Measuring tourism success: are we on the brink of a new paradigm?

Purpose The article aims to introduce the strategic question and demonstrate its relevance and reality. It also profiles the articles selected for the annual global trends issue and explains how they illustrate the various angles impacting the adoption of a new paradigm to measure tourism success. Design/methodology/approach The paper draws on a review of articles selected to identify commonalities and differences in respect to the evolution of the concepts and methodologies explored in this global trends issue: sustainability, the contribution of tourism to host communities and measures of tourism success. A brief explanation of the positions and proposals presented by authors as well as their key contributions is also presented. Findings The tourism industry has traditionally been based on economics and financial return, with the metrics for measuring tourism performance remaining fairly static over the years. These placed a strong emphasis on the number of tourists and their levels of expenditure at the destinations. However, it is interesting to note a clear evolution towards a new perspective for a holistic and balanced approach between the economic, social/cultural and environmental dimensions of sustainable tourism development. Originality/value This introductory article sets the scene for an emerging paradigm to measure tourism success, and it highlights the various contributions to the development of sustainable tourism and the challenges faced by the tourism sector, the role of Destination Management Organizations and the need for quality data to support decision-making by public and private organizations.