Destination Image Research Articles

Determinants of the intention to recommend a socially responsible destination with smart tourism technologies

ABSTRACT Tourism, key to the economy, is facing environmental and social challenges. Currently, urban destinations are evolving and integrating Information and Communication Technologies to become more sustainable and smarter. This research analyses the relationship between memorable experiences with smart technologies, the perception of a responsible destination, tourist identification, destination image and the intention to recommend it. The sample includes 400 Spanish tourists over 18 years old in smart tourist destinations and was analysed using structural equations. The implications highlight the need to improve the destination's image and promote responsible and sustainable practices, as well as to ensure that tourists identify with the destination, thus increasing the intention to recommend it.

A study on the construction of destination image for China’s county-level integrated media centers: a case study of four counties in Fuzhou

With the growing significance of social media in disseminating destination images, short videos have emerged as the primary channel through which tourists acquire destination information. In China, local governments at all administrative levels have begun to explore how to portray a more accurate and diverse destination image through short video platforms, which has become a pressing issue today. This study utilizes a combination of manual analysis (subject terms classification) and computer-assisted techniques (key-frame extraction and text mining) to examine the short videos posted on the TikTok (Douyin) platform by the integrated media centers of Minhou County, Yongtai County, Minqing County, and Lianjiang County in Fuzhou City, China. The objective is to explore the shared characteristics and variations in the dimensional aspects of destination images. The findings reveal that the short video contents released by the governmental new media accounts in these four counties primarily highlight three dimensions: stakeholders, urban infrastructures, and regional landscapes. These dimensions are evident in both descriptive texts and visual symbols. However, in terms of the presented destination image, a notable degree of homogeneity is observed, and there is a lack of emphasis on uncovering and presenting the cultural dimensions, thus failing to reflect the distinctive local characteristics fully. Consequently, it is essential for local integrated media centers to thoroughly explore the cultural uniqueness of their respective regions and enhance the development of thematic dimensions in creating short video content. This approach will effectively strengthen tourists’ association with and perception of destination images.

Unveiling Cultural Heritage: Exploring the Perceived Online Destination Image of China’s Cultural Heritage Destination and Narrative Strategy in Travel Vlogs

ABSTRACT From the perspective of cultural heritage tourism, this study aimed to explore the narrative strategy utilized in travel vlogs and the perceived online destination image of Meishan City through travel vlogs. Grounded in an interpretivism paradigm, data was collected from WeChat Channels, and a five-element narrative analysis method was adopted to analyze six travel vlogs. The findings revealed that travel vlogs display the online destination image of Meishan City as an authentic cultural heritage destination. The study further identified a three-stage narrative strategy utilized in travel vlogs that effectively integrates intangible and tangible cultural heritage destination elements, including narrative enrichment, narrative ascendant, and narrative resonance. It further enhances the online destination image and highlights the significance of Chinese cultural heritage. This work provides valuable theoretical and practical implications for cultural heritage destination studies and marketing practice.

Destination love and addiction: Insights from positive addiction theory

This study proposes a novel framework to comprehend tourists’ relationships with eco-friendly destinations and their respective outcomes. Building on the positive addiction theory and brand love literature, this study tries to see the impact of a destination's image and tourists’ involvement on tourist-destination relationships—destination love and destination addiction. It also aims to measure the impact of these relationships on tourists’ well-being and their willingness to pay extra using a sample of 335 eco-friendly destination tourists from China. The findings provide novel insight for academicians and practitioners of eco-friendly destination brands.

Halal–friendly attributes: a comparative study of different Muslim genders’ intentions to visit non–Islamic destinations

Purpose This study aims to examine how halal-friendly attributes at non-Islamic destinations affect the tourist attitude and visiting intentions of Muslim tourists of different genders from ASEAN countries. Design/methodology/approach The study used a structured survey with a non-probability, convenience sampling approach, targeting residents of Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei. To assess the impact of halal-friendly attributes on destination image, tourist attitude and visiting intentions, a structural equation model was applied, analyzing the data across different genders. Findings The results indicate that the social environment exerts a positive influence on tourist attitudes for both males and females. In contrast, facilities have a negative impact on visiting intentions in both groups, with a more pronounced effect among males. While food and beverages positively influence the attitudes of female tourists, this effect is not observed in male tourists. Local factors and staff interactions show a strong positive impact on visiting intentions for males but only a marginal effect for females. The quality of service significantly boosts visiting intentions in both genders. Interestingly, tourist attitudes appear to have a negative effect on visiting intentions, with this trend being more evident in the female sample. Research limitations/implications The study is limited by its use of convenience sampling and self-reported data, which may not represent broader Indonesian perspectives and could introduce biases. Its focus on Indonesian perceptions and unexpected findings regarding tourist attitudes limit its generalizability and suggest unexplored factors affecting travel intentions. Originality/value This study offers new insights into how gender differences among Muslim tourists shape their intentions toward visiting non-Islamic destinations, emphasizing the role of halal-friendly attributes. These findings equip tourism operators and marketers with essential knowledge for developing inclusive, culturally sensitive practices, enhancing the travel experience for this significant segment of the global tourism market.

