Measuring the comparative advantage of camping businesses: A multicriteria sorting methodology.

This article focuses on developing and applying a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) methodology, specifically the ELECTRE TRI method, to evaluate the comparative advantage (CA) of camping businesses based on their intrinsic resource endowment. Using a panel of 17 decision-makers from a French professional camping union, the study defines seven key criteria related to lodging facilities, additional sales, bathing areas, pool amenities, entertainment, sports activities, and multimedia areas, and applies the method to 27 campsites in the Bourgogne Franche-Comté region. The results categorize campsites into three ordered groups—worst, intermediate, and best—enabling managers to benchmark competitors with similar resource profiles and to guide strategic investment decisions. The study highlights that comparative advantage, measured by resource accumulation, does not necessarily align with star-rating classifications, which reflect service quality, and emphasizes the heterogeneity of the camping industry. The methodology offers conceptual, methodological, and practical contributions to camping management and can be adapted to other tourism sectors, though it does not account for resource quality or managerial competencies.