The coordination challenge in tourism destinations: value creation, enhancement, and retention

The economic specificity of tourism pivots around two pillars. One: tourism is a bundle of complementary goods (spanning from accommodation to transport, from leisure activities to rental services, and so on) that are jointly demanded and consumed by the tourist but purchased in separate acts of consumption. Two: when tourists choose a destination, they consider the beauty of its natural environment, the cultural content of its historical heritage, the uniqueness of the urban architecture, and so on. In economic terms, this is tantamount to saying that the territory enters the production and the utility functions, hence affecting the conditions of supply and demand, and with straightforward consequences on the market equilibrium: competition in tourism is mainly between destinations, not (or not only) between products, services, or firms.