AN ANALYSIS OF ATTITUDINAL LOYALTY IN SINGAPORE MEDICAL TOURISM FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF INDONESIAN MEDICAL TOURISTS

The study examines the impact of destination familiarity, service quality, satisfaction, perceived value, trust, and destination image on the attitudinal loyalty of Mount Elizabeth Hospital (MEH) Singapore among Indonesian medical tourists. A quantitative study was conducted on 130 Indonesian medical tourists who live in Jakarta and have used medical services at Mount Elizabeth Hospital (MEH) Singapore within the last three months. To test the hypothesis, structural equation analysis is performed using PLS software. The findings suggest that there are positive associations between destination familiarity, destination image, and attitudinal loyalty to Mount Elizabeth Hospital (MEH) Singapore. Service quality has an indirect effect on attitudinal loyalty since satisfaction, perceived value, and trust operate as mediators. Finally, satisfaction, perceived value, and trust all have a favorable impact on Mount Elizabeth Hospital (MEH) Singapore's attitudinal loyalty.

The Effect of Travel Motivation, Perceived Risk and Travel Constraint Towards Medan Generation Z’s Visit Intention to Bali, Indonesia Specifically Kuta area Through Destination Image

In this study aims to determine and analyze travel motivation, travel motivation, perceived risk has a significant effect on cognitive image and affective image and visit intention. The research study used quantitative research design and data processing using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) with AMOS 26.0 to analyze data collected from a total of 105 respondents. Data collection was conducted by nonprobability snowball sampling technique on male and female respondents aged 18-24 years domiciled in Medan. The results obtained that travel motivation has a significant effect on cognitive image, travel motivation has a significant effect on affective image, perceived risk has a significant effect on cognitive image, perceived risk has a significant effect on affective image, travel constraint has a significant effect on cognitive image and affective image, cognitive image and affective image has a significant effect on visit intention. The implications in the research provide valuable insights for the tourism industry in Kuta to develop effective marketing strategies to attract more potential visitors from Medan's Generation Z population.. Keyword: Affective Image, Destination Image, Cognitive Image, Travel Motivation

Local Food Consumption Value Towards Food Destination Image in Sarawak

This study explores the role of local food consumption in enhancing Sarawak's image as a food destination, focusing on the moderating impact of food satisfaction. Drawing on a cross-sectional analysis using a self-administered questionnaire, the study investigates the influence of taste and quality value, health value, price value, emotional value, and prestige value on the food destination image. The sample consists of 181 tourists who visited Sarawak, providing insights into visitors' diverse perspectives and preferences. The data was further analysed using SPSS 28.0 and WarpPLS 8.0. The findings reveal that taste, quality, health, emotional, and prestige value significantly affect the food destination image. However, the study has shown that price value has no significant impact. Surprisingly, food satisfaction does not moderate the relationship between local food consumption value and food destination image. Theoretical implications highlight the need for a more comprehensive understanding of the factors shaping consumers' perceptions. In contrast, practical implications suggest strategic considerations for culinary destinations in marketing campaigns and pricing strategies. Overall, this study contributes valuable insights for destination marketers aiming to attract tourists interested in unique culinary experiences and enhance their overall perception of the destination.

On the tourists’ cognitive image network and its evolution: a case of Guizhou province of China

ABSTRACT Tourist’s cognitive image network unveils the relationship among the touring cognitive experiences. The cognitive image network evolution reflects the tourists’ destination image change, which further implicates the subtle changes in behavior. The tourists’ online reviews and experience sharing could effectively help management build the cognitive image network of tourism destinations. Based on crawled travelogues in Guizhou, China from Ctrip.com, with LDA topic mining techniques, this study first constructs the image of a tourism destination, then constructs the tourist’s cognitive image network that explores the evolution of the network before and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Research results show that the cognitive image network in Guizhou mainly consists of 10 dimensions: Accommodation, diet, natural landscapes, social environment, and culture dimensions, followed by entertainment, natural environment, history, infrastructure, and economic environment. The cognitive image network evolution shows that tourists have different preferences before and after the COVID-19 pandemic. The study provides a new perspective for the study of destination image theory, which can help destination tourism enterprises to identify the tourist’s behavior choices and develop unique marketing strategies.

