ECONOMIC SIGNIFICANCE OF TOURISM SECTOR IN BALKAN COUNTRIES AND AN ANALYSIS OF THE TOURISM RELATIONS BETWEEN TURKEY AND BALKAN COUNTRIES

The Balkan region which has been unstable up to 2000s now host leading markets that make progress and attract attention in global economy from an economic,political, geographical, historical and cultural perspective. Particularly the newreforms and legal arrangements introduced in the Balkan countries within the framework of harmonization efforts with the European Union contributed to the emergence of a new environment of stability and peace. Positive development is observed if the general economic performance of the Balkan countries is analyzed by sectors. According to the tourism data of the World Tourism Organization in2011, tourism has become popular in recent yearsin Western Balkans; however, cross-border tourism has been in decline in many parts of the region due to the decrease in the spendable income. In addition, the tourists prefer developing countries; the change in this preference and the impact ofthe global economic crisis contributed to the rise of domestic and international tourism in the Balkan countries. Turkey's relations with the Balkans which appear to be extension of Turkey in the European continent have improved in a wide range of fields including economy, social affairs, culture and tourism. After introduction of project by Turkish Airlines, "Visa-Free Balkans," in 2011, the Turkish citizens became more interested in having vacation in the Balkans. It is also visible that Balkan countries have diversified their tourism options and that in addition, seasand and sun, they have other alternatives to offer including health tourism andfaith tourism.In this study, the necessary business enterprises on accommodation, traveling,transportation, food and catering in order to improve this potential and make it tourism supply in Balkan tourism and other relevant countries in international tourism market will be examined first. Subsequent to the examination of the tourism supply, the demand for tourism in these countries will be evaluated in the second part and the profile of the visitors by foreign active-foreign passive and domestic tourism will be drawn. The purpose in these two sections is to examine the tourism sector which contributes extensively to the economic and social development of these countries by focusing on its economic dimension. In the third section, the tourism relations between Balkan states and Turkey which is a remarkable destination in global market and ranked among the first ten countries by number of visitors and international tourism revenues as evidenced by the World TourismOrganization's data through economic, social and cultural dimensions. In the concluding section, some recommendations will be made on how to improvetourism relations between Turkey and Balkan states which already enjoy close tiesin economic and cultural spheres

Reputation management in cyberspace: evidence from Jordan's luxury hotel market

Purpose Drawing on a sample of 520 negative reviews posted on TripAdvisor against all five-star hotels operating in Petra, Jordan, the purpose of this paper is to evaluate the response of luxury hotels to negative online reviews by considering the Response Rate (RR), the Response Time (RT) and the Response Content (RC). Design/methodology/approach A deductive content analysis was used on hotels' managerial responses. Based on the literature review, a four-construct scheme was identified to guide the analysis including Appreciation; Apology; Explanation; and Incentive. The managerial responses were carefully read and manually coded based on the four-construct scheme. The time between the review posting date and the date of the managerial response was also recorded. Luxury hotel managers were also surveyed to obtain insights into their perceptions and practices with respect to online reputation management. Findings The findings call into question luxury hotels' awareness of the harmful impact of negative online reviews. Specifically, the findings suggest that less than half of the negative reviews received a managerial response, and that more than half of these were standardized and did not refer to the issues raised in the reviews. The low response rate coupled with the hotel managers' consensus on the importance of answering all online reviews indicates inconsistency between hotel managers' perceptions and practices with regard to online reputation management. Originality/value The paper adds to the ongoing debate on reputation management in the hospitality industry by considering the managerial response to negative online reviews. The paper discusses several managerial implications for hotel managers as well as avenues for future research

Negative Word of Mouse in the Hotel Industry: A Content Analysis of Online Reviews on Luxury Hotels in Jordan

The main objective of this study is to identify the nature of e-complaints directed at luxury hotels in Jordan. For this purpose, a content analysis was conducted based on 424 negative reviews posted for these hotels on the User-Generated Content (UGC) travel website TripAdvisor. The study found that the most frequent e-complaints were about service quality, the efficiency of hotel facilities, and cleanliness and hygiene. The study showed that e-complaints were mostly posted by British, American, and Emirati guests. The hotels' responses to e-complaints were also examined. The findings suggested that less than one-half of the e-complaints (approximately 43%) received an online response from the hotel management and that more than one-half of these responses (56%) were posted within a week of the e-complaint's posting date. Recommendations to effective e-complaint management in the hotel industry were given in light of the article's findings

