Capturing Unobserved Tourists: Challenges and Opportunities of Processing Mobile Positioning Data in Tourism Research

Abstract

Even though tourism (both domestic and international) is one of the main triggering factors of human mobility worldwide, some of its forms are unexplored. This can be partly linked with the lack of reliable data and obstacles related to data processing and interpretation. Mobile Positioning Data (MPD) allows us to identify various forms of tourism that are undetectable through traditional data sources such as accommodation statistics. Using MPD, not only same-day tourists but also the real time mobility patterns of tourists among various destinations can be revealed, and even hidden (i.e., unobserved) forms of tourism can be detected. However, despite the obvious benefits of such data, very few comprehensive studies exist to date on the processing, and interpretation of MPD in tourism research. In this paper, a case study is presented on the challenges and opportunities of processing MPD from raw to good quality researchable data offering a baseline tool for MPD-based research in the field of tourism. With the methodology introduced in this paper, it is possible to provide a more accurate picture of tourist flows regarding unobserved tourists, including same-day visitors.