Destination competitiveness analysis from a stakeholder perspective: The case of Van

Today, people visit different tourism destinations with various motivations. Tourism destinations engage in a continuous competition with the attractiveness factors they have. Van province is a significant destination with its location, natural and cultural heritage, gastronomy elements, endemic plant and animal diversity and other attraction factors. This study aims at assessment of fundamental determining elements that Van has in relation to destination competitiveness by different stakeholder groups. To this end, surveys were conducted to a total of 407 participants from among the tourism stakeholders. The participants listed stonger elements of the destination as natural beauties, quality of tourism enterprises and friendliness of the local people. Weaker elements, on the other hand, were expressed as diversity of events, flights to the destination and quality and efficiency at border gates. Furthermore, it was observed that local stakeholders scored attractiveness factors of the destination higher, but facilities and services and destination management and policy factors lower compared to domestic and foreign tourists. In the light of the findings obtained from the research, suggestions were made to ensure and sustain competitiveness at Van destination. On the other hand, the research is also important as it forms a basis to competitiveness studies to be conducted at destinations with similar characteristics. Keywords: Destination, Destination Competitiveness, Stakeholder, Van