O turismo é uma atividade crescente e é responsável por um a cada doze empregos no mundo. Com o advento da internet, as relações interpessoais e comerciais alteram-se a cada dia. Para as agências de viagens e turismo, empresas distribuidoras do produto/serviço turístico, tais transformações têm alterado totalmente o modo de gerir os negócios. Esta dissertação analisa a interferência da internet na competitividade das agências de viagens e turismo. Objetiva identificar o perfil dessas empresas, a forma de utilização da internet, os processos que auxiliam o relacionamento com os clientes por meio das tecnologias de informação e comunicação e avaliar a interferência da internet na competitividade dessas empresas. Na formação do marco teórico, foi utilizada uma pesquisa bibliométrica para apurar o estado da arte sobre o tema, somada às ideias de autores das áreas do Turismo, Administração, Marketing, Competitividade, Qualidade, Finanças e Sistemas de Informação. A pesquisa de campo entrevistou 68 empresas da cidade de São Paulo e apresentou resultados similares aos de outros países. Dentre eles, o perfil predominante de micro e pequenas empresas, que ainda não estão totalmente conscientes das mudanças ocorridas no mercado e que possuem certeza de que o investimento no relacionamento com o cliente, juntamente com a constante análise das suas capacidades internas, é determinante para seu sucesso. O presente estudo vem agregar literatura ao segmento das agências de viagens e turismo, o qual possui pouca produção específica. / Tourism is a growing activity and is responsible for one in every twelve jobs in the world. With the advent of internet interpersonal and commercial relationships change every day. For travel agencies and tourism, distributors of the product / tourist service, such transformations have totally changed the way to manage the business. This paper analyzes the interference of the Internet on the competitiveness of travel and tourism agencies and aims to identify the profile of these companies, how to use the Internet, the processes that assist in customer relationships through information and communication technologies and evaluate the role of the Internet in the competitiveness of these companies. In forming the theoretical framework used out a bibliometric study to determine the state of the art on the topic and added to the authors of the areas of Tourism, Management, Marketing, Competitiveness, Quality, Finance and Information Systems. The field research interviewed 68 companies from São Paulo and showed similar results to those of other countries, such as the profile of predominantly micro and small enterprises, which are still not fully aware of the changes in the market, and have assured that investment in the relationship with the client, along with the constant analysis of its internal capabilities is critical for the success of the same. The current study add to the literature segment of the travel and tourism agencies, which has little specific literature.

O objeto da tese está voltado para o processo do marketing estratégico e do desenvolvimento de vantagens competitivas em organizações empresariais do setor de turismo, visando à obtenção de uma posição competitiva superior, mediante a satisfação de seus clientes, dos seus diversos públicos (stakeholders) e da sociedade em que estão inseridas. O estudo incorpora, como parte de seu projeto conceitual, a análise de um modelo teórico recente sobre estratégia empresarial –Modelo Delta - e as relações que se desenvolvem entre as empresas na era da globalização. Nesse contexto de globalização, é discutido o fenômeno de internacionalização das empresas e o impacto da crescente concentração, decorrente de fusões e aquisições, que se observa atualmente no setor de turismo. O problema em estudo está mais vinculado com os países receptivos que, por suas condições naturais, especializam-se em desenvolver ofertas para receber turistas de todas partes do mundo. A metodologia da pesquisa empírica que integra esta tese é de natureza qualitativa e modalidade exploratório - descritiva, tendo por método o estudo de caso. O estudo responde aos objetivos da pesquisa acadêmica e expõe o processo de expansão da Sol Meliá na América Latina, com ênfase no Brasil e em Cuba, particularmente nas cidades de São Paulo e Havana, respectivamente. Dentre as evidências encontradas destaca-se que, no setor de turismo, aparece de forma evidente a grande evolução econômica e sócio-cultural que se está operando no mundo contemporâneo. Observou-se, ainda, que, nos próximos anos, os destinos turísticos deverão se adaptar a uma situação de competitividade extrema, em que a obtenção de lucros e a sustentabilidade dos negócios turísticos serão muito mais complexos. As empresas terão que projetar suas ofertas de forma cada vez mais diferenciada e integrada ao planejamento dos destinos turísticos, em correspondência com o desenvolvimento sustentável do setor. Deverão, ainda, ser capazes de atrair a atenção de novos turistas e reter os atuais clientes, pela inovação de suas propostas. / This thesis is