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Tourism demand of a WHS destination: an analysis from the viewpoint of gastronomy

Abstract:

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to analyse the attitude declared by the tourists towards the local gastronomy as a variable of tourist interest in a WHS destination. Gastronomic tourism strengthens and consolidates the tourist destinations. Design/methodology/approach: The methodology is based on a survey conducted on foreign travellers who visited the city of Quito. In total, 516 valid surveys of foreign tourists were conducted, using convenience sampling. As for the data analysis, a multivariate technique of grouping cases (K-mean clusters) was applied with the objective of analysing the similarity existing among those surveyed, taking as a reference variables that indicate greater or lesser interest in the local gastronomy. Findings: The results show evidence on the existence of different attitudes towards gastronomy as a variable of interest in the choice of a tourist destination. There is a direct relationship between their attitude towards gastronomy and their expenditure. Research limitations/implications: The principal limitation of this research is found in the time period in which the surveys were conducted. Practical implications: The study allows the hotel/restaurant companies and tourism rooted in the city of Quito to know the importance of the local gastronomy as variables of interest for the foreign tourists as well as the segmentation carried out with regard to their attitudes. Originality/value: Gastronomy is used as a source of inspiration in tourist destinations. This research reinforces this theme, taking on the study of food tourism in an important heritage destination, such as the city of Quito, in a geographic area, Latin America, characterised by a recognised gastronomy, but still little studied in the scientific literature.