Complexity traits and dynamics of tourism destinations

This paper is rooted in network science and contributes to filling two gaps, developing multiple case studies in order i) to measure the complex structure of tourism destination and ii) to explore its evolution over time, by mapping turning points. The findings put forward ten new analyses, allowing the research team to test two hypotheses: i) concerning the complex structure, the tendency of tourism destinations to remain far from the chaos threshold, ii) concerning turning points, the ability of different destinations to show also different evolution through time. The paper uses the Horizontal Visibility Graph Algorithm and applies it to a sample of ten tourism destinations in the second leading Italian tourism region per size: Trentino-Alto Adige. Findings confirm both hypotheses. Limitations and research implications are drawn.