Innovation for maritime tourism product development in the Maltese islands

Abstract

The practice of innovation in the various sectors of the tourism industry is greatly emphasised, most of all in highly competitive environments. For this reason, innovation is of fundamental importance for Maritime Tourism, specifically for maritime regions and islands like Malta to remain attractive to customers, create a competitive edge and be a step ahead in competitive scenarios. This should also enhance the Maltese Islands’ Maritime Tourism products. Assessing the importance of innovation in the development of Maritime Tourism products in the Maltese Islands is therefore the chosen area this study focuses on. In this regard, this research sets out to assess the importance of innovation in the development of Maritime Tourism products, to evaluate the importance of Maritime Tourism in the Maltese Islands, and to explore the relevance of having a National Integrated Maritime Policy for Malta’s tourism sector. Identifying the challenges, potential opportunities and niche markets that may be exploited in the Maritime Tourism sector is subsequently an underlying area of focus for this study. In order to reach the previously mentioned objectives of this research, apart from looking into literature and research on the subject, interviews were selected as the best technique to answer the identified research questions. Consequently, a qualitative research method and an inductive approach suited the chosen study. A purposeful sampling framework was used. Finally, through the data analysis and results, this research draws some conclusions on the subject matter. It also presents recommendations that could potentially establish the Maltese Islands as a leading nation in the Mediterranean’s sea-basin and that could uncover innovative ideas in Maritime Tourism Product Development.