CITIES AS ATTRACTIVE TOURIST DESTINATIONS

Abstract

Research into major urban centres as tourist destinations may be conducted from various perspectives. Analysis is essential since they bear a number of important characteristics which add to their appeal and influence choice as being possible tourist destinations. Related arguments are presented in the first part of the paper where the formulation of the research is also made. The second part of the paper defines the concept of ‘city tourism destination’ and the elements of its contents. These elements are crucial for designing conceptual and practical models to improve the power of city tourism destinations. Part three and part four of the research paper provide a brief description and apply a methodology based on the Global Power City Index in analysing the ranking of the world top ten city tourism destinations in 2014.