THE IMPORTANCE AND VALUE OF TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN ALBANIA

SUBTOPIC : WILL ALBANIA BE THE NEXT CHOSEN DESTINATION ?

Dr. Alfred Lako1, Alba Robert Dumi2

1Departement of Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Civil Engineering,

Polytechnic University of Tirana, Albania,

2Management Department, Dean of Faculty of Economicss, Tirana Business University, Albania

 

 

ABSTRACT

 

Albania, this pearl completely undiscovered by foreigners worldwide and hermetically sealed form the outside world, has stunned a large number of tourists those least years. Although the tourist season has barely ended, we still have an amazing overflow of tourists from different countries. For this scientific paper, we took the cause from a question that arises: Albania, this beautiful and unique pearl of Balkan, which is surprising the world with its splendor nature, will it be re-elected as one of the top choices of travellers as a trendy and exotic destination in 2024? As field researchers and professors, we rightly thought of drafting a study to analyze the advantages and disadvantages of mobile tourism, what must be developed and improved, and most importantly how the culture and traditional ways must be promoted by the locals and revealed as Albanians authentic gems. The purpose of the study is to bring an encouragement hand to the Albanian entrepreneurs on improving their service, conditions, prices, ethical behavior, and customary communication with the aim of not only increasing the tourist flow in the coming years, but also improve the quality of this service, leading to a better and value-added reputation of Albania.

Key words: Mobile tourism, Service improvement, Price flexibility, Ethical behavior, Quality services

  GENERAL INFORMATION AND PURPOSE OF THIS PAPER RESEARCH

 Why is tourism an important element in Albania’s economy?

Albania is a country that in recent years has undergone remarkable development. Initially known as an isolated and emergent country with a modest economy, today it is returning to the eyes of tourists as an unique attraction and it is now seen by the nature lovers as a hidden paradise.   Tourism in Albania has started to develop substantially over the past 20 years, with an annual growth rate of about 10–15 percent[1]. Originally in the eyes of the visitors, there was this inexplicable curiosity about what this nation lying between mountains, lakes, rivers, seas and lagoons could potentially have been hiding. The number of visitors has risen from a few thousand 20 years ago to 6.4 million visitors in 2019. Therefore it is important to mention that the increase has continued particularly during the post-Covid period. The Institute of Statistics of Albania has reported that in 2022 there were 7.5 million tourists from January to April, and especially this year, we have a three-fold increase, the year 2023 marked a peak in the arrivals of tourists from all over the world.

This trend brought to our attention as researchers and academics, to examine the quantitative and qualitative indicators of Albanian tourism, and how it can become an exclusive destination of tourism among the Mediterranean countries.

Volume 9, No.1 (2024): April

ISSN 2661-2666 (Online) International Scientific Journal Monte (ISJM)
ISSN 2661-264X (Print)

DOI : 10.33807/monte.20243139

DOI URL:  https://doi.org/10.33807/monte.20243139

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This is an open-access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)