Urban Tourism Development Mechanisms Based on Information Technology

Information for tourism and transportation industries is as vital as blood for the human life. According to tourism experts, Iran ranks among ten top countries with the most touristy attractions. Iran's share from the income of international tourism markets was about 1 unit from a total of 700 units in the year 2000. A major problem on the way of tourism development is the weakness of information systems and their supporters. This has led to providing insufficient information on the attractions and capabilities and service preparation, much lower than expected level. This is while for tourism planning and dynamism exact and updated information system is needed; IT is very effective in this respect. IT can play a great role in managing, planning, and marketing for tourism development. Emphasizing IT usage in tourism, some main applications of this technology like fast, cheap, and on time informing of electronic systems for service provision such as computer reservation systems (CRSs), global distribution systems (GDSs) and Internet have been regarded in this paper.