The DTI Model Experience: Best Practices on Smart Destination Management

Abstract

This chapter illustrates how the destinations that have adopted the Smart Tourism Destination (DTI) methodology have adapted it to their territory and specific features. The goal is to provide an overview of guiding actions for those involved in the management of a destination implementing the DTI methodology. It reflects on, using success stories, the implementation of everything that underlies the recommendations and actions defined at destinations in the process of becoming a DTI, offering a practical vision to inspire destinations.

The selection of best practices has been performed drawing on more than 500 success stories, identified based on the operational best practice definition used by SEGITTUR: “a successful, effective, innovative and sustainable practice, which has been implemented, tested and validated, which is replicable and which deserves to be shared for it to be adopted by the larger plausible number of destinations”.

The selection also pursues representing all kinds of destinations—encompassing all territories from a geographical and size perspective; any type of promoter, depending on who encouraged the practice; any type of tourism products shaping its supply and position on the market—and therefore addressing a wide range of the challenges associated with its management.

1 Introduction

On the back of content block II, where details of the Smart Tourism Destination (DTI) methodology were detailed, this chapter provides different examples of how destinations that have adopted the DTI methodology and have adapted it to their territory and specific features, have developed actions that have made it possible to improve the pillars of the model in some way.

These actions have historically been consolidated in what could be defined as a dynamic space in the form of a repository of best practices (Segittur, 2021a, 2022a). This database now features more than 500 actions, broken down by pillars and areas of the DTI methodology that undoubtedly contribute to promoting a source of knowledge amongst all those integrating the universe of destinations affiliated with this methodology and all those who sign up in the future.

This chapter presents a wide range of best practices including different types of destinations, demonstrating how the methodology can be adapted to very different territories: coastal, inland, rural, urban, emerging destinations, highly internationalized destinations, mature destinations, etc., all of them having signed up to the DTI programme and having implemented the methodology that gives meaning to this model. As the reader will see one of the faced challenges was developing and effective public–private cooperation for destination governance, Mrs. Benito, Director of the Department of Tourism, Culture and Sports at the Spanish Confederation of Business Organizations, shared her reflections on this issue at the box below.

Vulnerable and Resilient: Together at the Service of Everybody

If somebody were to ask us what we understand by public-private collaboration (PPC), depending on the context, the person asking the question and the person answering the question would have a different answer. EUR-LEX, the European Union’s service dedicated to publishing legislative texts, indicates in its green paper on public-private collaboration that, without Europe-wide definition, in general it refers to the different types of cooperation between the authorities and the business world, the objective of which is to guarantee the financing, construction, renovation, management or maintenance of an infrastructure or the provision of a service.

If you read that document further, it indicates that over the past decade, this has been an expanding practice. There are several reasons for this. One of them lies in the desire to further harness the private sector’s knowledge and operating methods within the framework of public life. The raison d’être of our organisation, the CEOE, is the transfer of private knowledge to the public sphere. It is, therefore, the more general progression of the role of the State in the economy, switching from direct operator to organiser, promoter, regulator, controller and, in some cases, tutor. Not all functions must be presented at the same time in a given project or action.

Against this backdrop, Smart Destinations are one of the collaborative practices that began a decade ago, today transcending Spain’s national borders on account of their success. A tourism destination consists of a complex ecosystem. Public and private agents work side by side in a space where public management powers are distributed in various stages. Fragmentation is commonplace. The dismemberment of the public framework and the micro-segmentation of the private framework, which is mainly made up of micro enterprises. You could say that tourist destinations are vulnerable territorial entities on account of the variety of activities that take place there.

This context required a response to boost the competitiveness of these territories and guarantee the customer experience focussing on two aspects: their overall satisfaction and coexistence with local residents. This purpose would be achievable if technology was placed at the service of the destination to improve the management of public spaces and infrastructures.

The results are as follows: more than 400 destinations, almost 100 partner companies, 4 international observers and 87 institutional members. This represents another area in which progress has been made, through the creation of a network that now has more than 600 members, one more step in the PPC. Individual action units come together to share knowledge, export best practices and anticipate errors or difficulties based on accumulated experience. A network that boasts a Catalogue of Technological Solutions that brings together a total of 169 solutions and services categorised in line with the pillars of the Smart Tourism Destination model: governance, sustainability, innovation, technology and accessibility.

