Th e local business sector ' s perception of the competitiveness of Slovenia as a tourist destination

Th e purpose of this paper is to illustrate diff erent defi nitions of tourism destination competitiveness and some models developed from various environments containing diff erent measures of competitiveness. Th e objective of the study was to empirically test the Slovenian tourism stakeholders' perception of diff erent determinants of competitiveness. Th e study was carried out by a systematic review of the literature on national competitiveness and, in particular, of the literature on tourism destination competitiveness. Th e empirical part is based on a survey. A principal component analysis was performed and followed by a cluster analysis with the aim of classifying the tourism stakeholders into diff erent groups, taking into account their view of the competitiveness of Slovenia as a tourism destination. Th e fi ndings indicate that the tourism stakeholders do not share the same opinion about the competitiveness of Slovenia as a tourism destination. Th e empirical part is limited to the stakeholders at the supply side and should be explored further by researching the stakeholders at the demand side tourists, on the one hand, and, on the other, the local population. Th e study provides insights into diff erent models of tourism destination competitiveness. It provides the local business sector's perspective on the competitiveness of Slovenia as a tourism destination.