Project Description: In the era of big data, access to real-time data offers new opportunities to understand and anticipate the evolution of the tourism market. This is the context for the collaboration between Confcommercio of the province of Varese, the Varese Chamber of Commerce, LIUC – Università Cattaneo, and LIUC Business School.
An example of this joint effort is Vodafone Analytics for Confcommercio Varese province, a unique platform at the national level for monitoring attendance in the area. The collected data, which are anonymous and aggregated, allow for a precise description of tourism phenomena in five key cities: Busto Arsizio, Gallarate, Luino, Saronno, and Varese.
The frequency of the data allows the prediction of emerging trends and hidden patterns earlier than national statistics, providing valuable insights to both sector operators and policy makers.
Project Leader: Alessandra Centinaio
Project Duration: 2023 – ongoing
Project Description: This research project has two main objectives: (i) an initial analysis of the relationship between the tourism industry and income inequalities at the territorial level, with Italy and Japan chosen as case studies, and (ii) an assessment of the potential role of this sector in supporting economic convergence between richer and poorer areas.
Project Leader: Niccolò Comerio
Project Duration: 2022-2024
Project Description: The research group focused on identifying the new paradigms of the Italian tourism industrial ecosystem to be included in the 2023-2027 Strategic Plan prepared by the Ministry of Tourism, with particular reference to accommodation facilities, mountain tourism, maritime tourism (pleasure boating and cruising), and open-air tourism. More specifically, the analysis was developed along multiple dimensions: governance, innovation, sustainability, training, quality, and inclusion.
Project Duration: 2022
Project Description: Measures of territorial tourism attractiveness typically exhibit two main characteristics: a national/regional level of analysis and an annual update frequency. However, as demonstrated by the recent COVID-19 pandemic, both dimensions are inadequate to meet the analytical needs of entrepreneurs and policymakers, who require more granular measurements at both the territorial and temporal levels. By combining the use of a series of cutting-edge quantitative tools, we propose a new econometric approach capable of addressing this dual need by nowcasting territorial tourism attractiveness from the provincial level to the continental level.
Project Leader: Fausto Pacicco
Project Duration: 2021-2022
Project Description: The study aimed to create a project proposal for enhancing the tourism attractiveness of Morbegno (Sondrio) and the surrounding territory. The ultimate goal was also to establish guidelines to structurally transform Morbegno into a significant tourist destination, especially in view of the upcoming Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.
Project Duration: 2021-2022
Project Description: The project focused on reconstructing scenarios of new international trends in demand and supply in light of the pandemic crisis. Subsequently, an international competitive repositioning plan for the territories of the Como and Lecco provinces was defined, identifying key areas to enhance, including the tourism sector, and targeting new (or evolved) demand segments.
Project Duration: 2020-2021
Project Description: This project served as the starting point for a process aimed at redefining the tourism positioning of the Sondrio area from the perspective of territorial development, also in view of the Milan-Cortina 2026 Olympics.
Project Duration: 2020-2021
Project Description: The research project aimed to develop predictive models for territorial tourist flows using data related to user queries on search engines. This initiative is part of a broader operational context linked to a digital tourism ecosystem project, focusing on capturing the growing trend in the sector towards using such data. This approach allows for more accurate profiling of tourist preferences, enabling the prediction of future behaviors to tailor the offer in advance. This way, it is possible to combine the scientific interest of the research with the need to provide added value to businesses and territorial policy-making.
Project Duration: 2018-2019
Project Description: The project aimed to develop a mapping of a set of Lombard tourist attractions, detailing their specific characteristics and those of the territorial and productive context in which they are located. The ultimate goal was to support Uniontrasporti’s activities within a national working group dedicated to the theme of tourist attractiveness. The results of the mapping and reconstruction activities contributed to the regional section of the national Isnart platform.
Project Duration: 2018-2019
Description of the observatory: Established in 2013 with the goal of monitoring the evolution of tourism demand and supply in Lombardy, through periodic field surveys and thematic insights.
Thanks to the collaboration between the Center for Territorial and Sector Development, the Lombardy Chamber System, and the Lombardy Region, the Observatory has aimed since its inception to:
– Foster debate on the development of tourism in Lombardy;
– Support public policies on tourism attractiveness;
– Assist tourism operators through analysis of demand behaviors.
The Observatory has produced numerous outputs:
– Over 5,000 tourists interviewed
– Over 7,000 interviews with accommodation businesses
– Over 600 businesses in the periodic survey panel
– More than 30 summary and in-depth reports
Period of activity of the observatory: 2013 – 2020
Project description: The project involved the creation of indicator platforms to describe the dynamics of tourism phenomena in Lombardy on behalf of the Lombardy Chamber System, with the goal of monitoring the evolution of visitor flows into the region and profiling their characteristics and spending habits.
To feed the statistical platform, surveys were conducted through interviews with tourists on-site.
This meticulous work of data collection, rationalization, and analysis supported the design of tourism policy initiatives.
The analyses revealed the enormous tourism potential of the region. Furthermore, guidelines were outlined for the development of certain segments (cycling tourism and wedding tourism) and source markets (Northern Europe, Far East).
Project duration: 2013-2019
Project description: The project aimed to map a set of niche tourism attractors in Lombardy (little known but with high development potential), with particular reference to cultural attractors in a broad sense, and to create information sheets describing their characteristics and tourism attractiveness potential.
This analysis was intended to reveal the “hidden” tourism potential of Lombardy and support Unioncamere Lombardia’s promotion of cultural tourism.
Project duration: 2018-2019
