The Effects of World Heritage Sites on Domestic Tourism: A Spatial Interaction Model for Italy

28 Pages Posted: 30 Jan 2013 Last revised: 25 Jun 2013

See all articles by Roberto Patuelli

Roberto Patuelli

University of Bologna - Department of Economics

Maurizio Mussoni

University of Bologna - Department of Economics; The Rimini Centre for Economic Analysis (RCEA)

Guido Candela

University of Bologna - Department of Economics

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Date Written: January 29, 2013

Abstract

Culture is gaining increasing importance in the modern tourism industry, and represents a significant force of attraction for tourists (both domestic and international). Cultural tourism allows destinations and regions to expand their customer base, diversify their offer, extend the stay of the tourist, and reduce seasonality. Great efforts are made, by national governments and regions, in order to obtain official designation regarding the relevance of their historical/cultural attractions, for example through UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites (WHS) list. Such an aspect seems particularly relevant for a country like Italy, which has a high number of entries in the WHS list, and where regions take an active role in promoting tourism. Using an 11-year panel of domestic tourism flows, we investigate the importance of the regional endowment in terms of WHS from two perspectives: (a) by separately estimating the effects, on tourism flows, of WHS located in the residence region of tourists and in the destination region; and (b) by taking into account potential spatial substitution/complementarity effects between regions due to their WHS endowment. Finally, a sensitivity analysis is offered to evaluate the spatial extent of the latter.

Keywords: cultural tourism, domestic tourism, World Heritage Sites, spatial interaction model, Italy, spatial competition

JEL Classification: C23, L83, R12, Z10

Suggested Citation

Patuelli, Roberto and Mussoni, Maurizio and Candela, Guido, The Effects of World Heritage Sites on Domestic Tourism: A Spatial Interaction Model for Italy (January 29, 2013). Journal of Geographical Systems, Vol. 15, No. 3, 2013, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2208795

Roberto Patuelli (Contact Author)

University of Bologna - Department of Economics ( email )

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Maurizio Mussoni

University of Bologna - Department of Economics ( email )

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The Rimini Centre for Economic Analysis (RCEA) ( email )

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Guido Candela

University of Bologna - Department of Economics ( email )

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Bologna, 40125
Italy
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+39 0541 434120 (Fax)

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