Status and trends of tourism development in the light of the results of studies on the competitiveness of the districts of Podkarpacie Province

The competitiveness of the tourist reception areas is the ability to achieve greater economic, social and cultural effects related to the development of tourism than the average for a country or a selected area across a continent or across the world. Regions compete with each other for both tourists and investors, also outside the tourist industry. In the era of globalization, competition between regions also increases its spatial extent. Moreover, it is difficult to talk about the ability to compete without having a vision of the future or having appropriate tools for the implementation of the vision, but these are just the beginning, and the effects which can bring tangible benefits to a region are the fruits of skillfully and consistently pursued policies in the development of each tourist region such as Podkarpacie Province with a great number of its competing districts. The aim of this article is to analyse the major determinants of tourist competitiveness related to the new paradigm of regional development, based on the example of Podkarpacie districts. The competitiveness of the tourist districts in Podkarpacie Province depends largely on their tourist attractiveness and their attractiveness for investors. On the basis of studies1 on the competitiveness of Podkrpackie districts, presented in the article, the status and trends of tourism development in this area are analysed. (original abstract)