TEMEL KAYNAKLAR VE ÇEKİCİLİKLER YÖNÜNDEN KASTAMONU İLİ REKABETÇİLİĞİNİN KONAKLAMA SEKTÖRÜ PAYDAŞLARI BAKIŞ AÇISINDAN DEĞERLENDİRİLMESİ

ASSESSMENT OF THE COMPETITIVENESS OF KASTAMONU PROVINCE IN TERMS OF CORE RESOURCES AND ATTRACTORS FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY STAKEHOLDERS

Özet

Turizm destinasyonlarının sahip olduğu temel kaynak ve çekicilikler, özellikle yakın rakiplerine kıyasla destinasyonlara üstünlük sağlamaktadır. Bu sebeple birçok destinasyon öncelikli olarak bu kaynak ve çekiciliklerini tespit etmeye odaklanmakta, ardından rekabetçilik ölçümleri yapmaktadır. Ancak kapsamlı literatür taraması sonucu destinasyon rekabetçiliğine ilişkin araştırmaların sıklıkla yabancı yazında yer aldığı, Türkçe yazında ise konuya ilişkin araştırma sayısı oldukça kısıtlı olmakla birlikte yalnızca büyük şehirlere odaklanıldığı saptanmıştır. Bu araştırmada hem otantik hem de metropol kuvvetli rakipleri bulunan Kastamonu ilinin sahip olduğu temel kaynaklara ve çekiciliklere yönelik turizm sektörü paydaşlarının görüşlerini değerlendirmek amaçlanmıştır. Paydaşlar içerisinde önemli bir rol oynayan konaklama işletmesi yöneticileri ile toplam 15 derinlemesine görüşme gerçekleştirilmiştir. Görüşme soruları oluşturulurken Ritchie ve Crouch’un (2003) Kavramsal Rekabetçilik Modeli’nde yer alan temel kaynaklar ve çekicilikler faktörünü oluşturan yedi bileşenden faydalanılmıştır. Araştırma sonucunda paydaşların Kastamonu’yu fizyografi ve iklim bileşeni açısından orman kaynakları ve manzara güzelliği, kültür ve tarih bileşeni açısından geleneksel mimari, etkinlikler karması bileşeni açısından yetişkinlere yönelik ve zor maceraya dayalı etkinlikler, özel etkinlikler bileşeni açısından tarihsel kilometre taşlarına yönelik etkinlikler, eğlence bileşeni açısından geleneksel festivaller, üstyapı bileşeni açısından cami, medreseleri ve doğa harikaları, piyasa bağları bileşeni açısından dini ziyaretler ile rakiplerine kıyasla daha rekabetçi bulduğu tespit edilmiştir.

Abstract

1. LITERATURE 1.1. RESEARCH SUBJECT After extensive Turkish and English literature review, it has been determined that there are many conceptual and empirical researches conducted to measure destination competitiveness. It can be said that conceptual studies are mostly done to develop more models and indicators (Akkus, 2017: 101). It is possible to divide empirical research into two as supply-side and demand-side. While the tourism sector stakeholders are taken as a basis in supply-side research, tourists are targeted in demand-side research. Table 1 presents key information on empirical research evaluating destination competitiveness from a stakeholder perspective. In most of the studies listed in the table, various destination competitiveness models were adapted to the relevant tourism region and stakeholder views on the subject were evaluated. In this research, an interview form was prepared based on the Conceptual Competitiveness Model of Ritchie and Crouch (2003) and in-depth interviews were conducted with stakeholders. For this reason, some information Ritchie and Crouch. 1.2. RESEARCH PURPOSE AND IMPORTANCE evaluate their situation in detail in terms of competitiveness. is very limited. was shared about similar research (Hudson, Ritchie ve Timur, 2004; Hallmann, Müller, Feiler, Breuer ve Roth, 2012; Dragičević, Jovičić, Blešic, Stankov ve Bošković, 2012) based on the model developed by In this study, it was aimed to reveal the core resources and attractors of the province of Kastamonu and 1.3. CONTRIBUTION of the ARTICLE to the LITERATURE After extensive literature review, it has been determined that research on destination competitiveness is frequently included in foreign literature. In Turkish literature, the number of researches on the subject 2. DESIGN AND METHOD 2.1. RESEARCH TYPE In this research, a qualitative method has been adopted as it provides a holistic approach that is more appropriate to the natural environment, collecting first-hand information about the data and communicating with the participants. The research has the nature of exploratory research. 2.2. RESEARCH PROBLEMS The main research problem is to reveal the core resources and attractors of Kastamonu province. 2.3. DATA COLLECTION METHOD Interviews can take various forms, and in this research, fixed format survey interviews were adopted. This type is similar to the structured interview in terms of content and method, but there are a number of predefined questions. While creating the interview questions, the seven components that constitute the basic resources and appeal factors in the Conceptual Competitiveness Model of Ritchie and Crouch (2003: 110-129) were used and each component was measured using multiple items and the 5-point Likert scale (1: Well below average, 2: Slightly below average, 3: Average, 4: Slightly above average, 5: Well above average). These components are divided into physiography and climate (10), culture and history (12), mix of events (22), special events (7), entertainment (7), superstructure (21) and market ties (10). Seven components were evaluated in detail and comprehensively with a total of 89 items. In order to increase the comprehensibility of the items for all participants, some probes were added next to the items in parentheses. The universe of the research consists of the accommodation management managers in Kastamonu province. However, since it is not possible to reach all business managers, sampling has been done. Easily accessible case sampling was preferred from the purposive sampling methods. The research is limited to the accommodation enterprises in the city center. The number of facilities with tourism operation certificate in the city center of Kastamonu is 25 and there are 25 public guesthouses (Kastabil, 2020). Among the 50 facilities in total, 15 facility managers or owners, who were relatively easy to access and warm to the meeting, were interviewed. However, care was taken to select all facility managers included in the sample from stakeholders who play an active role in provincial tourism. While all the interviews were held in the working environment of the stakeholders, most of th