focused on the strategic marketing process and on the search of competitive advantages in the tourist sector business organizations for the purpose of achieving an advantageous competitive position through the satisfaction of their customers as well as that of their stakeholders and of the society to which they belong. As part of its conceptual project the study includes analysis of a recent theoretical model about business strategy – Delta Model – and the relationships among companies in the era of globalization. In this context of globalization, the phenomenon of the companies’ internationalization is discussed, as well as the impact of increasing concentration that has resulted from mergers and acquisitions, currently perceived in the tourist sector. The issue under study is related to host countries that, because of their natural attributes have specialized in promoting offers for clients from all over the world. The methodology of empiric research applied in this thesis is of a qualitative and exploratory-descriptive nature and and makes use of the case study method. The study meets the objectives of academic research and presents the process of expansion of the Sol Meliá in Latin America, with emphasis on Brazil and on Cuba, particularly in the cities of São Paulo and Havana. Among the evidences detected, it maybe noted that in the tourist sector the great economic and socio-cultural evolution taking place in today’s world is quite apparent. It was further observed that, in the coming years, tourist destinations will have to adjust to situations of fierce competition, where achievement of profits and sustainability of tourist businesses will be much more complex. The companies will have to design their offers in an increasingly differentiated and comprehensive manner of planning tourist destinations in accordance with the sustainable development of the sector. Further, by means of the innovativeness of their proposals, they will have to be capable of keeping the current customers and of attracting the attention of new tourists.

The aim of this study is to examine the development of the travel selfie phenomenon in contemporary media and culture, and its impact on tourist experiences. By discussing key issues surrounding the phenomenon, particularly commodification and social media such as Instagram, this thesis investigates the effects of the travel selfie on tourist experiences, through a qualitative study approach.By adopting dispositive analysis as a methodology, this study explores how the travel selfie phenomenon evolves from a photographic practice into a modern tourist trend and a travel commodity that has revolutionized the tourist industry. The results suggest that the travel selfie has evolved from a spontaneous photographic technique into a valuable commodity that empowers modern tourists in different parts of the world. The shared consumption of the travel selfie amongst tourists subvert dominant criticism about the selfie culture by suggesting how the travel selfie inspires and unites tourists through an ability to express themselves individually. The conclusions emphasize how the travel selfie has expanded amongst tourists and continues to transform the contemporary cultures.

In the pursuit of attracting more tourists in a market where competition is growing on a global scale, place branding has become increasingly more common. An underexplored alternative within the place branding literature is place brand ecosystems, and how they can create value for both the place brand itself as well as the tourists that travel there. This thesis aimed to research how a place brand ecosystem can be conceptualised as well as how tourists derive value from viewing a place brand as a place brand ecosystem. The conceptualisation of the place brand ecosystem was conducted through a literature review, leading up to the construction of a conceptual framework. The constructed framework showed that a place brand ecosystem could be conceptualised through interactions between stakeholders, place brand perception, and value co-creation. This framework also set the basis for an interview guide to understand tourist value perception of place brand ecosystems. The data collection was conducted through a set of semi-structured interviews consisting of 11 respondents holding a degree of interest of Arjeplog as a tourist destination.  The results of the data collection showed that tourists saw value in functional attributes being more easily accessible to each other, meaning a place brand ecosystem where stakeholders co-operate will be able to construct their functional attributes more easily. The attributes themselves will differ between places, and the place brand ecosystem must identify their strengths and weaknesses among the stakeholders and adjust accordingly. Furthermore, the place brand ecosystem must manage the brand positioning in relation to the brand image, meaning they must meet the expectations they have set out to market, or the tourists would leave discontent as opposed to if they had travelled there without expectations.

