IS LOVE IN THE AIR?

Abstract

Love and romance have always been very popular in the history of mankind, as a result of which participation in romantic tourism is not new to tourists. The best known types are the wedding and honeymoon tourism. It is also a known fact that changes in the macro environment have a significant impact on tourism. Terrorist acts, particular speeches of a politician, the instability of the political environment, forms of governments can affect the number of tourists visiting a given country. Of course, the natural environment can also significantly influence the entrepreneurial spirit of tourists, not only in a negative but also in a positive way: disaster tourists travel specifically to places where there has already happened or may happen a natural disaster. However, a pandemic is a phenomenon which impact on tourism is a dramatic one. The aim of this paper is to answer the following questions: (1) can the demand for romantic tourism be perceived via advertising campaigns made during the pandemic? Furthermore, (2) what are the criteria of differentiation of the most popular four-star hotels for wedding venues or accommodation compared to their rivals? More specifically, what can create the added value of hotels? JEL classification: M37, L83

Keywords

• destinations, wedding and honeymoon tourism, advertisements, hotels.