Providing Appropriate Criteria for Tourism Industry Planning in Coastal Villages (Case Study: Qeshm Island)

Tourism industry is one of the main sources of income, employment and infrastructure to achieve sustainable development. Growth of this industry in any country requires the proper strategy and effective management plan. In this study, planning and prioritization for five villages of Qeshm Island called Ramakan, Doulab, Souza, Hoomeh and Sallakh for tourism development are considered.
Using Delphi method, tourism criteria were identified in four main categories including, environmental criteria, tourism facilities and services criteria, cultural socioeconomic criteria and infrastructure criteria. Then tourism development prioritization for villages was obtained by TOPSIS method.
The results showed that Hoomeh was the most suitable village for tourism development and Sallakh, Souza, Doulab and Ramakan were suitable respectively. Zoning the areas with good potential for coastal tourism would play a key role in regional development. Enjoying many and varied potentials of the region would not be feasible unless the multidimensional approach and planning are followed.