Digital twin: an approach to enhancing tourism competitiveness

Purpose This study presents the concept of digital twin technology for the digitalization of tourism product competitiveness promotion recommendations. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative research method was applied, conducting pilot interviews with representatives of the tourism industry in order to evaluate the key performance indicators (KPIs) and ecosystem specific to the tourism product category “food service”. Based on expert evaluations, a recommendation for promoting the competitiveness of the tourism product was created. The expert evaluations and the provided recommendations were used to create a model of the digital twin for the promotion of tourism competitiveness. Findings The study found that it is possible to digitize tourism experts' knowledge into a format compatible with recommendation system development to create a digital twin to promote the competitiveness of the tourism industry. Originality/value Currently, there is almost no research on the use of digital twins in the tourism industry. The application of this methodology in practice can ensure the promotion of the competitiveness of the tourism sector.