Fonte: Journal of Tourism & Development; n. 10 (2008); 123-135
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Resumo: Travel-market segmentation can help tourist-destination managers to have a better understanding of tourists’ needs and, consequently, to address more accurately their tourist offers. In order to identify the main market segments of San Martin de los Andes in the south of Argentina, an empirical study was made utilizing a sample of 276 tourists who visited this site during the 2004 summer season. To identify the main market segments of this tourist site, the AID (Automatic Interaction Detection) technique was utilized considering daily-tourist expenses as dependent variable.The results of the study showed that segments entitled “Gasoleros”, “Sightseeing singles and couples”, “Active couples”, “High-income small families”, “Mid-income families”, and “Low-income families” can be considered as constituting a whole the target tourist-market of San Martín de los Andes. With the study, tourism managers can assess more accurately the tourist demands of this destination; the findings in this study can thus contribute to the effective implantation of the Operative Marketing Program Strategies contained in the “Masterful Plan of Tourism 2003-2007”.