Shopping tourism: A destination management perspective

Abstract

Shopping tourism has been receiving increased attention by tourism destinations management due to the significant economic impact it can bring to local businesses and to the overall industry. Despite this, the competitive factors that make a destination attractive for international tourists is usually not acknowledged by both tourism destination management organisations, and academics. This paper intends to analyse the competitiveness of tourism destinations for shopping tourism, and in this context, to identify if Porto is attractive for shopping tourism. In order to accomplish this, a survey was applied to 278 international tourists. Research findings underline that Porto is not a main destination for shopping travellers, with a minimal number of tourists travelling to the city with shopping as the main travel purpose. This low motivation for shopping reflects on the low expenditure and reduced time spent by tourists in this activity. The paper ends by advancing strategies that DMO’s (Destination Management Organisations) may implement in order to increase the destination competitiveness.