Tourism economics is partly based on established principles from the economics discipline, but it also incorporates elements from sociology, psychology, organization theory and ecology. It has over the years turned into an appealing multi-disciplinary oriented approach to the understanding of the impacts of leisure time in a modern society, including cultural heritage, sustainable quality of life, and industrial organization of the hospitality industry. The increasing dynamics in the tourist industry and its worldwide effects will continue to attract the attention of both the research and the policy sector in the years to come. Rather than speculating on non-observed facts, there is a clear need for evidence-based research in order to map out the complex dynamics of the tourist industry. The present volume comprises novel studies - mainly of a quantitative-analytical nature - on the supply, demand and contextual aspects of modern tourism. It contains a sound mix of theory, methodology, policy and case studies on various tourism issues in different parts of the world.

The assessment of local, regional or national impacts of an influx of tourists - of different kind and origin - has in recent years become a new challenge for economics research in the tourism sector. There is a clear need to develop solid methodologies through which the socio-economic impacts of tourism can be assessed. Tourism impact assessment - as a systematic approach to the estimation of socio-economic effects of tourism on relevant parts of the economy - has become a timely response to the need for appropriate information for stakeholders, both public and private. The present volume brings together a set of recent impact studies - of both a theoretical-methodological and an applied policy-oriented nature -, which have been selected on the basis of their originality or novel contribution to the research in this field.

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'Advances in Tourism Economics' follows his predecessor 'Advances in Modern Tourism Research' (2007) in providing a thorough assessment of state-of-the-art economic research in this rapidly developing field. The authors start by analyzing the recent upsurge of model-based economic research in the field, which builds on powerful tools in quantitative economics, such as discrete choice models, social accounting matrices, data envelopment analyses, impact assessment models or partial computable equilibrium models including environmental externalities. The volume originates from this novel research spirit in the area and aims to offer an attractive collection of operational research tools and approaches. It forms an appealing record of modern tourism economics and positions the field within the strong tradition of quantitative economic research, with due attention for both the demand and supply side of the tourism sector, including technological and logistic advances.

Tourism economics is partly based on established principles from the economics discipline, but it also incorporates elements from sociology, psychology, organization theory and ecology. It has over the years turned into an appealing multi-disciplinary oriented approach to the understanding of the impacts of leisure time in a modern society, including cultural heritage, sustainable quality of life, and industrial organization of the hospitality industry. The increasing dynamics in the tourist industry and its worldwide effects will continue to attract the attention of both the research and the policy sector in the years to come. Rather than speculating on non-observed facts, there is a clear need for evidence-based research in order to map out the complex dynamics of the tourist industry. The present volume comprises novel studies - mainly of a quantitative-analytical nature - on the supply, demand and contextual aspects of modern tourism. It contains a sound mix of theory, methodology, policy and case studies on various tourism issues in different parts of the world.

'Advances in Tourism Economics' follows his predecessor 'Advances in Modern Tourism Research' (2007) in providing a thorough assessment of state-of-the-art economic research in this rapidly developing field. The authors start by analyzing the recent upsurge of model-based economic research in the field, which builds on powerful tools in quantitative economics, such as discrete choice models, social accounting matrices, data envelopment analyses, impact assessment models or partial computable equilibrium models including environmental externalities. The volume originates from this novel research spirit in the area and aims to offer an attractive collection of operational research tools and approaches. It forms an appealing record of modern tourism economics and positions the field within the strong tradition of quantitative economic research, with due attention for both the demand and supply side of the tourism sector, including technological and logistic advances.

The assessment of local, regional or national impacts of an influx of tourists - of different kind and origin - has in recent years become a new challenge for economics research in the tourism sector. There is a clear need to develop solid methodologies through which the socio-economic impacts of tourism can be assessed. Tourism impact assessment - as a systematic approach to the estimation of socio-economic effects of tourism on relevant parts of the economy - has become a timely response to the need for appropriate information for stakeholders, both public and private. The present volume brings together a set of recent impact studies - of both a theoretical-methodological and an applied policy-oriented nature - , which have been selected on the basis of their originality or novel contribution to the research in this field.