The Influence of Culinary Diversity and Tourism Events on Tourist Expenditures (Study in Central Lombok Regency with Destination Image as Intervening Variable)

This research investigates the interplay between culinary diversity, tourism events, destination image, and tourist expenditures in Central Lombok Regency, Indonesia. A quantitative approach utilizing Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) was employed to analyze data gathered from domestic and international tourists. Hypothesis testing revealed significant positive relationships between culinary diversity and tourist expenditures, tourism events and tourist expenditures, culinary diversity and destination image, tourism events and destination image, as well as indirect effects through destination image on tourist expenditures. The result highlights the economic importance of diverse culinary experiences and engaging events in driving tourism revenue, shaping destination image perceptions, and influencing tourists' spending behaviors. The study underscores the need for integrated destination management strategies to leverage Central Lombok's cultural and gastronomic assets for sustainable tourism development.

Divergent impact of belief in COVID-19 misinformation on cross-border tourism

In an atmosphere of pathogen danger and mistrust during a pandemic, misinformation can induce the urge to penalize the pathogen's origin-destination. This study exams the effect of COVID-19 origin belief (that is, the belief that the virus is human-engineered) on hospitality and tourism outcomes using multi-wave data (U.S. sample: N = 351). The findings suggest that the diverse impact of COVID-19 origin belief (COVID-19 misinformation) on tourists and residents' approach-avoid behaviors can best be modeled in dual explanatory mechanisms. Specifically, COVID-19 origin belief relates to tourism animosity positively but has a negative association with destination image and resident hospitality. The positive indirect effect of COVID-19 origin belief on tourists' willingness to visit is transmitted by tourism animosity. In contrast, the negative indirect effect of COVID-19 origin belief on tourists' willingness to visit and resident hospitality is transmitted by destination image. Tourists and residents' level of education moderates the positive and negative direct and indirect effects.

Netographic narratives of user-generated travelogues on tourist destination image of Thailand.

The image of a tourist destination is considered a vital aspect of international travel experiences, yet research in this area remains limited. Adopting a combination of netography and qualitative research methodology, this study aims to contribute to the scientific knowledge of destination image development in Thailand by analysing online travelogues to evaluate how Chinese tourists interpret the idea of destination image. To achieve this goal, 146,641 words of Chinese internet comments containing the keyword "Thailand" from four major media sources and Chinese bloggers were gathered and analysed using netography methodology. The findings showed that there was a rise in public interest, in public forums, in the destination image of Thailand among Chinese outbound tourists. The study's results may provide important fundamental theoretical insights and inspire further investigation into the issue of destination image construction.

Does the cinematic depiction of a place deceive viewers’ perception of its reality? Exploring movie-induced destination stereotypes

ABSTRACT Globalization of media is leading to tourists constructing imagery of unfamiliar destinations. Drawing on the associative memory theory and stereotype content model, this research proposes that cinematic portrayal of a destination would induce stereotypes in the minds of tourists that align with the movie theme. Using Between-subject experiments, the stereotyped perceptions of potential tourists regarding the destination were captured in the form of destination image and personality. The valence of stereotypes is also observed using the various dimensions of the constructs: destination image and personality. Further, based on social cognitive theory, this research explores how individuals’ sensation-seeking trait influences their response to a movie theme and, thus, shapes their travel intentions for the depicted destination. The results of this research may assist destination marketing organisations in devising their positioning and communication strategy regarding a destination such that the elements of story-telling in popular media may not adversely impact the perceptions of potential tourists.

Film-Induced Tourism as a Key Factor for Promoting Tourism Destination Image: The James Bond Saga Case

This research extensively discusses the connection between destination image and films influencing tourism. Despite the worldwide fame of the James Bond saga and extensive publications on the subject, research into the role of tourism promotion in the image of destinations is still scarce, and there is no specific focus on analysing promotional aspects in relation to film-induced tourism. This study focuses on the influence of cinematographic images on the destination image perception and promotion, specifically exploring the case of the James Bond saga as a practical case. With 25 films released since 1962, the James Bond saga provides a basis for evaluating cinematic presence in tourism promotion strategies. This research proposes the content analysis of the official tourist websites of 23 destinations where the James Bond saga was shot, which offer some tourist products linked to the saga. The key findings provide valuable insights into the promotion of James Bond saga tourism destinations, the role of films in promoting destinations, and the tourism products developed from the saga films. The results provide visual outputs about the target image of the film shooting locations, and the text analysis provides keywords linked to the theme. The study’s methodology contributes to the discourse on film tourism and destination image topics and brings practical and theoretical contributions to both academia and destination managers.

Can co-creating a “slow destination” image boost sustainability?

