FACTORS OF DESTINATION MANAGEMENT AND THEIR INFLUENCE ON THE BRAND OF KVARNER DESTINATION

Destination, as a fundamental concept of tourism, is considered to be a product which is extremely difficult to manage, and market because it arises from a number of different products, and many activities of different organizational units and stakeholders that team upto deliver the final product, and create an area of intensive tourist gathering. Sustainable competitive advantage of modern destinations is primarily achieved through the distinctive destination brand. Tourism in Croatia is one of the most important industries with a long tradition and great development opportunities. Therefore, this study aims to test a conceptual model of tourism destination competitiveness, and also the hypothesis according to which which the implementation of destination management elements is a prerequisite for creating a recognizable destination brand of the Kvarner region as one of the most successful Croatian tourist regions.