I honestly believe, without being condescending, that we can congratulate ourselves on the project. Together at the service of everybody, conjugating the essential verbs for their correct inflection. Collaborating, cooperating and sharing to move from vulnerability to resilience.

—Inmaculada Benito

Director of the Department of Tourism, Culture and Sports

at the Spanish Confederation of Business Organizations (CEOE)

This chapter is broken down into an initial methodological section, which defines (1) the criteria that have been considered in selecting the best practices (2) and a summary table of the practices presented in the rest of the chapter. After looking at the methodology, we provide details, for each pillar and area of action, preceded by a short text to contextualise each of the pillars, examples of best practices, real cases of improvement and the strategies that have been successfully designed and implemented in different territories. Finally, the chapter concludes by offering the reader a series of references to expand on the information provided in this appendix.

2 Methodology

Details of the criteria employed to select the series of best practices presented in this chapter are provided below. The objective that guided the selection of best practices was to represent a variety of cases adopted by the destinations applying the Smart Destination methodology, in the hope that these best practices would inspire and be extrapolated to other destinations. The final section of this heading lists the different best practices, grouped by pillars and areas of action into which the DTI methodology is structured.

2.1 Selection Criteria

The selection of best practices responds, first of all, to a dynamic process that SEGITTUR embarked upon with the challenge of seeking the conceptualisation of best practices that is adequate and adapted to the context of the tourism destinations and more specifically to smart destinations. With this in mind, the definition sets out that a practice cannot be considered a best practice merely because it is defined as good in itself or defined as such by the destination itself, rather it must have been demonstrated that it works well and offers strong results, and is therefore recommended as a model for others to apply. This is a successful experience, which has been tested and validated, in a broad sense, which has been repeated and which deserves to be shared for it to be adopted by the highest possible number of destinations. The concept includes a series of specific features that this best smart destination practice must have for it to form part of the dynamic space mentioned above:

• Innovative: develops new or creative solutions.

• Replicable: serves as a model for developing policies, initiatives and actions in other destinations.

• Sustainable: given their social, economic and environmental requirements, they can be maintained over time and have long-lasting effects, in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

• Effective: demonstrates a positive and tangible impact on the improvement, although it is not always possible to measure the impact of the improvement with the desired depth.

• Implemented: the best practice must have been in place in the past or at present.

In addition to the criteria implicit in the definition itself and the specific nature, other elements have been taken into account as part of the selection, such as:

• All best practices belong to destinations that have gone through the diagnosis process and action plan in relation to the smart destination methodology.

• The balance between the different types of destinations, local entities, population sizes and geographical areas, including examples of associations, regions, towns and cities, both at an international and national level.

From the perspective of sources of information, the database containing more than 500 best practices available in SEGITTUR has been chosen, as well as the different publications promoted in this medium as regards the best practices that provide the best examples of each of the pillars of the methodology.

Taking this into consideration, a total of 19 best practices have been selected, and subsequently verified with the destinations involved. This selection includes best practices in all the pillars of the DTI methodology, as well as identifying a representative selection for each area. Each of them is represented in a file format, offering a 360° vision in a reduced format, including a description and a brief context of the framework for its implementation, type of destination, recipient(s) to whom it is directed and the joint responsibility or contribution of each best practice to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The classification established by the type of destination and recipient is as determined by SEGITTUR and has been used as such up until now in the different publications, reports and best practice guides. From the perspective of destination type, the following classifications have been chosen: cultural and urban, nature and sport and niche and beach. Finally, in relation to the agents to whom the action included in each practice is aimed at, they have been classified as follows: administration and government, tourism provider, tourist or resident.

It is hoped that this summary of actions will serve as guidance and stimulus to bring together all stakeholders that participate in the construction of a destination, whether through management, planning, provision of services and resources or mere observation and enjoyment. Based on these success stories, it aims to show how the smart destination methodology can be applied in a more practical and realistic way, helping to embark upon a change that considers tourism as a tool for materializing useful and beneficial transformations, both for people who visit a destination, as well as for the population and local organizations.

