IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/hal/wpaper/hal-01655526.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Rural tourism in Lebanon: what does the market reveal?

Author

Listed:
  • Socrat Ghadban

    (CERTOP - Centre d'Etude et de Recherche Travail Organisation Pouvoir - UT2J - Université Toulouse - Jean Jaurès - UT - Université de Toulouse - UT3 - Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier - UT - Université de Toulouse - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, LU / ULB - الجامعة اللبنانية [بيروت] = Lebanese University [Beirut] = Université libanaise [Beyrouth])

  • Maya Shames

    (CEPN - Centre d'Economie de l'Université Paris Nord - UP13 - Université Paris 13 - USPC - Université Sorbonne Paris Cité - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique)

  • Jad Abou Arrage

    (LU / ULB - الجامعة اللبنانية [بيروت] = Lebanese University [Beirut] = Université libanaise [Beyrouth])

  • Amal Abou Fayyad

    (LU / ULB - الجامعة اللبنانية [بيروت] = Lebanese University [Beirut] = Université libanaise [Beyrouth])

Abstract

The concept of rural tourism encompasses many forms of tourism, such as nature-based tourism, community-based tourism, ecotourism, agro-tourism, and many more. Scholars consider tourism an important tool for revenue generation for communities living in rural areas. However, ineffective planning and management of the tourism industry may lead to undesired results in rural destinations, sometimes negatively affecting their rich natural and cultural heritage. In Lebanon, the last decade witnessed an increase of the rural tourism share within the tourism industry. Until today, there are no scientific studies of the supply and demand for this sector in Lebanon. This survey aims to analyze the demand for rural tourism among the domestic market hoping to provide information for actors in the field. The data show-case evidences about the needs, preferences and expectations of potential urban travelers, and factors affecting them. Data collection was completed in May 2014 with a sample of 436 persons, mostly Lebanese urban inhabitants, during the Travel Lebanon exhibition dedicated to promote rural tourism in Lebanon. The statistical analysis revealed important information about the perception and behavior of potential visitors. Personal characteristics, especially respondents' personal income and cultural background, have been identified as major factors that affect their decision-making process regarding tourism services and facilities. Results also revealed a lack of awareness by the surveyed respondents about critical sustainable tourism issues in rural areas, and a visitor perception that is somewhat different from what is actually being provided by tourism stakeholders in rural areas.

