مزایای رقابتی بین المللی در گردشگری: یک دید کلی International competitive advantages in tourism: An eclectic view

1. Introduction Over the past decades international tourism has experienced continued expansion, becoming one of the largest and fastest-growing economic sectors worldwide. Despite the uncertain global economic outlook and terrorism risks, the number of international tourists has shown a virtually uninterrupted growth from 25 million arrivals in 1950 to 528 million in 1995, reaching a total of 1,235 million in 2016 (UNWTO, 2017). In the ranking by total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments, Europe leads the growth in absolute terms and the Mediterranean countries1 as a whole cover the highest share of the European market. In this context, the present study provides a comprehensive analysis of competitive advantages in tourism and their determinants for the EU28 countries given their role as top tourist destinations. A country has a competitive advantage in tourism services when it is able to produce them at a lower opportunity cost than other countries. This advantage can be due to the relative abundance of a destination’s factor endowments (natural, historical and cultural resources), different countries’ technologies and productivities, or other factors. The presence of a competitive advantage gives a country the ability to sell tourism services on international markets at a lower price than its competitors and realize stronger revenues. When countries specialize according to their competitive advantages they can compete successfully in international export markets, raise profits and support job creation. Understanding the determinants of competitive advantages in tourism is, hence, of key importance for both advanced and developing economies, since it would allow them to have a more comprehensive overview of the sources of tourism performances, enabling policy makers to design better strategies to enhance those activities exhibiting such potential and improve performance. From a managerial point of view, it would permit to monitor tourism progress over time, identify emerging risks for firms operating in the sector and track relative performances against key competitors over time.