Smart concept in rural tourism: a comparison between two phases (2016-2019)

Abstract: Smart Tourism is the main component of current destinations, however, there are severe difficulties for its application in small destinations. This problem is essential in the case of rural tourism. Taramundi is one of the most important rural destinations in Spain. There are two surveys about tourists conducted in 2016 and 2019. These surveys are about obtaining data on changes in the behavior of tourists in the dynamic field of mobile technologies. The results indicated the importance of the smartphone for rural tourism, the temporary growth in the use of its tourist utilities, and most importantly, the technological applications that improve the enjoyment stay. The rural tourist does not abandon the use of pre- and post-travel regarding Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs), but the interest in Tics during travel increases significantly. Specifically, the App of Destiny is the central element of smart rural tourism, seeing that it should focus on the increase of new technographic utilities for tourists. In the perspective of Gretzel (2018), the application of the concept of Smart Tourist Destination is impossible in rural areas. However, with a specialization approach, rural destinations must work towards the goal of “smartification.”