represents one of the main threats to heritage conservation: visitors can dynamize an economy, yet the rapid growth of tourism often has negative effects on both built heritage and the lives of local inhabitants. Knowledge of occupancy levels and flows of visiting tourists is key to the efficient management of tourism; the new technologies—the Internet of Things (IoT), big data, and geographic information systems (GIS)—when combined in interconnected networks represent a qualitative leap forward, compared to traditional methods of estimating locations and flows. A methodology is described in this paper for the management of tourism flows that is designed to promote sustainable tourism in historic centres through intelligent support mechanisms. As part of the Smart Heritage City (SHCITY) project, a collection system for visitors is developed. Following data collection via monitoring equipment, the analysis of a set of quantitative indicators yields information that can then be used to analyse visitor flows; enabling city managers to make management decisions when the tourism-carrying capacity is exceeded and gives way to overtourism.

THE CURRENT STATE OF TOURISM INDUSTRY IN FRANCE

Today France is one of the most visited countries in the world. The features of the tourism industry in France have been considered in the article. The purpose of the article is to study the current state of tourism in France and make forecasts for the near future. The phenomenon of excessive tourism has been highlighted, the reaction of the local population to sutourism has been reviewed and substantiated. The opinion of experts of the World Tourism Organization on excessive tourism has been adduced. The latest significant events, that can affect tourist flows, have been considered.

Potential of Vineyard Landscapes for Sustainable Tourism

According to the World Tourism Organization, sustainable tourism fosters the conservation of natural resources, respects the socio-cultural authenticity of host communities and ensures the maintenance of economic activities in the long term. With reference to these three areas, this article examines how vineyard landscapes, seen as one of the many resources of wine tourism, represent a potential for promoting forms of sustainable tourism, which be understood as tourism that assumes a balance between the environmental, economic and social determining factors behind a region. For this purpose, different theoretical and thematic approaches are used to highlight the importance of key issues, such as the status of the vineyard landscape as part of the conservation of natural resources in general and the elements linked to tangible and intangible heritage as part of the social authenticity of these landscapes. The results show how the strong cultural nature of vineyard landscapes, which are rich in heritage and aesthetics, guarantees their sustainability for tourist activity, provided that appropriate planning criteria are used.

Economic Diversification in Nigeria: The Prospect of Tourism

In recent times, the economic fortune of Nigeria has been dwindling as a result of a drastic fall in the price of oil in the world market coupled with the illegal bunkering and the Niger/Delta militancy. This calls for the need to diversify the economy. Tourism is one sector that can guarantee numerous benefits for a sustainable growth from the over reliance on the oil sector. This paper therefore, examined the prospect of tourism as a source of income generation, foreign exchange earner and a source of employment. The sources of data were secondary gotten from CBN Statistical Bulletin and the World Tourism Organization. The paper examined the relationship between tourism and economic growth using Least Square. The result revealed that there is a significant relationship between tourism and economic growth. This confirmed the tourism led growth hypothesis that tourism triggers economic growth because tourists’ spending provides foreign exchange earnings and job opportunities. It follows that if well annexed, tourism can serve as a good alternative to oil reliability thereby bringing an end to Nigeria’s over dependence on oil with the attendance volatility. The paper recommended provision of infrastructural facilities and improvement in security in order to motivate prospective tourists.

Insights into the safety and security expressions of visitors to the Kakum National Park: Implications for management

While a great number of studies have explored issues of safety and security, the extant literature has tended to focus rather on the destination as an aggregate to the detriment of understanding safety and security issues at the micro-level of individual attractions. This paper sought to assess visitors' perceptions of safety and security at the Kakum National Park, Ghana. A total of 387 visitors were chosen using the convenience sampling technique over a two- month period. It emerged that respondents’ views were mainly split between the two extremes of being safe-secure or unsafe/insecure but opinions tilted slightly toward the latter. Again, visitors’ constructions of safety and security were essentially need-driven and statistically associated with age and continent of origin. The study recommends provision of adequate safety and security measures and comprehensive safety and security guidelines carved out from the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Destination Safety framework of 1996.

Problems and prospects of tourism industry in Uttarakhand

Tourism is not merely an activity for leisure and entertainment but it also an enriching and energizing activity. In modern world tourism is emerged as one of the largest service-sector industry and generates national income as well as job opportunities especially for local population and become an avenue of economic and social development and cultural exchange. Various international agencies like World Tourism Organization (WTO) have pointed out the vast development potential of tourism, particularly with reference to developing nations like India. India that has a bountiful natural beauty and resources heritage sites, archeological remains, splendid natural scenery, beaches, mountains and enrich biodiversity have an ample scope for tourism potential. Uttarakhand known as Devbhoomi or ‘Abode of Gods’ is a site of temples and pilgrimage, endowed with salubrious climate, exotic greenery, rich flora besides its rich culture. Moreover the beautiful lakes, mountain peaks, mesmerizing scenic landscapes makes Uttarakhand an attractive tourist destination in India and abroad. The present paper tries to analyze the problem as well as prospects of tourism development in the state, the nature of the research is qualitative and based on the secondary sources of data

The Contribution of European Structural Funds to the Development of the Rural Tourism Infrastructure of Romania’s South West Oltenia Development Region

The strategic role of tourism sector and its considerable contribution to economic development, employment, social and environmental sustainability is acknowledged by all decision-making bodies, from world wide tourism associations (World Tourism Organization – WTO) to national, regional and local communities. The current article analyses the direct contribution of European structural funds on the development of tourism infrastructure in South West Oltenia, one of the development regions of Romania, over the past 15 years. The data used for the research covers the pre-accession funds allocation (SAPARD Programme), the investments in tourism infrastructure from 2007–2013 financial programming framework as well as the current 2014–2020 programming framework – selected projects. The main conclusion that emerges form the research is that European structural funds had greatly contributed to the development of rural tourism infrastructure both in terms of quantity as well as in quality.

