Tendencias de crecimiento y competitividad turística de las economías UE más dependientes de la actividad turística

Abstract

This paper is confined to the study of the economies of the EU more dependent on tourism. Firstly, a definition of tourism dependence is provided based on macroeconomic parameters. Secondly, we proceed to the identification of the economies of the EU more dependent on tourism based on the latest available data- years 2014 and 2015. Once they have been identified, a presentation of the trends of their tourism activity growth is made from data taken from the sources of information of major International Organizations. Finally, a comparative analysis of their tourism competitiveness is performed. To do this, we base our analysis on the methodology of the Tourism Competitiveness index of the year 2015, elaborated by the World Economic Forum. In our analysis, we use Spain as a benchmark for ranking first in tourism competitiveness, according to this indicator. In addition, we want to target the main strengths and weaknesses of the most dependent EU economies on tourism, as these are the main competitors of Spain in some forms of tourism in the Mediterranean Basin.