Similarity and Complementarity in Tourism Development in a Cross-Border Region The Case of Bihor-Hajdu Bihar

The present paper aims to investigate the complementarity and similarity in tourism development in a cross-border region based on the Bihor (Romania)-Hajdu-Bihar (Hungary) case study The paper is structured in two parts, a theoretical one and a practical one. The theoretical part proposes a literature review on the issue of tourism development in a cross-border region and provides a comparative analysis of the Bihor and Hajdu-Bihar counties' tourism sector based on territorial statistics, as well as the available dataset for the tourism sector. The theoretical evaluation was completed with a qualitative research consisting of the design and application of an in-depth interview involving 18 individuals from Bihor County with significant experience in tourism development and cross-border cooperation. The paper includes discussions and conclusions meant to bring about competitiveness for Bihor County and to highlight the similarity and complementarity in tourism development in Bihor Hajdu-Bihar cross-border region.