Suggested Citation

  • Socrat Ghadban & Maya Shames & Jad Abou Arrage & Amal Abou Fayyad, 2017. "Rural tourism in Lebanon: what does the market reveal?," Working Papers hal-01655526, HAL.
    • Handle: RePEc:hal:wpaper:hal-01655526
    Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://hal.science/hal-01655526
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://hal.science/hal-01655526/document
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Hanna El Maalouf & Socrat Ghadban & Maya Shames, 2015. "Nightlife Tourism: A Blessing or a Curse for Host Communities? “A Case Study on Gemmayzeh, Lebanon” [Tourisme de vie nocturne, une bénédiction ou une malédiction pour les communautés locales ? « Un," Post-Print hal-01335594, HAL.
    2. Mutinda, Rayviscic & Mayaka, Melphon, 2012. "Application of destination choice model: Factors influencing domestic tourists destination choice among residents of Nairobi, Kenya," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 33(6), pages 1593-1597.
    3. Girish Nanda & Keith Hargreaves, 2013. "Restructuring of post-crisis GPNs: tourism in Indonesia," Global Development Institute Working Paper Series ctg-2013-37, GDI, The University of Manchester.
    4. Chaminuka, P. & Groeneveld, R.A. & Selomane, A.O. & van Ierland, E.C., 2012. "Tourist preferences for ecotourism in rural communities adjacent to Kruger National Park: A choice experiment approach," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 33(1), pages 168-176.
    5. Nieto, Jannine & Hernández-Maestro, Rosa M. & Muñoz-Gallego, Pablo A., 2014. "Marketing decisions, customer reviews, and business performance: The use of the Toprural website by Spanish rural lodging establishments," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 115-123.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Socrat Ghadban & Maya Shames & Haifa Abou Mayaleh, 2017. "Trash Crisis and Solid Waste Management in Lebanon-Analyzing Hotels’ Commitment and Guests’ Preferences," Post-Print hal-01611253, HAL.
    2. Andra Poruțiu & Olivia Paula Tirpe & Camelia Oroian & Valentin C. Mihai & Gabriela O. Chiciudean & Daniel I. Chiciudean & Crina Poruțiu, 2021. "Analysis on Tourists’ Preferences for Rural Tourism Destinations in Romania," Societies, MDPI, vol. 11(3), pages 1-12, August.
    3. Zirui Zhan & Jeremy Cenci & Jiazhen Zhang, 2022. "Frontier of Rural Revitalization in China: A Spatial Analysis of National Rural Tourist Towns," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(6), pages 1-21, May.
    4. Mihail Ovidiu Tănase & Puiu Nistoreanu & Răzvan Dina & Bogdan Georgescu & Virgil Nicula & Cosmin Nicolae Mirea, 2023. "Generation Z Romanian Students’ Relation with Rural Tourism—An Exploratory Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-21, May.
    5. Puwei Zhang & Li Wu & Rui Li, 2023. "Development Drivers of Rural Summer Health Tourism for the Urban Elderly: A Demand- and Supply-Based Framework," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(13), pages 1-27, July.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Socrat Ghadban & Maya Shames & Jad Abou Arrage & Amal Abou Fayyad, 2017. "Rural tourism in Lebanon: what does the market reveal?," CEPN Working Papers hal-01655526, HAL.
    2. Socrat Ghadban & Maya Shames & Jad Abou Arrage & Amal Abou Fayyad, 2017. "Rural tourism in Lebanon: what does the market reveal?," CEPN Working Papers 2017-19, Centre d'Economie de l'Université de Paris Nord.
    3. Socrat Ghadban & Maya Shames & Haifa Abou Mayaleh, 2017. "Trash Crisis and Solid Waste Management in Lebanon-Analyzing Hotels’ Commitment and Guests’ Preferences," Post-Print hal-01611253, HAL.
    4. An, Wookhyun & Alarcón, Silverio, 2021. "Rural tourism preferences in Spain: Best-worst choices," Annals of Tourism Research, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    5. Chung-Yi Lin & Shu-Yi Liaw & Chao-Chun Chen & Mao-Yuan Pai & Yuh-Min Chen, 2017. "A computer-based approach for analyzing consumer demands in electronic word-of-mouth," Electronic Markets, Springer;IIM University of St. Gallen, vol. 27(3), pages 225-242, August.
    6. Boccali, Filippo & Mariani, Marcello M. & Visani, Franco & Mora-Cruz, Alexandra, 2022. "Innovative value-based price assessment in data-rich environments: Leveraging online review analytics through Data Envelopment Analysis to empower managers and entrepreneurs," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 182(C).
    7. Guimarães, Maria Helena & Nunes, Luís Catela & Madureira, Lívia & Santos, José Lima & Boski, Tomasz & Dentinho, Tomaz, 2015. "Measuring birdwatchers preferences: A case for using online networks and mixed-mode surveys," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 46(C), pages 102-113.
    8. Cheng Zong & Kun Cheng & Chun-Hung Lee & Nai-Lun Hsu, 2017. "Capturing Tourists’ Preferences for the Management of Community-Based Ecotourism in a Forest Park," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(9), pages 1-16, September.
    9. Carmelo J. León & Jorge E. Araña & Matías González & Javier de León, 2014. "Tourists' Evaluation of Climate Change Risks in the Canary Islands: A Heterogeneous Response Modelling Approach," Tourism Economics, , vol. 20(4), pages 849-868, August.
    10. Daxin Dong & Xiaowei Xu & Yat Fung Wong, 2019. "Estimating the Impact of Air Pollution on Inbound Tourism in China: An Analysis Based on Regression Discontinuity Design," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(6), pages 1-18, March.
    11. Jinwon Kim & Brijesh Thapa & Seongsoo Jang & Eunjung Yang, 2018. "Seasonal Spatial Activity Patterns of Visitors with a Mobile Exercise Application at Seoraksan National Park, South Korea," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-21, July.
    12. Bianchi, Constanza & Milberg, Sandra & Cúneo, Andres, 2017. "Understanding travelers' intentions to visit a short versus long-haul emerging vacation destination: The case of Chile," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 312-324.
    13. Phillips, Paul & Zigan, Krystin & Santos Silva, Maria Manuela & Schegg, Roland, 2015. "The interactive effects of online reviews on the determinants of Swiss hotel performance: A neural network analysis," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 130-141.
    14. Iulia C. Muresan & Rezhen Harun & Felix H. Arion & Camelia F. Oroian & Diana E. Dumitras & Valentin C. Mihai & Marioara Ilea & Daniel I. Chiciudean & Iulia D. Gliga & Gabriela O. Chiciudean, 2019. "Residents’ Perception of Destination Quality: Key Factors for Sustainable Rural Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(9), pages 1-21, May.
    15. Linus Kalvelage & Javier Revilla Diez & Michael Bollig, 2021. "Do Tar Roads Bring Tourism? Growth Corridor Policy and Tourism Development in the Zambezi region, Namibia," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 33(4), pages 1000-1021, August.
    16. Wookhyun An & Silverio Alarcón, 2021. "Inferring customer heterogeneity for rural tourism: A latent class approach based on a best-worst choice modelling," Agricultural Economics, Czech Academy of Agricultural Sciences, vol. 67(7), pages 266-276.
    17. Jun Yang & Ruimeng Yang & Jing Sun & Tai Huang & Quansheng Ge, 2017. "The Spatial Differentiation of the Suitability of Ice-Snow Tourist Destinations Based on a Comprehensive Evaluation Model in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(5), pages 1-13, May.
    18. Seyidov Javid & Adomaitienė Roma, 2016. "Factors Influencing Local Tourists’ Decision-Making on Choosing a Destination: A Case of Azerbaijan," Ekonomika (Economics), Sciendo, vol. 95(3), pages 112-127, December.
    19. Chou, Yuntsai & Lin, Wei, 2024. "Blockbuster or Flop? Effects of Social Media on the Chinese Film Market," 24th ITS Biennial Conference, Seoul 2024. New bottles for new wine: digital transformation demands new policies and strategies 302460, International Telecommunications Society (ITS).
    20. José Luis Durán-Román & Pablo Juan Cárdenas-García & Juan Ignacio Pulido-Fernández, 2020. "Tourist Tax to Improve Sustainability and the Experience in Mass Tourism Destinations: The Case of Andalusia (Spain)," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(1), pages 1-20, December.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Rural tourism; domestic tourism; demand analysis; motivations and preferences;
    All these keywords.

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:hal:wpaper:hal-01655526. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: CCSD (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.