The pilot project comprised five distinct yet interlinked phases, the implementation of which was being undertaken by a consortium of consultants from the United Kingdom and Greece.
The pilot project comprised five distinct yet interlinked phases, the implementation of which was being undertaken by a consortium of consultants from the United Kingdom and Greece.
The analysis of tourism supply and demand is essential to the gathering of documented findings required in strategic planning for the management of a destination. The same applies with regards to the latest trends defining the development of the global tourism sector, as well as good practices that enable both popular and emerging destinations to meet various challenges that accompany healthy tourism development (e.g., an increase in average visitor spending, extension of the tourism season, improvement in the quality of life of residents).
Given the rapid increase in tourist flows to Rhodes and Santorini in recent years, research into tourism trends provided conclusions and practical direction in subsequent phases of the programme.
Local communities need to have a say in tourism development, considering that, today, visitors to destinations are in constant interaction with various interest groups (businesspeople and employees of the tourism sector, other professionals, residents, etc.). Incorporating the views of local communities in strategic planning for destination management requires the use of tools that promotes the dissemination of useful information to all individuals concerned and facilitates their engagement in a constructive dialogue.
Working meetings and workshops will take place in Rhodes and Santorini in June 2019 in order to analyse tourism development issues that relate to local communities. These events will encompass educational content modules and the exchange of views on specific issues (frameworks of collaboration, practices that provide added value to promotional activities, opportunities to develop experiential travel activities, etc.) through the use of interactive tools (e.g., live polls).
The working meetings and workshops put the foundation for the active involvement of local communities and bodies in pilot programme procedures. Subsequently, interviews with representatives of local authorities and associations will provide in-depth information for strategic planning purposes. In the same context, feedback from tourism enterprises and other members of the local community gained via online questionnaires further clarified issues critical to the management of the destination (mapping of the existing tourism product and complementary services, market analysis of targets based on expectations for the next five years, documentation of the negative impacts of tourism at a local level, priorities for the future, etc.).
Interested parties will be able to access research documentation via the YOUR OPINION COUNTS section of this website (GR version).
In addition to the above, research data was collected – via a dedicated online platform – through a sample of participants originating from key inbound tourism markets who have recently visited the two destinations. This made it possible to document the views of visitors on the individual components of their travel experience and to compare them with the findings of the interviews and the above questionnaires.
The processing and analysis of data collected through all previous actions will guide the development of two destination management plans for Rhodes and Santorini, as well as a destination management guide for the development of similar plans covering other destinations in Greece. These plans will be presented to both the local communities of Rhodes and Santorini and corresponding audiences in three more Greek destinations, including Athens.
Once the pilot programme is complete, interested parties will be able to access these plans as part of efforts to promote dissemination of know-how on destination management issues.