Reel Effective Exchange Rate Volatilities Impact On Tourism Sector In Turkey: An Empirical Analysis Of 2003-2014

There have been positive changes in the macro indicators of the economy in Turkey over the last decade. The foreign trade volume increased remarkably whereas serious progress has also been observed in many sectors. The volatility in the Turkish currency was relatively reduced in the aftermath to the regulations in the finance sector. Tourism is one of the sectors in Turkey that is open to international markets and attracts foreign currency. The contribution and added value of the tourism sector to the national economy has been growing in recent years. The stability in the domestic currency also positively affected tourism sector. To this end, the revenues in this sector have also increased. This study analyses the dynamics of the macro performance in Turkish economy over the last decade and empirically reviews the developments in tourism sector as well as the reflections in the monetary policies and the real effective exchange rate (REER) volatility. Additionally, empirically tests the relationship between the tourism sector revenues and the REER in the period between 2002 and 2014. (C) 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V

The Economic Contribution of Turkish Tourism Entrepreneurship on the Development of Tourism Movements In Islamic Countries

It is certainly an undeniable fact that the sectors constituting the global economy have screened a significant structural change as the degree of causality relationship between the world economy and globalization proliferates. In addition to this affirmative unfolding, all of these sectors have got through an economic growth period in real terms, while forcing themselves to change structurally. As this economic growth trend pervaded in the world geography, considerable raises were observed in the volume of consumer masses and the markets in which these sectors operate. The pervasiveness come into existence in the world geography has also caused to step up the dynamism of tourism industry. Together with the globalization and rising incomes, it is clearly uncovered that the tourism movements have not only an economic dimension but also other components such as particularly the social, cultural, religious, political, sportive, environmental, etc. dimensions. In our study, we will be trying to figure out whether Islamic Countries take a sufficient share from that ambitious economic growth trend and magnificent structural change process of the world tourism sector, as well as questioning how to expand the amount of this share through the leadership of Turkish tourism entrepreneurship. (C) 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

Host Perceptions of Tourism Development: The Case of Petra

The nature of tourism sector requires "consumer" to move to where the service is provided. Consumer's movement to a different place leads to a direct encounter not only with service providers but also with those who live where the service is provided. This encounter results in a set of changes in the host community's life. By using a self-completion questionnaire, this paper examined the residents' perceptions of tourism development in Jordan's main tourist destination, Petra. The findings suggested that the host community in Petra had positive attitudes toward tourism development in their city. The results showed that social and cultural impacts of tourism were most favored by surveyed sample. Host community is also assumed to favor tourism development for its role in bringing about better local services. The results are discussed thoroughly and directions for future research are suggested

Understanding destination image from the perspective of Western travel bloggers: the case of Istanbul

Purpose Travelers' narratives disseminated online about destination experiences are an important source of information for measuring the performance of tourist destinations and understanding travelers' perceptions, behaviors and expectations. Drawing on data from travel narratives, the purpose of this study is to examine the destination image of Istanbul as revealed in Western travel blogs. In addition, this study aims to identify the demographic characteristics of travelers who are more likely to engage in destination blogging activities

The impact of emotional dissonance on quality of work life and life satisfaction of tour guides

The well-being of employees in the tourism and hospitality industry remains an important area of investigation in tourism research. Building on the emotional labor theory and the well-being body of knowledge, this study develops and tests a model that examines the effects of emotional dissonance on the quality of work life and life satisfaction using data from professional tour guides in Jordan. Unexpectedly, results show that tour guides do not experience significant emotional dissonance and that there is no negative impact of emotional dissonance neither on quality of work life or life satisfaction. Contrary to theoretical predictions, the findings fail to suggest a link between emotional dissonance, quality of work of life and life satisfaction. However, the findings reveal that a positive relationship between quality of work life and life satisfaction exists. The study provides some theoretical and practical implications and suggests areas of inquiry for future research