The St.Gallen Model for Destination Management

This book illustrates how the boundaries created to manage and market tourist destinations are the root of the practical and academic problems that trouble destination management these days. The St.Gallen Model for Destination Management (SGDM) introduces an alternative perspective that allows transcending past boundaries and thus getting closer to the real complexities of managing tourist behavior in dynamic systems.While this may sound daunting, it starts with something very practical: The observation of how tourists of different kinds move about as flows of visitors. Strategic visitor flows (SVF) are the basic unit of analysis and planning of the new model. The SGDM connects these flows to demand and supply networks. Underlying mechanisms explain the social forces that drive tourists’ behavior and the interdependencies that determine a viable supply of tourist services in destinations. The model builds on practical experience in more than 30 destinations and the latest insights from ongoing research on destination management and marketing. Internationally, we observed that a basic understanding of the presence of multiple visitor flows and of the related network mechanism enabled actors (e.g., from hotels, food and lodging, operators of attractions, transportation, tourist organizations, and politicians) to break free of existing reconceptions. The SGDM and its instruments enabled them to rethink tasks, responsibilities, and projects. This ultimately allowed them to make more efficient and effective use of their scarce resources, benefiting both visitors and destination actors.From an academic stance, this book suggests that the SGDM’s focus on strategic visitor flows serves as the foundation of a new paradigm in destination management and points to avenues for further research. This book targets practitioners, students, and scholars with a concern for the viable longterm development of tourist destinations. Read more