Shopping tourism, defined as the type of tourism motivated by shopping as the primary reason for travelling, is widely recognized as a development segment in the fields of retail commerce and tourism, significantly contributing to the local economies of the tourism destinations and the general economic growth. Tourists spend considerable amount of money while travelling and it has been proved that shopping is a common touristic activity, accounting for a large proportion of a holiday budget. Aim of this thesis is to explore the views of businesses in the retail and tourism-related sector in the city of Kastoria regarding shopping tourism features and its development potential in the region. Research indicated that shopping tourism has a significant growth potential in the region of Kastoria and that local businesses can crucially benefit from shopping tourists. In order to exploit the favorable conditions for shopping tourism development in the region, there is a need for an overall and integrated approach designed by related stakeholders, since on international level there are examples of highly successful strategies and policies applied in the field both on individual enterprises level and regional one.
TEI of West Macedonia
