Sun, Sand, and… Sustainability in Developing Countries from a Tourists’ Perspective. The Case of Punta Cana

Gianluca Goffi, Magdalena Cladera and Linda Osti
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Gianluca Goffi: Faculty of Economics and Management, Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, 39031 Brunico, Italy
Magdalena Cladera: Department of Applied Economics, University of the Balearic Islands, 07122 Palma de Mallorca, Spain
Linda Osti: Faculty of Economics and Management, Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, 39031 Brunico, Italy

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 11, 1-14

Abstract: Large-scale tourism represents one of the main causes of environmental problems faced by many seaside destinations in developing countries. A survey was carried out among tourists in Punta Cana, the Dominican Republic, one of the most visited coastal destinations worldwide. This study explores whether the destination is meeting tourists’ demand for sustainable practices and whether the sustainable initiatives implemented, as perceived by tourists, have a role in explaining tourists’ satisfaction. An importance-performance analysis and a principal component analysis, followed by an ordered logit model, were performed. Findings show that tourists’ expectations in terms of sustainability are not adequately met and that environmental and socioeconomic sustainability are positively associated with tourists’ satisfaction.

Keywords: sustainable tourism development; coastal destinations; developing countries; large-scale tourism; “sun and sand” package vacations; Punta Cana; the Dominican Republic; Caribbean (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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