Decision making is a significant responsibility for business managers, their decisions impacting business performance. Managers are therefore interested in acquiring and implementing reliable methods for making decisions both now and in the future. Currently, in the countries in the Albanian-speaking regions of the Western Balkans, intuitive decision-making methods predominate. In order to find appropriate methods for assessing and prioritizing goals, new approaches to decision making should be adopted. Various methods have been developed for multi-criteria decision making. One of these is the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method—a method which should receive more attention than it has up to now. We would like to show that the AHP method could be of great use in decision making. Through a case study, this paper explores the AHP, a method with three levels in which the identification of decision-making criteria is based on the perceptions of managers and consumers. The paper’s findings offer an important guide for managers to improve decision making and enhance performance in competitive markets.

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It is easy to attract visitors when you have plenty of resources, nice accommodations, powerful selling techniques, many supporting sectors and of course reliable government support. The challenge starts when you lack most of the above and what you have is only a handful of beautiful natural resources, breathtaking sceneries, goodwill and a great desire and pride to show those visitors what your country is made of. How can we generate income using what we have? The answer is simple. You target that group of customers whom are specifically interested in what you have, beautiful views, heartfelt welcome, home like accommodations and very warm people. These customers do not look for fancy, expensive, overcrowded hotels; they are in search of real beauty and nature. They have special interests and would like to fulfill them toward a reasonable price. Hence starts the development of what is widely known as the special interest tourism whose analysis as a potential tool for the improvement of tourism in the region of Shkodra is the main purpose of this paper.

Tourism is one of the world's fastest growing industries, and has been identified as a means of generating national income in less industrialized economies. Like other countries, Albania has promoted tourism as a major source of national income. The tourism industry in Albania currently focuses on coastal areas, rather than on the unique features that set this country apart from its neighbors. Albania's natural features have the potential to attract tourists seeking ecological and cultural experiences. Thoughtful, sustainable development of these resources could enhance community livelihoods throughout Albania. The purpose of this study was to discover if differences in perceptions of sustainable tourism development and principles in Shkodra Region existed between four stakeholder groups: residents, entrepreneurs, government officials, and tourists. Data were collected from stakeholders using a self competed questionnaire, which included Likert-style questions inquiring about attitudes and perceptions of sustainable tourism development in the community. The data gathered illustrate that the perception of sustainable tourism principles varies considerably among stakeholder groups. As a distinct stakeholder group, the majority of local residents generally were welcoming of tourism.