2.2 Summary of Best Practices Addressed in This Chapter

2.2.1 Governance Pillar

• Area 1. Strategic vision and implementation: Strategy and plan of actions in tourism and marketing plan. Gijon, Asturias.

• Area 2. Efficient management: Smart Destinations Office, Technical Office of Innovation and Intelligence in Benidorm. Benidorm, Region of Valencia.

• Area 3. Transparency and participation: Participation of the private sector in the development of local tourism policy in the Goierri region. Goierri region, Basque Country.

• Area 4. Responsibility and control: District Tourism Quality System in Bogotá—Capital Tourism Quality Circle. Bogotá, Colombia.

2.2.2 Innovation Pillar

• Area 1. Innovative governance: 2022–2025 Logroño Enópolis Strategic Plan. Logroño. La Rioja.

• Area 2. Innovation activities: Social innovation plan at Malaga City Council. Malaga, Andalusia.

• Area 3. Innovation ecosystem: Tourism entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem in Valencia. Valencia, Region of Valencia.

2.2.3 Technology Pillar

• Area 1. Technologies applied to governance: Open Santander. Open data portal aimed at the business fabric and citizens. Santander, Cantabria.

• Area 2. Technological infrastructures and connectivity: Smart sensors with Deep Learning technology for people counting and capacity control in Salou. Salou, Catalonia.

• Area 3. Technologies for Smart Tourism Management: Technology applied to knowledge. Tenerife tourism dashboard. Tenerife, Canary Islands.

• Area 3. Technologies for Smart Tourism Management: Cerecina chatbot, an innovative element in marketing the destination. Valle del Jerte association, Extremadura.

2.2.4 Sustainability Pillar

• Area 1. Tourism sustainability management: Plan for integrating tourism with local residents in Salamanca. Salamanca, Castile and Leon.

• Area 2. Conservation, improvement and recovery of cultural heritage: The key role of the Cuenca city consortium in the conservation of the destination’s cultural heritage. Cuenca, Castile-La Mancha.

• Area 3. Conservation and improvement of the environment: Vitoria-Gasteiz green belt: sustainable urban development. Vitoria-Gasteiz, Basque Country.

• Area 4. Socio-economic development and circular economy: Forming networks, sustainable food and support for zero-km in the city of Murcia. Murcia.

2.2.5 Accessibility Pillar

• Area 1. Management of accessibility in the destination: Means for managing accessibility in Palma. Palma, Balearic Islands.

• Area 1. Management of accessibility in the destination: Assistance mechanisms for improving accessibility in Torroella de Montgrí—L’Estartit. Torroella de Montgrí—L’Estartit, Catalonia.

• Area 2. Implementation of accessibility in the smart destination: Creation of CAME (Medellín Accessibility Committee). Medellín, Colombia.

• Area 2. Implementation of accessibility in the smart destination: Information on accessibility in Donostia/San Sebastián. Donostia-San Sebastián, Basque Country.

3 Best Governance Practices

This section includes four best practices that aim to offer a practical and global overview of the four areas that fall under the governance pillar. The initiatives described correspond to three national and one international destinations, one of them being a region. Furthermore, these are different types of destinations, with one action focussing on a beach destination, another two on a cultural and urban destination and one on a nature and sports destination. Using these examples, it is possible to see how destinations overcome the challenge of quality in tourism or tourism planning, as well as the development of coordination structures to improve both efficiency and transparency and participation (Tables 1, 2, 3, and 4).

