THE ROLE OF RESORT PLANNING IN SUSTAINING TOURIST DESTINATION IMAGE

Abstract

The environmental quality is recognized to be an important factor while making decisions upon the destination to visit. The image of the resort will likely to be more realistic but also complex after the tourists’ visit. The complex image of the resort, where the tourist has about after visiting it, is crucial for creating loyalty and also word of mouth advertising. Therefore, if the tourists visiting the resort are to complain then the intermediaries will likely to reduce the tourism activities through that resort or the tourism activities will turn into a more hotel facility based activity. Resort planning is a continous process and defines the systemized and controlled development of the resort. Resort planning can be implemented in an actual resort or a new developing resort. The increasing importance of sustain-ability in the tourism industry emerged the need for resort planning. It’s important to emphasize that planning needs to be upgraded through the environmental and market changes. As it is a continous process the factors included in must be strict in the short run and flexible in the long run due to the changes. Resorts, generally subject to seasonal tourism activities, should have a positive image through many aspects in order to attract tourists and try to sustain it by the time. Resort planning is essential in order to shape the future and the image of the resort destination. In addition the satisfaction of the tourist will be retained if the tourist believes that they are getting high value from the destination considering their travel expenses. It is the destination image that will determine the future of the destination. Because the resort experience is intangible the competition among the resort destinations is determined by the image of each resort.