Abstract

This paper explores the impact of hosting the European Capital of Culture (ECoC) programme on local tourism. The principal novelty of this paper, compared to the existing literature, lies in the use of TripAdvisor reviews for the evaluation. The study considers eight ECoC projects held from 2013 to 2018, comparing tourist performance between the host cities and the candidates for these editions. Hence, a total of 52 cities have been included in the analysis. The impact is evaluated examining the trends in the total number and average rating of TripAdvisor reviews, through different specifications of the Difference-in-Differences design. Results indicate a positive impact on the number of reviews, suggesting that cities hosting the event experienced an increase in TripAdvisor reviews in the subsequent years, particularly considering reviews in attractions and hotels. A more pronounced impact is observed in the designated year, with the effect persisting over the next four years. These results are generally consistent with evidences reported in the literature. However, the impact on the number of TripAdvisor reviews is estimated as not significant for four out of the eight host cities considered. This may indicate a different success of the initiative between countries but also a limitation in the usage of TripAdvisor. Nonetheless, the results emphasize the high potential of TripAdvisor reviews as a valuable source for evaluating local tourist flow.