The aim of this study is to determine whether a “slow tourism” image, coupled with value co-creation, can help develop sustainable tourist destinations. The study adapts a “slow destination image” scale and proposes that online value co-creation can be a valid strategy in the quest to encourage pro-environmental behaviors among visitors. A quantitative empirical study is conducted on a sample of Spanish domestic tourists (n = 681) and a covariance-based structural equation modeling analysis is performed. The findings of the study add value to the literature, providing empirical evidence that a “slow destination” image has a positive effect on tourist pro-environmental behavior and that online value co-creation has a positive and significant effect on “slow destination” image and tourist pro-environmental behavior. The study will also be of practical use to destination/tourism agents, both public and private, by indicating how to develop a type of tourism—slow tourism—and a marketing strategy—online value co-creation—that are useful for building sustainability and applicable to any tourist destination.

Study on Australian Working Holiday Experience, Place Attachment, Revisit Behavior, and Spending Power

Abstract This study aimed to explore the effects of Australian working holiday experiences on place attachment, repeat visitation behavior, and consumption. Based on social exchange theory, place attachment theory, and destination image theory, five research hypotheses were proposed. A total of 462 valid questionnaires were collected and analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling. The empirical results indicated that Australian working holiday experiences have a significant positive impact on place dependence and place identity. In addition, place dependence and place identity have a significant positive impact on repeat visitation behavior, and repeat visitation behavior has a positive impact on consumption. The findings of this study provide valuable insights for the Australian government and tourism industry to enhance the place attachment and identity of working holidaymakers, thus increasing their intention to revisit and consumption. Therefore, the Taiwan youth working holiday program in Australia has a substantial contribution to the development of Australian tourism economy. JEL classification numbers: Z30; Z32. Keywords: Australian working holiday experiences, Place attachment, Revisiting behavior, Spending power.

Impact of price fairness, service quality, and destination image on tourist loyalty and satisfaction: A case study of Lake Toba, North Sumatra

Tourist loyalty is crucial for enhancing the well-being of local communities in a region. This study aims to investigate how price fairness, service quality, destination image, and tourist facilities directly and indirectly affect tourist loyalty via tourist satisfaction at Lake Toba, North Sumatra. A quantitative method was utilized for this research. The study focused on tourists who visited Lake Toba in 2022, totaling 179,609 individuals. A sample of 280 tourists was selected using an accidental sampling method, where tourists were chosen randomly. The data collection was conducted through questionnaires based on specific indicators for each variable studied. The data was analyzed using the Structural Equation Model (SEM) technique, employing the Partial Least Square (PLS) method. The findings reveal that tourist satisfaction plays a significant role in mediating the impact of price fairness, service quality, destination image, and tourist facilities on loyalty to Lake Toba, both directly and indirectly. The results indicate that price fairness is the most critical factor for tourists when considering returning to Lake Toba. This study suggests that there should be an authority responsible for ensuring price fairness in tourism services and products at Lake Toba to maintain and improve tourist loyalty.

Eksplorasi Peran Tourism Satisfaction dalam Memediasi Hubungan Antara E-Wom, Destination Image dan Tourism Loyalty (Studi Kasus Wisata Air Terjun Moramo Sulawesi Tenggara)

Electronic Word of Mouth (E-WoM) and destination image play a significant role in the tourism sector and have a strong influence on tourism satisfaction and tourism loyalty. This research aims to understand and identify the implications of E-WoM and destination image on tourism loyalty and tourism satisfaction as mediating (intervening) variables in Moramo Waterfall Tourism, Southeast Sulawesi. The analytical approach used is to use the SEM-PLS analysis tool with a sample of 160 respondents using purposive sampling. The results of the study show that the E-Wom and destination image variables have a positive and significant effect on tourism satisfaction and tourism loyalty. The more positive information and reviews and the more positive the image of the Moramo Waterfall tourist attraction in Southeast Sulawesi, the higher the tourism satisfaction and the stronger the formation of tourism loyalty, therefore tourism satisfaction is an important strategy to build tourism loyalty and the influence of both variables is positive and significant. The results of the study also show that tourism satisfaction as a mediating variable has a positive and significant effect on tourism loyalty, although the mediating effect is low.

Constructing elements of a destination's image depending on the measurement and development of travel and tourism competitiveness indicators

Constructing elements of a destination's image depending on the measurement and development of travel and tourism competitiveness indicators

Pengaruh Daya Tarik Wisata dan Citra Destinasi Terhadap Minat Berkunjung Kembali Pada Objek Wisata Air Terjun Kerta Gangga

This research aims to determine the influence of tourist attraction and destination image on interest in revisiting the Kerta Gangga Waterfall tourist attraction. The type of research used is associative research with a quantitative approach. Research data collection uses questionnaires. The population in this study were all tourists who had visited and were interested in revisiting the Kerta Gangga Waterfall tourist attraction with a sample size of 100 respondents with a sampling technique using non-probability sampling with a purposive sampling method. The data analysis used was Multiple Linear Regression using SPSS Version 24. The results of the analysis showed that: Tourist Attraction, Destination Image had a positive and significant effect on Interest in Returning to the Kerta Gangga Waterfall Tourist Attraction