<p>Tourism is typically a hedonic product, and its consumption promotes positive psychology and wellbeing. Industry practitioners and academics have long been advocating sustainable practices and experiences that promote the health and wellness benefits of tourism. Indeed, studies that support designing tourism experiences with positive social and wellness outcomes are needed to better leverage design factors in delivering, communicating, and sustaining the health-related benefits of the tourism experiences. Food is an integral part of the overall tourism experience and has important implications for tourists’ pleasure and wellbeing. Thus, it is important to identify the factors that contribute to a better wellness value of the tourist food experience. </p> <p>Using a multi-qualitative method, the first study explored the communal dining experiences of solo travelers. The results indicate that solo traveler communal dining is affected by many motivations (e.g., socialization and authenticity seeking) and constraints (e.g., safety and health concerns). Other factors that were found to affect communal dining include socio-demographic factors (age, gender, cultural background, previous experiences, and extroversion); other diners’ factors (e.g., attitudes and behaviors, perceived similarity, and cultural barriers); dining place-related factors (e.g., social environment, entertainment, and employees openness); and situation-related factors (food quality, environment safety, group composition, communal dining vibes, and dining time). This study found that communal dining triggers four experiential domains: sensory, intellectual, affective, and behavioral which could result in a transformative and wellness value for solo travelers. Under the right circumstances, communal dining triggers a process of self-change that results in personal and social transformations. </p> <p>Continuing to examine the social experiences of solo travelers, the second study empirically examined the impact of the emotional display of fellow diners on solo travelers’ affect and perceived interpersonal relations during communal dining. The scenario-based experiment showed that other diners' display of emotions influenced solo traveler's affect and rapport perceptions in communal dining. Additionally, fellow communal table diners’ characteristics including their ingroup status and perceived similarity can play a role in impacting solo travelers’ communal dining experience. The perceived similarity was found to act as a trigger or “catalyst” for communal dining experience formation for solo travelers. Further, a positive influence of affect and rapport on solo travelers’ subjective wellbeing was noted.</p> <p>The third study examined the phenomenon of tourist food sharing. The study used experimental design to empirically examine the impact of food sharing on tourists’ interpersonal relationship development, sense of authenticity, and subjective wellbeing. The two experiments showed that tourist food sharing improves interpersonal relationships, tourist perceptions of experience authenticity, and wellbeing. Two culturally divergent tourist groups were compared: U.S. tourists and Chinese tourists. The results showed that U.S. tourists evaluated food sharing higher regarding its impact on authenticity and wellbeing than their Chinese counterparts. </p>

The primary goal of this study was to determine the impact of price discrimination on tourism demand. Four objectives were defined with reference to the primary research goal. The first objective was to analyse the concept of price discrimination and relevant theories by means of a literature study. In this regard it was found that price discrimination between markets is fairly common and that it occurs if the same goods were sold to different customers at different prices. Price discrimination is also possible as soon as some monopoly power exists and it is feasible when it is impossible or at least impractical for the buyers to trade among themselves. Three different kinds of price discrimination can be applied, namely first-degree, second-degree and third-degree price discrimination. The data also indicated that price discrimination is advantageous (it mainly increases profit) and that it has several other effects too. The second objective was to analyse examples of price discrimination by means of international case studies. In these different case studies it was found that demand and supply, therefore consumer and product, formed the basis of price discrimination. If demand did not exist, it would be impossible to apply price discrimination. The findings also indicated that, for an organisation to be able to practice price discrimination, the markets must be separated effectively and it will only be successful if there is a significant difference in demand elasticity between the different consumers. Furthermore, the ability to charge these different prices will depend on the consumer's ability and willingness to pay. If an organisation should decide to price discriminate, it would lead to a higher profit, a more optimal pricing policy and also to an increase in sales. The third objective was to analyse national case studies. This was done through comparing the data of a tourism organisation price discriminating (Mosetlha Bush Camp, situated in the North West) to two organisations that did not implement price discrimination (Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park in the Northern Cape and Golden Leopard Resort, also situated in the North West). It was found that a customer with low price elasticity is less deterred by a higher price than a customer with a high price elasticity of demand. As long as the customer's price elasticity is less than one, it will be very advantageous to increase the price: the seller will in this case get more money for less goods. With the increase in price the price elasticity tends to rise above one. The fourth objective was to draw conclusions and make recommendations. It was concluded that price discrimination could be applied successfully in virtually any organisation or industry. Furthermore, price discrimination does not always have a negative effect; but can have a positive ass well. It can have a positive effect on tourism demand. The findings emphasised that the main reason for implementing price discrimination is to increase profit at the cost of reducing consumer surplus. From the results it was recommended that more research on this topic should be conducted. / Thesis (M.Com. (Tourism))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006.

