Organizational network and its interaction to wine tourism development: the case of Vale dos Vinhedos touristic route

Abstract

Wine tourism has been showing significant growth in the world touristic scene, dynamizing wine sector economies, from the Old and New World regions. In Brazil, Vale dos Vinhedos is the main wine tourism destination of the country, being the first region to obtain Denomination of Origin (DO) of wines, in 2012. In this perspective, this article aims to analyse the organizational network in Vale dos Vinhedos wine tourism – situated in three cities from Rio Grande do Sul State – and its interactions. This is an descriptive-exploratory study, conducted through bibliographic research, non-participant observation and interviews with 41 organizations from public and private sector, which are part of the regional wine tourism network. The partial results demonstrates that the development of wine tourism is supported by a group of wineries, restaurants, hotels, public and associative entities that however are not always articulated with each other. Although exists collaborative actions, cooperation between organizations could be more effective, toward to an integrated planning of wine tourism, establishing a greater interaction among associations, secretaries and tourism councils of the cities where Vale dos Vinhedos is located.