Volume 7, Issue 2

“What’s Mine is Yours”, the popular book by Rachel Botsmann and Roo Rogers has become the slogan of the so-called Share Economy, which boosts since a couple of years. The main impact of the Share Economy-movement in tourism lays in the accommodation sector. Sharing websites like couchsurfing.org or airbnb.com offer not only overnight stays for free or at affordable prices, but promise a new, authentic experience to visitors of urban areas. The leading research questions: • Who participates in the tourism share economy? • “What are the motivations and expectations behind the offer and usage of shared accommodations? • What experiences have been made? will be treated on the basis of various quantitative and qualitative empirical surveys in two different urban settings: Berlin, as an example for an international metropolitan tourism destination and Trier, as a case study for a smaller city with a stronger focus on the domestic market and a main target group oriented towards traditional cultural tourism. The aim of the article is not only to contribute to the question, what collaborative consumption in tourism means for the so-called explorer-tourists searching for authentic experiences off the beaten track and outside the tourist bubble. More globally, the future role of sharing in tourism as well as the question raised by Trivett et al. (2013) on its impact on the traditional tourism industry and the future of travel will be analysed.

The present study focuses on the importance of innovation in the development of fads and trends. The developed trend screening tool takes into consideration the role of the media, which influences the process of dissemination of innovation significantly. It examined 27 German-language tourism-related professional or association magazines between July 2012 and June 2013. The analysis of 428 articles provides information regarding which innovations were published in the selected journals and whether their evaluation can provide early signs regarding tourism trends. The results demonstrate applicability of the tool within the tourism industry.

Media suggests that Leipzig has become “hipper” than Berlin. This article contributes to the scientifically undiscussed subject of a characterisation of a “hip city”. Drawing on repertory grid interviews, the study describes the relevant attributes from an individual point of view. A “hip city” is varied in terms of cultural and leisure offerings, open and multicultural as well as green, offering multiple options to withdraw. A city ranking based on relevant attributes shows that despite differences in some characteristics Berlin and Leipzig are considered equally “hip”. Finally, the used method is presented as a possibility to rank cities avoiding some weaknesses of existing approaches.

Tourist destinations need to adapt constantly to changing market conditions. The tasks become increasingly manifold and can only be solved within networks involving the key partners of the destination. Thus the core task of the DMO 3.0 is the management of projects and processes. The St. Galler model for destination management provides many new ideas in this direction. Nevertheless, there are more practical and research-related challenges to be faced. Therefore at this point additional thoughts, advices and notes will be addressed and discussed.

Volunteer tourism describes the melting of tourism and the involvement in volunteering organizations. During the last years, these phenomena have gained wide-spread popularity among many young adults in western countries, as well as increased scientific attention. Most contributions focus on volunteers’ motivations rather than the value of volunteering for their careers. This report is based on P. Bourdieu’s notions of capital and deals with the short- and long-term effects for the participants. The results are based on guided interviews with different types of experts and highlight the various contradictions regarding the interpretation of the different forms of capital. This is especially true for the interpretation of cultural capital. All in all, this report seeks to contribute to a more differentiated view on the varied and complex phenomenon of volunteer tourism.

In the context of a joint project on integrated water resources management tourism is regarded as an important socio-economic sector. The catchment area of the river Zayandeh Rud in the center of Iran has, despite the existing gaps thanks to its unique cultural heritage, the excellent climatic and natural conditions, the good location and its long-standing „tourism culture“ a very great potential for intensification in particular the different forms of sustainable tourism. This will not only bring risks for the use of Zayandeh Rud, but also offer opportunities for a sustainable and as well integrated management of its water resources. Unfolded potential and the development of sustainable tourism can lead to an enormous improvement in the living conditions of local peoples, to protect the environment and the cultural heritage

Quality seals are an attempt to make wellness services more transparent and comparable as well as to help ease the consumer’s buying decision. This article outlines the benefits of quality seals for touristic suppliers of wellness services. With the aid of the touristic three-phase model the use as a marketing tool, the use for quality management and the use for customer retention is examined. Derived from the results, guidance shows how the benefits of wellness quality seals could be enhanced. The article is based on a bachelor thesis at Hochschule Harz University of Applied Science.

Increasing globalization has intensified competition between tourism destinations and regions. Hence, this paper will address the importance of regional networking and strategic management as a key factor to secure competitive advantages. Finding a USP, such as health tourism in this case, is no longer sufficient to secure a strong market position. The cooperation of all stakeholders is necessary to utilize core competencies, especially in rural health destinations. The following example illustrates how such a cooperative model can support destinations in their efficient usage of competence-based business cooperation to increase profitability and thus competitiveness.

For the first time an interdisciplinary research was conducted exploring the voluntary engagement in the Swiss tourism industry. The main outcome: Many tourist offers and events in a destination could not be implemented without volunteers. Finding and retaining a sufficient amount of volunteers became a major challenge within tourism organisations. Therefore, practical recommendations for people responsible were developed, showing possibilities how to maintain, manage foresighted and facilitate the voluntary engagement in the long run. The article highlights these recommendations.