Eco Labels and Tourism Flows: How Much is a Blue Flag Worth?

Quaderni - Working Paper DSE N° 917

25 Pages Posted: 11 Jan 2014

See all articles by Sara Capacci

Sara Capacci

University of Bologna - Department of Economics

Antonello E. Scorcu

University of Bologna - Department of Economics

Laura Vici

University of Bologna - Department of Statistics; University of Bologna

Date Written: January 9, 2014

Abstract

The rise in destination accessibility and the emergence of new market segments have increased the competition among tourism destinations, both at national and international level. In order to gain a significant competitive advantage over competitors, destinations increasingly make use of signals that certify and communicate the level of quality provided. While existing research on tourism certifications mostly pertains to quality evaluation, this study exploits quantitative methods to assess the economic impact of destinations’ labels. The analysis considers one of the most popular certification of environmental quality attributed to beaches, the Blue Flag award. It explores the relationship between the certification achievement and inbound tourist flows, focusing on the Italian case study. In fact, given their aim of providing synthetized information on destinations, certification programs particularly affect foreign tourists who suffer more from asymmetric information. Panel data techniques and highly disaggregated data are employed to compare the attractiveness of certified and non-certified provinces, by controlling for several factors potentially confounding the effect of the certification.

Keywords: international tourism flows, ecolabel, dynamic panel model, Italy

JEL Classification: C23, L83, Z12

Suggested Citation

Capacci, Sara and Scorcu, Antonello and Vici, Laura, Eco Labels and Tourism Flows: How Much is a Blue Flag Worth? (January 9, 2014). Quaderni - Working Paper DSE N° 917, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2376845 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2376845

Sara Capacci (Contact Author)

University of Bologna - Department of Economics ( email )

Strada Maggiore 45
Bologna, 40125
Italy

HOME PAGE: http://www.unibo.it/faculty/sara.capacci

Antonello Scorcu

University of Bologna - Department of Economics ( email )

I-40126 Bologna
Italy

Laura Vici

University of Bologna - Department of Statistics ( email )

Via Belle Arti, 41
Bologna, Bologna 40126
Italy
0541434253 (Phone)

University of Bologna ( email )

Via Belle Arti
Bologna, 40121
Italy
0541434312 (Phone)

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