María Santana-Gallego

Exchange Rate Regimes and Tourism

The main objective of this paper is to analyse the effect of exchange rate arrangements on international tourism. The ambiguity in the literature about the effect of exchange rate volatility contrasts with the magnitude of the impact of a common currency on trade. The authors apply panel data techniques to analyse the relevance of a common currency to tourism, finding that it is a major factor in the determination of tourist arrivals. They also analyse the impact of several de facto exchange rate arrangements on tourism, finding that less flexible exchange rates promote tourism.The main objective of this paper is to analyse the effect of exchange rate arrangements on international tourism. The ambiguity in the literature about the effect of exchange rate volatility contrasts with the magnitude of the impact of a common currency on trade. The authors apply panel data techniques to analyse the relevance of a common currency to tourism, finding that it is a major factor in the determination of tourist arrivals. They also analyse the impact of several de facto exchange rate arrangements on tourism, finding that less flexible exchange rates promote tourism.

Does a Common Currency Promote Countries Growth Via Trade and Tourism

The main aim of this study is to contribute to the debate on the effects of a common currency. In particular, the impact of a common currency on growth via trade and tourism is explored for a panel dataset which includes 179 countries as destination and 30 OECD countries as origin over the period 1995-2006. This research contributes to previous work in three ways: (i) tourism is included as an additional channel for a common currency to promote growth; (ii) the heterogeneity of countries is addressed by dividing the sample into three groups of countries by income; and (iii) up-to-date data including the case of the euro are considered. The results obtained suggest that a common currency strengthens economic growth by promoting not only international trade but also tourism.

Tourism and trade in small island regions: the case of the Canary Islands.

The main objective of this paper is to study the relationship between international trade and tourism in small island regions (that is, territories that are dependent to a significant degree on the rest of the world). To that end, the authors explore the different forms this relationship can take and apply cointegration and the Granger causality test to the case of the Canary Islands. The results suggest a long-term bidirectional relationship between tourism and trade, while the short-run link lies mainly in the trade generated by tourist arrivals.

The impact of climate change on domestic tourism: a gravity model for Spain

Climate conditions are recognised as an important determinant of tourism demand and consequently different pioneering studies have started to estimate the impact of climate change on tourism flows. However, the lack of data concerning domestic tourism demand has motivated that the majority of studies focuses on international tourism flows or considers domestic trips as the alternative to the international ones. This paper investigates the impact of temperature on destination choice decisions in the context of domestic tourism in Spain. Using a data set that comprises Spanish domestic trips from 2005 to 2007 and applying a gravity model for regional data, results confirm climate as an important factor in determining domestic tourism flows. Moreover, a simulation exercise concerning an increase in the mean temperatures of the Spanish provinces is undertaken. Findings show that while colder provinces in the north of Spain would benefit from rising temperatures, warmer provinces in the south would experience a decrease in the frequency of trips there.

Religion, Religious Diversity and Tourism

Religious beliefs influence many aspects of peoples’ daily lives, so it is plausible to argue that religion affects some of humanity’s most central endeavors, such as trade, migration, foreign investment and tourism. This paper investigates the role a country’s religious affiliation plays in destination choice for international tourism. To that end, a gravity model for international tourist arrivals is estimated by using a dataset of 164 countries for the period 1995-2010. Results provide evidence that religious similarity has significant explanatory power in global tourism flows even after controlling for other measures of cultural affinity. Moreover, the presence of common religious minorities in the country has a positive impact on tourism flows. However, although religious pluralism foster tourism flows between countries, religious similarity has a stronger positive effect.

Research note: Which god is good for tourism?

The authors posit that religion has a general impact on tourism which goes beyond the direct impact of religious pilgrimages. To that end, an augmented gravity model for international tourist arrivals is estimated. This makes it possible to assess how five major religions induce or constrain international tourism flows. The results provide evidence that the religious affiliations of both the origin and destination countries have significant explanatory power in global tourism flows, over and above pilgrimage.