4l tourism (landscape, leisure, learning and limit): responding to new motivations and expectations of tourists to improve the competitiveness of alpine destinations in a sustainable way

4L tourism (landscape, leisure, learning

and limit): responding to new motivations

and expectations of tourists to improve the

competitiveness of Alpine destinations in a

sustainable way

Mariangela Franch, Umberto Martini, Federica Buffa and Gerardine Parisi

Abstract

Purpose – Most Alpine destinations are currently in the mature phase of the development life cycle,

placing them near the precipice that leads toward a period of irreversible decline. After describing the

principal reasons for this phenomenon, the paper aims to set forth a strategic response, within the logic

of destination re-engineering, that is based on recent changes in the motivations and behaviors of

tourists. A new market segment has emerged that shows a heightened sensitivity to environmental

protection, local cultural preservation and to the overall authenticity of the vacation experience. This

segment, defined with several terms (eco-tourism, nature-based tourism, responsible tourism ...), is

potentially a very important market in terms of both quantity and quality, on the condition that the

destinations should be able to compete by maintaining originally and authentically attractions.

Design/methodology/approach – The study is based on field research with the administration of about

1,000 questionnaires to tourists in one of the main valleys in the Dolomites.

Findings – The paper presents a definition (including the diverse approaches emerging thus far) and a

set of descriptive variables of the tourist segment identified as ‘‘4L tourism’’ (landscape, leisure, learning

and limit), which could provide the mature destinations to innovate the offering in a sustainable way.

Practical implications – The results make it possible to identify some elements of a behavioral and

motivational profile of a new segment of tourist, and to identify new offerings.

Originality/value – The paper presents identification and analysis in the logic of destination marketing

of an emerging segment of tourist.

Keywords Global warming, Tourism, Italy

Paper type Research paper

From threats to the competitiveness of mature alpine destinations to the

re-engineering of the offering

Tourism is a fundamental industry in Alpine regions, many of which have developed a

two-season offering: summer activities in the mountain such as hiking or the ‘‘escape from

the lowlands,’’ and the winter centered on skiing. The economic and

employment-generating benefits stemming from tourism have resulted in relative

prosperity for many Alpine areas and have had an important impact on models of local

development. In some cases, this has meant concentrating the productive systems on

goods and services linked to tourism and in others creating local production networks in

industry, local handicrafts, agriculture and services, which have benefited from the high level

of consumption of these products by tourists.

PAGE 4 j TOURISM REVIEW j VOL. 63 NO. 1 2008, pp. 4-14, Q Emerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 1660-5373 DOI 10.1108/16605370810861008

Mariangela Franch,

Umberto Martini, Federica

Buffa are all based at the

Department of Computer

and Management

Sciences, Faculty of

Economics, University of

Trento, Trento, Italy.

Gerardine Parisi is based at

the eTourism Research

Group, Faculty of

Economics, University of

Verona, Trento, Italy.