Sustainable urban tourism success factors and the economic performance of small tourism enterprises'

This study aims at to research if there is a relation between the sustainable urban tourism success factors and small tourism enterprises' economic performance. Rural tourism success factors, destination marketing success factors, business success factors and sustainability indicators in touristic areas and sustainability indicators in small tourism enterprises were used to determine the sustainable urban tourism success factors and small tourism enterprises' economic performance structures'. Within this context, a survey via questionnaires upon 330 small tourism business owners and managers were conducted in Eskişehir (Turkey). The main method used to perform the analysis was the Structural Equation Modelling as part of a multivariate data analysis. To feed the analysis method, the sustainable urban tourism success factors were evaluated as well as the economic performance of small tourism enterprises'. As a result of the analysis, the sustainable urban tourism success factors and small tourism firms economic performance features were identified and it was determined that there is a correlation between those sustainable urban tourism success factors and small tourism enterprises' economic performance. In this regard, proposals have been made to local governments, regional marketing organizations and business managers to promote the tourism industry development and it's sustainability over an urban tourism context. Key Words: Sustainability, urban tourism, success factors, small tourism enterprises, economic performance, Eskisehir