Table 1 Strategy and plan of actions in tourism and marketing plan. Gijón/Xixón, Asturias (Area 1. Strategic vision and implementation)

Table 2 Smart Destinations Office, Technical Office of Innovation and Intelligence in Benidorm. Benidorm, Region of Valencia (Area 2. Efficient management)

Table 3 Participation of the private sector in the development of local tourism policy in the Goierri region. Goierri region, Basque Country (Area 3. Transparency and participation)

Table 4 District Tourism Quality System in Bogotá—Capital Tourism Quality Circle. Bogotá, Colombia (Area 4. Responsibility and control)

4 Best Innovation Practices

This section sets out three best practices that aim to offer a practical and global overview of the three areas that fall under the innovation pillar (Segittur, 2022b). The initiatives described involve three national destinations, all of them considered as offering cultural and urban tourism, although in the case of Malaga and Valencia, the “sun and sand” aspect has an important weight in how the destination is regarded by tourists. These best practices provide an idea of how the destinations overcome the multiple challenges that they face, ranging from factors including but not limited to the implementation of innovation in the destination’s strategy and management system, as well as in innovation activities, through instruments such as innovation plans or social innovation programmes, through to the implementation of an entire innovation ecosystem to promote employment policies and the development of the local economy, generating interconnected networks whilst promoting the connection of innovation and technology (Tables 5, 6, and 7).

Table 5 2022–2025 Logroño Enópolis Strategic Plan. Logroño. La Rioja (Area 1. Innovative governance)

Table 6 Social innovation plan at Malaga City Council. Malaga, Andalusia (Area 2. Innovation activities)

Table 7 Tourism entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem in Valencia. Region of Valencia (Area 3. Innovation ecosystem)

5 Best Technology Practices

This section includes four national destination initiatives, one of which is an association. There is one example of each of the destination types defined and in three of the four cases, the administration is the recipient of the action. This demonstrates how the destinations face different technological developments assessed as part of the Smart Destination methodology (Segittur, 2021b), such as the implementation of sensors or the development of innovative communication elements such as chatbots. One example of technological developments applied to the improvement of tourism and open government knowledge, related to open data, is also provided, with the potential of these tools is briefly addressed as well as how destinations are making use of and harnessing these tools (Tables 8, 9, 10, and 11).

Table 8 Open Santander. Open data portal aimed at the business fabric and citizens. Santander, Cantabria (Area 1. Technologies applied to governance)

Table 9 Smart sensors with Deep Learning technology for people counting and capacity control in Salou. Salou, Catalonia (Area 2. Technological infrastructures and connectivity)

Table 10 Technology applied to knowledge. Tenerife tourism dashboard. Tenerife, Canary Islands (Area 3. Technologies for smart tourism management)

Table 11 Cerecina chatbot, an innovative element in marketing Valle del Jerte as a destination. Valle del Jerte association, Extremadura (Area 3. Technologies for smart tourism management)

6 Best Sustainability Practices

This section includes four best practices that aim to offer a practical and global overview of the four areas that fall under the sustainability pillar (Segittur, 2022c). The initiatives described involve four national destinations, all of them considered as offering cultural and urban tourism, although in all cases, other types of products have an important weight in how the destination is regarded by tourists. These best practices offer an insight into how destinations overcome multiple sustainable challenges including but not limited to the tourism management in the destination through sustainable awareness amongst residents and tourists, the conservation, improvement and recovery of cultural heritage through cultural heritage recovery programmes (Segittur, 2022d) and the creation of specific organisations to assume their management, the protection of the local natural environment and its biodiversity as part of much-needed environmental conservation efforts as well as the promotion of sustainable coexistence spaces and finally the promotion of suppliers of local zero-km tourism products, services and experiences with a view to promoting the socio-economic development and circular economy of a destination (Tables 12, 13, 14, and 15).

Table 12 Plan for integrating tourism with local residents in Salamanca. Salamanca, Castile and Leon (Area 1. Tourism sustainability management)

Table 13 The key role of the Cuenca city consortium in the conservation of the destination’s cultural heritage. Cuenca, Castile La Mancha (Area 2. Conservation, improvement and recovery of cultural heritage)

Table 14 Vitoria-Gasteiz green belt: sustainable urban development. Vitoria-Gasteiz, Basque Country (Area 3. Conservation and improvement of the environment)

Table 15 Forming networks, sustainable food and support for zero-km in the city of Murcia. Murcia, Region of Murcia (Area 4. Socio-economic development and circular economy)

7 Best Accessibility Practices

This section encompasses four initiatives, three of them for national destinations and one for international destinations. They can be divided into cultural, urban and beach destinations. They demonstrate how destinations overcome the challenge of accessibility in the two areas that make up this pillar in the Smart Destination methodology (Segittur, 2022e). First of all, three best practices related to accessibility management that analyse the means and mechanisms available to the selected destinations. And secondly, in relation to implementation, setting out a best practice related to one of the indicators that is key to this field: information (Tables 16, 17, 18, and 19).

