ABSTRACT
Partnerships and collaboration earned ‘buzzword’ status in tourism in the past 10-20 years. Why so? One reason is because tourism is such a fertile fi eld for partnerships and collaborations of all types. This is mainly because it is unusual for one company, government agency or other type of organization to control all of the stages in the tourism value chain (Figure 6.1), while customers often expect destination offers to be integrated. Additionally, tourism stakeholders are increasingly recognizing the positive synergies that result from working together rather than separately. As destinations enter new markets, they also need to build fresh relationships there, as DMOs are lacking in local marketing and promotional experiences and contacts.
