PUBLIC TOURISM MANAGEMENT: AN APPROACH OF LOCAL GOVERNANCE IN THE HUASTECA POTOSINA REGION OF MEXICO

Abstract

The present descriptive and explanatory research takes political science as a starting point to analyze the disciplinary field of tourism through the lens of public administration and governance. The case study focuses on the Huasteca potosina region, a tourist destination with high visitation rates, where the convergence of different actors has made for complex interactions, resulting in a variety of direct effects on the sites. Therefore, the objective is to identify and describe municipal governance systems that contribute to the tourism management process for the benefit of local development. The study population comprises five municipalities of the twenty that make up the region. The methodology of action research was applied through documenting and doing field research. Semistructured interviews were carried out on the directors of tourism and tourist service providers. The results offer a panorama of collective reflection on this problematic issue and provide opportunities for improvement by both tourism directors and local actors, under the precepts of tourism management and local governance.