Comparative analysis of local people's perceptions, community engagement and support for tourism development in mass and winter tourism destinations

Although regional attractiveness and service quality are effective factors in the success of destination tourism and in gaining competitive advantage, the support of local people in the development of tourism is also an important factor. However, the perception and support of the local people for tourism development is one of the issues that take place a lot in both international and national literature. Due to the importance of the subject, in this study, the support given by the local people to tourism development in the samples of Antalya, which is a mature mass tourism destination, and Bansko, which is a rural tourism destination, has been examined comparatively. It is compared in terms of the effects of positive and negative perceptions of local people on social participation and support for tourism development in destinations with two different tourism products, such as Antalya, Turkey's mass tourism center, and Bansko, Bulgaria's winter tourism center. The research hypotheses were tested by analyzing the data collected from the local people in the cities of Antalya and Bansko with a face-to-face questionnaire. Relational screening method was used in the research. The results reveal that there is a significant difference between the effects of positive perceptions of those living in winter and mass tourism destinations on community participation. The findings obtained as a result of the research were discussed with the support of the literature, and suggestions were presented to researchers and practitioners.