The impact of destination competitiveness factors on regional tourism demand: A panel data analysis for Turkey Level-1 regions

This study aims to provide a new perspective on regional tourism strategies by investigating the effects of destination competitiveness factors on tourism demand. The analysis of Turkey's Level-1 regions covers the period 2010-2020 and reveals the effects of destination competitiveness indices calculated using Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) methods on regional tourism demand. Feasible Generalized Least Squares (FGLS), Panel Corrected Standard Errors (PCSEs - Prais- Winsten Regression) and Interactive Fixed Effects (IFE) models are preferred for the reliability and efficiency of the findings. The empirical findings of the study show that the destination competitiveness indices in the third section can explain the tourism competitiveness potential of the regions. In the fourth section, it is seen that tourism infrastructure and general infrastructure index positively affect tourism demand in FGLS, PCSE and IFE models, while real effective exchange rate and COVID-19 pandemic negatively affect tourism demand. On the other hand, the natural and developed resources index has a positive effect on tourism demand in the FGLS and PCSE models. The environment and climate index does not have a statistically significant effect on tourism demand. On the other hand, the natural and developed resources index has a positive effect on tourism demand in the FGLS and PCSE models. The findings obtained prove the importance of socio- cultural variables in the policies to be developed for tourism demand.