Dimensions impacting tourists’ perception of Smart Tourism Destinations

Authors

  • Luiz Mendes Filho Department of Tourism and Graduate Program in Tourism at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), Natal, RN, Brazil. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9175-8903
  • Verônica Feder Mayer Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality at the Federal Fluminense University (UFF), Niteroi, RJ, Brazil. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7543-5215
  • Cynthia Harumy Watanabe Corrêa School of Arts, Sciences and Humanities (EACH), University of São Paulo (USP), São Paulo, SP, Brazil. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9552-9235

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.7784/rbtur.v16.2332

Keywords:

Smart Tourism Destination, Technology, Innovation, Sustainability, Accessibility.

Abstract

A Smart Tourism Destination (STD) focuses on improving the tourist experience through the integrated use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in cities. This study investigated how tourists’ perception of the “degree of smartness” of a given destination can be influenced by the STD dimensions outlined by the specialized literature, namely Sustainability, Accessibility, Technology, and Innovation. To this end, we conducted a quantitative survey with 303 tourists visiting the cities of Natal, Rio de Janeiro, and São Paulo, Brazil. Multiple Linear Regression analysis revealed that the indicators associated with the Innovation and Sustainability dimensions influenced the STD dependent variable. The indicators with the most significant impact on STD according to tourists’ perception were: “New technologies employed by companies in the tourism sector,” “Innovation projects for improving tourism products and services,” and “Urban planning.” Although low, significant correlations were found between the variables associated with Technology and Accessibility and STD. We conclude that the dimensions most perceived by tourists are those with the most significant potential for rapid return and lower risk for destinations, which increase competitiveness and therefore require special attention from public and private managers.

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Author Biographies

Luiz Mendes Filho, Department of Tourism and Graduate Program in Tourism at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), Natal, RN, Brazil.

Associate Professor at the Department of Tourism and Graduate Program in Tourism at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN). Ph.D. in Business Administration (Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand), with a post-doctorate in Tourism (Bournemouth University, UK). Mendes Filho has a master’s degree in Production Engineering (UFRN) and a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science (UFRN). He is the leader of the Grupo de Estudos em Gestão do Turismo (UFRN/CNPq).

Verônica Feder Mayer , Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality at the Federal Fluminense University (UFF), Niteroi, RJ, Brazil.

Ph.D. in Business Administration from the COPPEAD Institute of Administration of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, with extension in the USA, and post-doctorate in Tourism from the School of Arts, Sciences and Humanities of the University of São Paulo.  She is an associate professor at the Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality at the Federal Fluminense University, the vice coordinator of the PPGTUR/UFF, and a lead researcher at the Laboratory of Behavioral Studies in Tourism (LABCONS). Lines of research: marketing, consumption, and new technologies in tourism; behavioral economics applied to tourism; subjective well-being in tourism and hospitality.

Cynthia Harumy Watanabe Corrêa, School of Arts, Sciences and Humanities (EACH), University of São Paulo (USP), São Paulo, SP, Brazil.

Associate Professor at the School of Arts, Sciences and Humanities (EACH), University of São Paulo (USP), affiliated with the Graduate Program in Cultural Studies. Habilitation (Livre-Docente) for Applied Social Sciences, with specialization in Digital Tourism Marketing from the University of São Paulo (USP). Ph.D. in Social Communication from the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul (PUC-RS), with a sandwich doctorate degree from Université René Descartes, Paris V, Sorbonne. Watanabe Correa is the leader of the Humanitas Digitalis Research Group (USP/CNPq) and member of the Association of Internet Researchers (AoIR)

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Published

2022-01-04

How to Cite

Mendes Filho, L., Mayer , V. F., & Corrêa, C. H. W. (2022). Dimensions impacting tourists’ perception of Smart Tourism Destinations. Revista Brasileira De Pesquisa Em Turismo, 16, 2332. https://doi.org/10.7784/rbtur.v16.2332

Issue

Vol. 16 (2022)

Section

Articles - Tourism Management

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Copyright (c) 2021 Luiz Mendes Filho, Verônica Feder Mayer , Cynthia Harumy Watanabe Corrêa

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