A contingent ranking study of the preferences of tourists across seasons

This paper presents the results of a contingent ranking study carried out on a sample of tourists visiting the province of Ragusa (in South-Eastern Sicily, Italy), known for both its baroque heritage and its sea coasts. I focus only on two attributes of tourism products, namely the accommodation structures (which appear to have a large importance for tourists’ choice, according to similar previous analyses) and local attractions (sea and costs, cultural and natural heritage endowments, performing-arts, local wine&food products). I evaluate whether and how the weight attached by tourists to the attributes and their levels change across seasons.