Carrying Capacity Analysis in Mizoram Tourism

Tourism Carrying Capacity was defined by the World Tourism Organization as the highest number of visitors that may visit a tourist spot at the same time, without causing damage of the natural, economic, environmental, cultural environment and no decline in the class of visitors' happiness. Carrying capacity is a concept that has been extensively applied in tourism and leisure studies since the 1960s, but its appearance can be date back to the 1930s. It may be viewed as an important thought in the eventual emergence of sustainability discussion, it has become less important in recent years as sustainability and its associated concepts have come to dominate planning on the management of tourism and its impacts. But the study of carrying capacity analysis is still an important tool to know the potentiality and future impact in tourism sector. Thus, up to some extent carrying capacity analysis is important study for tourist destinations and states like Mizoram. Mizoram is a small and young state with few thousands of visitors that visit the state every year. But with the existing facilities will it be okay for future planning is significant to study. Hence, this paper is an attempt to study the carrying capacity of Mizoram Tourism with some selected destinations.

ATTEMPT AT ASSESSMENT OF THE EFFECTIVENESS OF ACTIVITIES UNDERTAKEN BY NATIONAL TOURISM ORGANISATIONS AIMED AT THE CREATION OF THE COUNTRY’S TOURISM BRAND

Purpose. Assessment of the effectiveness of activities undertaken as part of creating and managing the country’s tourism brand by National Tourism Organisations (NTO). Method. Empirical research concerned activities undertaken in relation to the creation and management of the country’s tourism brand by 81 NTOs that function in the area of five main world tourist regions (according to the World Tourism Organisation – UNWTO). The process of data collection and verification covers the years of 2013-2016. The used research methods include: the diagnostic survey method with the use of the questionnaire technique, direct interviews and statistical analyses. Results. Significant divergences were confirmed in the assessment concerning the effectiveness of individual activities undertaken by the NTOs examined in the area of creating and managing the country’s tourism brand. The initial hierarchy of the effectiveness of activities undertaken by the NTOs examined as part of the process of the management of the country’s tourism brand (conducted by the examined organisations) was not confirmed by the results of statistical analysis (correlations with the accepted measures of effectiveness). This is related to quasi-governmental and non-governmental organisations. Research and conclusions limitations. Empirical research solely concerned the functioning of those organisations which can be referred to as rightful NTOs, i.e. those entities which meet the basic criteria that are to be fulfilled by this type organisation (including the main task: promotion of a given country as an attractive tourist destination). Practical implications. Conclusions that follow from the study can be used by those organisations responsible for the brand management process related to a tourist reception area on different levels of administration (including local, regional and national entities). Originality. This type of analysis has not been conducted until now. Therefore, the present study offers a novel approach to the functioning of national tourism organisations by presenting the broadest ever spectrum of areas of interests related to this type organisation. Type of work. The article predominantly presents the results of empirical research.

Macroeconomic Characteristics of Tourism Economy in the Republic of Tunisia

Introduction. Tourism is a dynamic, constantly developing sector of the economy. Tourism economy develops along with the society, recreation and tourism. The purpose of the article is to show the features of the impact of tourism on the national economy using the case of Tunisia. The experience of Tunisia is especially useful for the countries where beach recreation has developed and where the political situation has remained difficult for a long time (Egypt, Turkey, Thailand, etc.). Materials and Methods. The article is based on the statistical data provided by the World Tourism Organization, the World Data Atlas and open Internet sources. The study employed general scientific methods (analysis, synthesis, synthesis, comparison, etc.) and special ones (the methods of mathematical statistics, the graphical method, the comparative method, etc.). Results. For the first time, the article has provided a fairly complete description of the macroeconomic indicators characterizing the level of development of international tourism in Tunisia. The article has analyzed the dynamics of inbound and outbound tourism, discussed the factors affecting the volume of international tourism, considered international tourism expenditures and revenues, which to a large extent have a positive or negative impact on the country’s balance of payments. The trends in the development of international tourism in Tunisia have been revealed and the problems facing the industry have been identified. Discussion and Conclusion. The research has revealed that tourism economy largely depends on the political and economic processes taking place in the country. The current level of macroeconomic indicators of tourism economy in Tunisia lags behind the 2008–2009 figures. The results of the study made it possible to assess the current state of international tourism and make a number of suggestions aimed at increasing the level of development of international tourism in the country. The results of the study can contribute to the development of a program aimed to boost tourism economy in Tunisia, one of the key tasks of which should be that of increasing performance at the macro-level.