Competitiveness and sustainability in tourism industry: the "albergo diffuso" case study

The objective of the analysis developed in this paper is to verify whether the sustainability of the hotel ospitality model contributes to the competitiveness of tourist destinations. The research question is: does the model of “albergo diffuso” satisfy the requirement for a social, economic and environmental sustainability? The research method adopted consisted in a survey with the submission of a questionnaire to a number of alberghi diffusi operating worldwide, that is 130 units of analysis. The submission period went from October to December 2016. Through the questionnaire submitted to the interviewees it has been possible to analyze the motivation for the business start-up as well as the characteristics of the entrepreneur, the managerial systems and the governance style. The results will be analyzed through the application of the Weaver model (2014; 2017) which is considered essential to evaluate the contribution of the albergo diffuso to tourism sustainability. The implementation of the Weaver matrix to evaluate the contribution of the albergo diffuso to the sustainability of a tourist destination is the original element of the paper. The paper discusses the implications of sustainability with particular regards to the “albergo diffuso”. Therefore, it would be suitable to expand the analysis to additional models of tourist hospitality present in the international tourism scenario