Developing a web-based regional tourism satellite account (TSA) information system

Abstract

Tourism satellite accounts (TSAs) have been widely recognized as standard tools to measure the contribution of tourism to destination economies. However, issues such as high costs of data collection and delayed release of TSAs have limited their regular compilation and practical application in some countries/regions. This study, therefore, introduces an innovative Web-based TSA information system that integrates all functions of the entire TSA compilation process chain, covering data input, data storage and management, TSA table compilation, statistical analysis and other extended applications. The system not only improves the efficiency of tourism data management and TSA compilation but also enhances and extends the usefulness of TSAs for assessing the economic contribution of tourism to destinations. This Web-based TSA information system is established and discussed for a case study in Guangdong Province, China. Overall, the methodology and results reported herein provide academics and practitioners with new perspectives on regional TSA development and applications.