Tourism Destination Competitiveness Expression Of Spain Superiority In Tourism

From a strictly economic point of view, the notion of competitiveness is defined as the capacity to cope with competition in an effective and efficient manner. World tourism is currently characterized by a strong competition between destinations. The foundations of the tourism destination competitiveness are the attractions and tourism resources. However, the real and long-term success of a destination is determined by the capacity to guarantee and ensure tourists, throughout its entire offer, an authentic experience, of a level at least equal, if not superior to the one of other existing alternatives. While tourism potential is a prerequisite for the act of tourism, a crucial factor for the development of the tourism industry is the overall infrastructure. The World Economic Forum has developed, since 2007, a model of measuring factors and policies for tourism development in countries around the world: the travel and tourism competitiveness index. The ranking of 2015 brought a change of leader: Spain became the most competitive country in tourism. Spain's position is strengthened by the number of foreign tourists who visit it, but also its tourism generated revenue. The regions that attract most tourists are the Canary Islands, Catalonia, and Andalusia. Located on the Costa Daurada, Tarragona is the capital of the southernmost province of Catalonia with the same name. We propose in this paper an approach to tourism competitiveness through a qualitative research, based on a case study on the city of Tarragona, a major tourist attraction of Catalonia and part of UNESCO World Heritage Site.