Productivity differentials across tourist destinations : A theoretical empirical analysis

After a brief discussion of the major determinants of productivity enhancement factors in tourism a Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) based model is presented which allows partial insights into total factor productivity for tourist destinations. The proposed model will be empirically tested using cross sectional data stemming from 2004 pertaining to 64 Tyrolean winter sport destinations. Both, productivity improvement recommendations for non-efficient destinations as well as emerging productivity differentials across tourist destinations are thereupon discussed. The paper concludes by giving recommendations for future research.