Tourists’ perceptions of the competitive destination

Abstract

Much of the work on destination competitiveness adopts a supply-side perspective that ignores how tourists perceive competitiveness. This paper examines destination competitiveness from the tourist's perspective, by assessing factors they feel make a destination appealing and, in a post-COVID-19 world, safe. Focus groups and personal interviews were conducted with 73 participants from mainland China and Hong Kong. Content analysis revealed four classes of competitive destinations. Ideal destinations are both appealing and safe, and thus highly competitive. Mundane destinations are somewhat competitive due to their perceived safety but lack of unique appeal. Enigmatic destinations are somewhat uncompetitive because of safety concerns, even though they have a certain amount of appeal. Fiasco destinations are very uncompetitive, because they are seen to be unappealing and unsafe. Theoretical contributions and practical implications are discussed.