Il turismo pet-friendly e le organizzazioni ricettive nella prospettiva della sostenibilità e dell’innovazione: una ricerca empirica

This article is part of a research project funded by the Tuscany Region; it deals with the pet-friendly tourism, which is an interesting niche in tourism innovation for those traveling with pets. It is a growing segment, which represents an opportunity for the competitiveness and sustainability of the tourist destination. After a theoretical framework on sustainability and innovation in tourism, work focuses on the characters of Tuscan tourist offer, examined according to various levels of analysis – that goes from the availability of facilities to accept animals to the ability to meet expectations tourists with the pet –. Finally, referring to the dimensions and determinants of tourism sustainability, this work proposes a reading of the pet-friendly tourism as a tool for sustainable development of a destination. The results show that the Tuscan pet-friendly offer is quantitatively significant, but qualitatively still really basic.. The high attention of local institutions to sustainable tourism can make a driver for regional development of the pet-friendly tourism, and this, in turn, have a positive impact on the competitiveness and sustainability of the Tuscan destination.