The primary goal of this study was to determine the impact of price discrimination on tourism demand. Four objectives were defined with reference to the primary research goal. The first objective was to analyse the concept of price discrimination and relevant theories by means of a literature study. In this regard it was found that price discrimination between markets is fairly common and that it occurs if the same goods were sold to different customers at different prices. Price discrimination is also possible as soon as some monopoly power exists and it is feasible when it is impossible or at least impractical for the buyers to trade among themselves. Three different kinds of price discrimination can be applied, namely first-degree, second-degree and third-degree price discrimination. The data also indicated that price discrimination is advantageous (it mainly increases profit) and that it has several other effects too. The second objective was to analyse examples of price discrimination by means of international case studies. In these different case studies it was found that demand and supply, therefore consumer and product, formed the basis of price discrimination. If demand did not exist, it would be impossible to apply price discrimination. The findings also indicated that, for an organisation to be able to practice price discrimination, the markets must be separated effectively and it will only be successful if there is a significant difference in demand elasticity between the different consumers. Furthermore, the ability to charge these different prices will depend on the consumer's ability and willingness to pay. If an organisation should decide to price discriminate, it would lead to a higher profit, a more optimal pricing policy and also to an increase in sales. The third objective was to analyse national case studies. This was done through comparing the data of a tourism organisation price discriminating (Mosetlha Bush Camp, situated in the North West) to two organisations that did not implement price discrimination (Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park in the Northern Cape and Golden Leopard Resort, also situated in the North West). It was found that a customer with low price elasticity is less deterred by a higher price than a customer with a high price elasticity of demand. As long as the customer's price elasticity is less than one, it will be very advantageous to increase the price: the seller will in this case get more money for less goods. With the increase in price the price elasticity tends to rise above one. The fourth objective was to draw conclusions and make recommendations. It was concluded that price discrimination could be applied successfully in virtually any organisation or industry. Furthermore, price discrimination does not always have a negative effect; but can have a positive ass well. It can have a positive effect on tourism demand. The findings emphasised that the main reason for implementing price discrimination is to increase profit at the cost of reducing consumer surplus. From the results it was recommended that more research on this topic should be conducted. / Thesis (M.Com. (Tourism))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:27:51Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2009-09-24Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T20:17:20Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 santos_jef_me_rcla.pdf: 1217091 bytes, checksum: d47dbb4a503dd233f794b6d15994c021 (MD5) / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / O turismo exerce fortes impactos (positivos e negativos) sobre a economia, a cultura e o espaço das áreas receptoras, e por ser uma atividade complexa, torna-se importante uma reflexão de como esta atividade pode contribuir para o desenvolvimento local. O turismo como setor da atividade econômica organiza o seu próprio território, criando estruturas urbanas e regionais com características singulares, que expressam, em níveis espaciais, o regime de produção e reprodução de uma sociedade mercantil, além de gerar diversos multiplicadores que beneficiam o turismo e também as demais atividades econômicas. Diante disso, alguns arranjos produtivos locais, efetivos e potenciais, estão direta ou indiretamente relacionados com o setor turístico e esta dissertação procura explicar a organização dos territórios do setor de turismo no estado de São Paulo, e suas relações com os Arranjos Produtivos Locais (APLs) sobre a forma de circuitos espaciais de produção. A partir de análises conceituais acerca do turismo, desenvolvimento local e os APLs, esta dissertação faz uma avaliação da articulação da cadeia produtiva de Arranjos Produtivos Locais industriais e agro-industriais e dos circuitos espaciais com o turismo, analisando como esta articulação contribui para geração de desenvolvimento local. O turismo tem efeitos em APLs com funções produtivas, mas que no período de baixa produtividade ocorre uma inversão da economia, e atua também como uma estratégia de inserção competitiva, ao atuar como complemento de outras atividades econômicas, aumentando e restaurando a competitividade de alguns setores produtivos através da complementação deste setor ao se integrar à cadeia produtiva, como atividade complementar com grande potencial de atrair consumidores e aumentar a demanda do comércio local ou como fonte alternativa de renda. A atividade turística ajuda... / The tourism exercises strong impacts (positive and negative) on the economy, the culture and the space of the receiving areas, and for being a complex activity, it becomes important a reflection of as this activity can contribute to the local development. The tourism as section of the economical activity organizes its own territory, creating urban and regional structures with singular characteristics, that express, in space levels, the production regime and reproduction of a mercantile society, besides generating several multipliers that benefit the tourism and also the other economical activities. Before