Heritage tourism in the Andes: the case of Cuenca, Ecuador

ABSTRACT

Heritage tourism has been growing over the last few years, especially in cities that have been declared World Heritage Sites. This paper presents research that investigates the motivations for tourists to visit Cuenca. Fieldwork was used to create a predictive model to determine visitor satisfaction considering the motivations and the attributes of the city. Furthermore, the paper analyses the attributes a heritage site should have if it is to create a sustainable tourist destination which combines culture and economic growth. The results show that although overall satisfaction with visits to the city is high, tourists enjoy other interesting aspects that should be taken into consideration in order to improve the city’s image as a cultural destination.

KEYWORDS:

• World Heritage Site
• heritage tourism
• tourist motivations
• tourist satisfaction
• Ecuador