Table 16 Means for managing accessibility in Palma. Palma, Balearic Islands (Area 1. Management of accessibility in the destination)

Table 17 Assistance mechanisms for improving accessibility in Torroella de Montgrí—L’Estartit. Torroella de Montgrí—L’Estartit, Catalonia (Area 1. Management of accessibility in the destination)

Table 18 Creation of CAME (Medellin Accessibility Committee). Medellín, Colombia (Area 2. Implementation of accessibility in the smart destination)

Table 19 Information on accessibility in Donostia/San Sebastián. Donostia/San Sebastián, Basque Country (Area 2. Implementation of accessibility in the smart destination)

Appendix: List of Tables Illustrating the Good Practices

• Table 9.1 Strategy and plan of actions in tourism and marketing plan. Gijón/Xixón, Asturias (Area 1. Strategic vision and implementation)

• Table 9.2 Smart Destinations Office, Technical Office of Innovation and Intelligence in Benidorm. Benidorm, Region of Valencia (Area 2. Efficient management)

• Table 9.3 Participation of the private sector in the development of local tourism policy in the Goierri region. Goierri region, Basque Country (Area 3. Transparency and participation)

• Table 9.4 District Tourism Quality System in Bogotá—Capital Tourism Quality Circle. Bogota, Colombia (Area 4. Responsibility and control)

• Table 9.5 2022–2025 Logroño Enópolis Strategic Plan. Logroño. La Rioja (Area 1. Innovative governance)

• Table 9.6 Social innovation plan at Malaga City Council. Malaga, Andalusia (Area 2. Innovation activities)

• Table 9.7 Tourism entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem in Valencia. Region of Valencia (Area 3. Innovation ecosystem)

• Table 9.8 Open Santander. Open data portal aimed at the business fabric and citizens. Santander, Cantabria. (Area 1. Technologies applied to governance)

• Table 9.9 Smart sensors with Deep Learning technology for people counting and capacity control in Salou. Salou, Catalonia. (Area 2. Technological infrastructures and connectivity)

• Table 9.10 Technology applied to knowledge. Tenerife tourism dashboard. Tenerife, Canary Islands (Area 3. Technologies for Smart Tourism Management)

• Table 9.11 Cerecina chatbot, an innovative element in marketing Valle del Jerte as a destination. Valle del Jerte association, Extremadura (Area 3. Technologies for Smart Tourism Management)

• Table 9.12 Plan for integrating tourism with local residents in Salamanca. Salamanca, Castile and Leon. (Area 1. Tourism sustainability management)

• Table 9.13 The key role of the Cuenca city consortium in the conservation of the destination’s cultural heritage. Cuenca, Castile-La Mancha (Area 2. Conservation, improvement and recovery of cultural heritage)

• Table 9.14 Vitoria-Gasteiz green belt: sustainable urban development. Vitoria-Gasteiz, Basque Country (Area 3. Conservation and improvement of the environment)

• Table 9.15 Forming networks, sustainable food and support for zero-km in the city of Murcia. Murcia, Region of Murcia (Area 4. Socio-economic development and circular economy)

• Table 9.16 Means for managing accessibility in Palma. Palma, Balearic Islands (Area 1. Management of accessibility in the destination)

• Table 9.17 Assistance mechanisms for improving accessibility in Torroella de Montgrí—L’Estartit. Torroella de Montgrí—L’Estartit, Catalonia (Area 1. Management of accessibility in the destination)

• Table 9.18 Creation of CAME (Medellin Accessibility Committee). Medellín, Colombia (Area 2. Implementation of accessibility in the Smart Destination)

• Table 9.19 Information on accessibility in Donostia/San Sebastián. Donostia-San Sebastián, in the Basque Country (Area 2. Implementation of accessibility in the smart destination)