that, some local, effective and potential productive systems, are direct or indirectly related with the tourist section and this dissertation tries to explain the organization of the territories of the section of tourism in the state of São Paulo, and their relationships with the Local Productive Systems (LPS) on the form of space circuits of production. Starting from conceptual analyses concerning the tourism, local development and APLs, this dissertation makes an evaluation of the articulation of the productive chain of industrial and agriculture-industrial Local Productive Systems and of the space circuits with the tourism, analyzing as this articulation contributes to generation of local development. The tourism has effects in Local Productive Systems with productive functions, but that happens an inversion of the economy in the period of low productivity, and it also acts as a strategy of competitive insert, when acting as complement of other economical activities, increasing and restoring the competitiveness of some productive sections through the complementation of this section when becoming complete to the productive chain, as complemental activity with great potential of to attract consumers and to increase the demand of the local trade or as alternative source of income... (Complete abstract click electronic access below)

Orientador: Elson Luciano Silva Pires / Banca: Paulo Roberto Teixeira de Godoy / Banca: Claudete de Castro Silva Vitte / Resumo: O turismo exerce fortes impactos (positivos e negativos) sobre a economia, a cultura e o espaço das áreas receptoras, e por ser uma atividade complexa, torna-se importante uma reflexão de como esta atividade pode contribuir para o desenvolvimento local. O turismo como setor da atividade econômica organiza o seu próprio território, criando estruturas urbanas e regionais com características singulares, que expressam, em níveis espaciais, o regime de produção e reprodução de uma sociedade mercantil, além de gerar diversos multiplicadores que beneficiam o turismo e também as demais atividades econômicas. Diante disso, alguns arranjos produtivos locais, efetivos e potenciais, estão direta ou indiretamente relacionados com o setor turístico e esta dissertação procura explicar a organização dos territórios do setor de turismo no estado de São Paulo, e suas relações com os Arranjos Produtivos Locais (APLs) sobre a forma de circuitos espaciais de produção. A partir de análises conceituais acerca do turismo, desenvolvimento local e os APLs, esta dissertação faz uma avaliação da articulação da cadeia produtiva de Arranjos Produtivos Locais industriais e agro-industriais e dos circuitos espaciais com o turismo, analisando como esta articulação contribui para geração de desenvolvimento local. O turismo tem efeitos em APLs com funções produtivas, mas que no período de baixa produtividade ocorre uma inversão da economia, e atua também como uma estratégia de inserção competitiva, ao atuar como complemento de outras atividades econômicas, aumentando e restaurando a competitividade de alguns setores produtivos através da complementação deste setor ao se integrar à cadeia produtiva, como atividade complementar com grande potencial de atrair consumidores e aumentar a demanda do comércio local ou como fonte alternativa de renda. A atividade turística ajuda... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: The tourism exercises strong impacts (positive and negative) on the economy, the culture and the space of the receiving areas, and for being a complex activity, it becomes important a reflection of as this activity can contribute to the local development. The tourism as section of the economical activity organizes its own territory, creating urban and regional structures with singular characteristics, that express, in space levels, the production regime and reproduction of a mercantile society, besides generating several multipliers that benefit the tourism and also the other economical activities. Before that, some local, effective and potential productive systems, are direct or indirectly related with the tourist section and this dissertation tries to explain the organization of the territories of the section of tourism in the state of São Paulo, and their relationships with the Local Productive Systems (LPS) on the form of space circuits of production. Starting from conceptual analyses concerning the tourism, local development and APLs, this dissertation makes an evaluation of the articulation of the productive chain of industrial and agriculture-industrial Local Productive Systems and of the space circuits with the tourism, analyzing as this articulation contributes to generation of local development. The tourism has effects in Local Productive Systems with productive functions, but that happens an inversion of the economy in the period of low productivity, and it also acts as a strategy of competitive insert, when acting as complement of other economical activities, increasing and restoring the competitiveness of some productive sections through the complementation of this section when becoming complete to the productive chain, as complemental activity with great potential of to attract consumers and to increase the demand of the local trade or as alternative source of income... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre

The diploma thesis Analysis of destination management in the Ostrava region is about relations between the Ostrava tourist region and tourism itself. Formerly-by-tourism-untouched region has experienced development of the tourism industry and this fact has lead to a need of an effective tourist destination management approach. The destination marketing and management is not done by one superior institution but it is performed by many subjects. The most important ones are the Ostrava city and the Moravian-Silesian Region. The thesis analyzes their planned and realized projects and destination products. The end is dedicated to a suggestion of a new destination product - the Ostrava tourist card.