Logistic Optimization in Tourism Networks

Tourism is one of the activities with high benefits on the development and for many regions,enabling the integration of local populations and economies.In our natural laboratory,the Azores Island of São Miguel,an important share of tourists identifies adventure,leisure and touch with nature,as the main reasons for the visit.The use of footpaths can contribute to the satisfaction of tourists,promoting tourism and the region’s development during their movements on the tourism network,tourists appreciate different types of attractions and need the support of a set of facilities.Tourist decisions are not always done in a rational way,emotions add even more complexity to the human decision process.The movement of tourists within a destination depends on factors related to tourist characteristics,like the time budgets,preferences or destination knowledge,and destination features related to attractions characteristics or accessibility level.The existence of a mathematical model that incorporates the main factors that explain the movement of independent tourists within a destination,in a dynamic way,will make possible the creation of an adaptable software tool.This tool will meet the specific needs of tourists,allowing the use of the network in an optimal way by the different tourist profiles,and the needs of regional government and business,allowing better decisions and the offer of relevant tourism products.This article is based on the authors’previous research and identifies the relevance of tourism for regional development,finds the main tourists’mobility criteria on the study territory,using as main support for the footpath network,recognises the necessary modelling process and develops the foundation for the building of the mathematical model that explains the movement of tourists within the destination,making possible a future adaptable software tool.