AtaPaths: Erzurum destinasyonu için bir akıllı telefon uygulama önerisi

In order to keep up with the times in the tourism industry and compete with rival destinations, it is necessary to be involved in innovative processes at all stages, from the production and transmission of information. The concept of smart we use here refers to applications produced with the latest technology that provides access to information quickly. Therefore, this study aims to develop a smartphone application that can present local cultural elements, delicacies, places to experience food, businesses offering accommodation services and route suggestions of the districts to local and foreign tourists who will visit Erzurum in a single application with extensive knowledge. The study's objectives are activating alternative tourism types in the destination with the route suggestions to be created. In this context, as a result of semi-structured interviews conducted with relevant stakeholders (Local managers, hotel management general managers, food and beverage business managers, etc.), the participants clearly expressed the need for such a smartphone application. In line with the results obtained from the interviews, the content and menu titles of the web-based smartphone application to be created were determined. It has emerged that this developed application can facilitate the travels of tourists and guide guides, attract the attention of stimulated visitors to the Erzurum destination with its rich information content, and help increase the number of tourists and tourism income in the region. As a result of the study, it was decided to develop a content-rich application called AtaPaths, which includes the destination's cultural assets, gastronomic products, accommodation services and alternative tourism elements so that visitors can explore Erzurum more easily.