The Impact of Digital Technologies on Tourism Consumption – Case of Croatia

Abstract

Tourism has a tremendous impact on the economy of a country and the realization of tourism consumption is a prerequisite for econom­ic growth. Digital technologies are an important part of modern tourism. Technology is evolving rapidly, and the tourism industry must follow modern trends to remain competitive. Throughout this research, the technologies of the future, which represent a great potential for the change and development of tourism, will be discussed. The purpose of this research is to determine whether digital technologies influence tourism consumption and how they can facilitate information access about the desired destination. The research was conducted on 159 test subjects in the Republic of Croatia using a ques­tionnaire survey. Digital technologies shape the human perception of a par­ticular destination and influence tourists’ choice of where to stay. Since most people today use digital technologies to learn about a product – a destina­tion in this case – tourism consumption will be absent or significantly lower in destinations that are not advertised with the help of some sort of technology. It can be concluded that there is a direct relationship between the use and presence of digital technologies and the realization of tourism consumption. These hypotheses have been confirmed throughout this research.