Title (english) | New security paradigm and valorisation of a tourist |
Editor | Romina Alkier |
Author's institution | University of Rijeka Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality Management |
Scientific / art field, discipline and subdiscipline | SOCIAL SCIENCES Economics |
Abstract (english) | The research team on the scientific project "New security paradigm and valorization of the tourist destination" presented the results of the research and conclusions to the public in their published papers, which are collected in this book and will not be listed separately. The main goals of the project have been realized and relate to the research of security paradigms and valorization models of the tourist destination, as well as the examination of tourists' attitudes about safety in the destination, examination of the perception of decision makers in the destination, destination managers and tourism workers in tourism. There is a close connection between tourism and safety, i.e. tourism and the perception of safety of tourists during their stay in the destination, which is confirmed by this research. Also, health is an important factor in tourists' satisfaction during their stay in the destination. During their stay, tourists may be exposed to various situations such as traffic accidents, fights, medical situations (asthma attacks, allergic reactions to inhalation or alimentary allergens or insect stings (bees, wasps, etc.), problems related to the cardiovascular system, or any other chronic health problem). In such situations, it is normal for them to want to feel safe and know that they have someone to turn to for help. In the upcoming period, the Opatija Riviera will have to focus on active improvement of communication with the aim of providing quality information to tourists in a fair way, as this is an important prerequisite for establishing trust between guests and service providers. Tourists are significantly interested in communication with service providers, general information about the destination, what are the current criteria for entering the country, organization of health insurance and health care during their stay. The results clearly showed that tourists who want to visit the Opatija Riviera devote significant interest to good communication with service providers in the destination about the actual provision of tourist services during the visit, as well as general information about safety at the destination, and the criteria for entering the country before departure. Tourists perceive the Opatija Riviera as a low-risk tourist destination, which indicates that the Opatija Riviera managed to profile itself as a safe destination for tourists, which is in line with the growing tourist turnover (except for the period affected by the pandemic caused by COVID-19). Safety and security are globally recognized as one of the most important factors for tourists when choosing a holiday destination. Tourists want to feel relaxed during their stay in the destination and do not want to worry about their safety in any way, so it is important to monitor their perceptions and act in accordance with them in order to meet their expectations and needs as much as possible. The results of the research on the perception of the safety of the beaches of the Opatija Riviera clearly indicate the relevance of monitoring how tourists perceive the safety of the beaches during their stay in the destination, in order to determine what the real advantages and potentials are, as well as the shortcomings that need to be reduced or completely removed in order to ensure the best possible experience for tourists. The Opatija Riviera is currently doing its job well in the post-COVID period, but it is necessary to continuously work on improvements that will contribute to tourists recognizing and perceiving the destination as even safer, which will result in an increase in tourist arrivals and overnight stays, as well as in increasing the tourist loyalty and recommendation of the Opatija Riviera as a safe holiday destination. The disruption caused by the pandemic is also important for hotel managers and management from the point of view of introducing a crisis management process, the results of which can be seen in the protection of the well-being of guests, employees and the hotel's general reputation. Therefore, hotel management should emphasize the importance of recognizing business strategies and practices in business strategies and thus form the basis for effective crisis management. For this reason, hotels on the Opatija Riviera made several strategic decisions during the pandemic period in which they changed business models and strategies with the aim not only not only surviving the crisis, but also recovery, resistance to disruptions and enabling further sustainable growth. During the pandemic, the hotel management dealt with the issue of reducing the risk of Covid-19. For this purpose, it had to adopt strategic guidelines to protect the health of its employees and guests. In the post-pandemic period, hotels mainly focus on adapting existing crisis business models. Their improvement is primarily aimed at ensuring a long-term sustainable concept of growth and future development of both the hotels and the tourist microregion itself. It is expected that in a certain future, management teams will have to consider a wider range of stakeholders that will influence their strategy, accept the fact that ecosystems and competitive relationships are changing at an increasingly rapid pace, include new management positions that will influence the formation of strategy, and through reorganization improve speed and the agility of the company to keep pace with changes in strategy. The pandemic caused by the COVID-19 virus had significant implications, both for world tourism and the entire world economy. Numerous studies have confirmed the already known fact that world tourism was strongly affected by the emergence of the crisis caused by the COVID-19 virus, but due to the quick and conscious reaction of the world's leading organizations, tourism started to record positive development relatively quickly. The sensitivity of tourism to such extraordinary situations, as well as changes in the attitudes of tourists towards undertaking tourist trips and staying in tourist destinations, points to the important fact that it is necessary to monitor how they perceive safety in destinations, given that today it represents a key factor in achieving a competitive advantages of the destination on the tourist market. Safety and security have become a key component of a complete tourism product. The perception of risk among tourists is changing, which ultimately affects their future behavior when choosing a holiday destination. The ability to offer tourists a safe stay during their holiday contributes to the attractiveness of the destination and its tourism product. Safety is a prerequisite and motive that many tourists consider crucial when choosing a holiday destination. For this reason, tourist destinations must focus on raising the level of security and protection, which will contribute to the satisfaction of tourists, and they will be more interested in visiting and revisiting the destination. Measuring tourists' safety perception is an initial step towards thinking about what to focus on in terms of improving tourist safety, as well as developing awareness of the importance of safety in tourism. This is something that destination management and marketing should consider as a valuable strategy to achieve competitiveness in the tourism market. To plan future development activities, it is mandatory to observe how tourists perceive the safety of the destination, and what are the motivational factors related to safety, which most influence their decision-making process, especially in the post-pandemic period. The established findings represent a good basis for shaping development activities that will improve the level of safety of the Opatija Riviera in the future and its competitiveness on the tourist market. |
Keywords (english) | |
Language | english |
Publication type | Edited book-Scientific book-Scientific monograph |
Publication status | Published |
Peer review | Peer review |
Publication version | Published version |
Pages | 100 |
ISBN | 978-953-7842-60-4 (e-izdanje) |
URN:NBN | urn:nbn:hr:191:304748 |
Online first | 2023-10-09 |
Document URL | https://fthm.uniri.hr/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/New-Security-Paradigm-and-Valorisation-of-a-Tourist.pdf |
Type of resource | Text |
Publisher | Sveučilište u Rijeci, Fakultet za menadžment u turizmu i ugostiteljstvu |
Publishing place | Opatija |
Access conditions | Open access |
Terms of use | |
Created on | 2023-10-09 13:26:46 |