Mapping and Analysing Local Tourism Systems in Italy, 1991–2001

Abstract The aim of this work is to identify and map tourist localities seen as concentrations of firms specialized in tourism services and to analyse their employment evolution over the last decade (1991–2001). The industrial districts approach is applied to the tourism industry by introducing the concept of the ‘tourist district’ in the literature relating to tourism research. In particular, the focus is on the identification and measuring of ‘tourist places’. The intention is to research Italian tourism systems by using the local labour system methodology typical of district analysis, thus contributing to the debate about whether specific tourism literature should consider ‘tourist districts’. Tourism supply, measured in terms of employees in the sector, is mapped. From the results of the analysis, the geographical distribution of tourism systems, according to the 1991 and 2001 censuses, is drawn, and the main dissimilarities between cities/regions and tourist specializations (such as seaside, mountain or lake tourism) are distinguished. Finally, a taxonomy of the identified tourism local systems is proposed in order to present some policy implications and reflections regarding the recent Italian law on ‘local tourism systems’.