Destination Image and It's Perception

A destination and its image have a huge impact on ones decision on whether they would like to travel to that certain country, or specific city. The image of a destination initially breaks down the destination in terms of its reputation, and level of safety in that specific country for a potential tourist. The media is a powerful source which publicises a destination to show the world what takes place in that country on a daily basis. Those who have travelled to these countries will also gain their own knowledge and understanding of how the country runs; to then share this first impression created by that country to their friends and family, which then can spread either a positive of negative word of mouth, to later create a label for this destination and its image.

Not only does the destinations image affect whether tourists want to travel to these countries, but it also affects the locals living in these countries. Locals may have a negative perception of the tourists they welcome into their home city or town, or they may feel disregarded because some tourists are less thoughtful for those who live in that region on a permanent basis. They may also feel like they are not prioritised compared to tourists; as destinations who are purely making money on the tourism industry will need to please their tourists more than they would need to please their locals.

Tunisia for example has been directly affected by political conflicts that have occurred in Syria, such as the ISIS attacks. Tunisia reply mainly on their tourism economy as Garg (2012) reported “In the world economies, countries which rely heavily on tourism industry, attacks can harm the Tourism industry and the economy of the country and undermining the government.” Since the attacks have taken place the number of visitors in Tunisia has decreased massively by nearly over a million in 2012. This then affected the locals as one in ten Tunisians work in the tourism industry; if tourists are not visiting the country based on its current war situation then the tourism industry will eventually collapse, and majority of residents will be lost for jobs, making it difficult for them to gather essentials and support. On the other hand there are tourists who are not scared about the dangers of travelling to these countries, therefore will use this opportunity of cheap tickets to go and explore in countries such as Tunisia and Syria, and not let the image the media portrayed of the country effect their decision. This again brings some hope into these countries’ economies as some risk-seeking tourists are still willing to travel.

According to (World Travel and Tourism Council, 2014) “Syria’s direct contribution of Travel & Tourism to GDP in 2013 was SYP147.1bn (4.5% of GDP; this is forecast to fall by 11.3% to SYP130.5bn in 2014”. The direct contribution of Travel and Tourism to GDP is expected to grow by as little as 2.5% pa to SYP166.9bn (3.4% of GDP) by 2024. This is a very weak improvement considering it is to take place ten years down the line; which again proves that the label that has been given to the country of being a ‘war zone’, and the perception that has been made on this country is going to stay in the long-term. Tourists will see this county as unsafe, and majority will not take the risk in travelling to the country even when the scare of attacks has decreased. This proves that once a country has been stereotyped in a specific way or given a new pessimistic reputation, it is very difficult to demolish the name given to the destination.

Thailand has also been given a persona of a country known for prostitution. According to (WOUK, 2010), “It is estimated that approximately 60% of the tourists who visit Thailand are males, and of those, 70% come specifically for sex. This shows that there is a high demand for prostitutes from inbound tourists. The organisation WOUK continued to state that the demand is also high for locals. For women who may want to travel to Thailand may hesitate to do so as their safety is at stake, as residents who may not be able to afford basic living may sell naïve tourists to brothels to make an income.

Rajesh (2013) states “It is very important to determine the destination image while taking decisions for strategic marketing of tourism destinations. Because it is assumed that it will result in a positive image of a destination.” These statements also prove that a destinations image is very important as it impacts tourist’s decisions whilst travelling, and locals based on economy and financial source available to them; it also impacts the destination as this image is how they are being perceived.


References:

Garge, A. (2012) A Study of Tourist Perception Towards Travel Risks Factors in Tourism Decision Making. Tourist Decision Making [online]. 5(2) pp.49 [Accessed 20 April 2015]. Available at:< http://www.academia.edu/7860086/A_Study_of_Tourist_Perception_Towards_Travel_Risk_Factors_in_Tourist_Decision_Making>.

Prostitution in Thailand (WOUK) (2010) [online]. Thailand: WOUK. [Accessed 20 April 2015]. Available at: <http://www.wouk.org/rahab_international/pdf_files/Prostitution%20in%20Thailand.pdf >.

Rajesh, R. (2013) Impact of Tourist Perceptions, Destination image, and Tourist Satisfaction on Destination Loyalty. A Conceptual Model [online]. 11(3)pp.67-78 [Accessed 20 April 2015]. Available at:<http://www.pasosonline.org/Publicados/11313special/PS0313_07.pdf>.

The authority on World Travel and Tourism (2014) Economic Impact: Syria [online]. Syria: Travel and Tourism 2014. [Accessed 15 April 2015]. Available at:<http://www.wttc.org/-/media/files/reports/economic%20impact%20research/country%20reports/syria2014.pdf>.

The initial reasoning for selecting this piece of work is through having a keen interest within the topic but also feeling of benefit towards giving commentary. There are several ways in which this piece of work can be analysed. Through the perspective in which the student has given through the reputation of a destination, and the image this has produced through to the utilisation of media.

When looking at the destination ‘image’ an expectation of the use of photographs whether online or physical could be used but through the introduction ‘word of mouth’ is focused upon. Urry (2011) concluded a theory which looks at the image perception in which tourists associate with travelling to a destination. This perspective interlinks with the main concept of image perception however through a different context through social media mainly.

Analysing the key point mentioned about the influence this has on local residents is a key cause for concern. That a ‘staged authenticity’ feel is being adapted to the destination therefore the culture being undermined. The issue of ‘politics’ is subsequently used as a major focus through the example of Tunisia. With the justification of attacks on the local residents having a negative impact on tourism which operates within the region. This is then interlinked with the ideology of having a negative media presence shown through imagery.

However similar to that of Urry’s (2011) theory a tourist would look from many different aspects before travelling. This would then suggest that use of other media sources such as online resources would be used before a tourist would visit a destination. ‘Word of Mouth’ would also have an influence, through the reasoning if a tourist knows a person or family member who has visited the destination previously they are more inclined to listen to this perspective.

Statistics are then used to help develop the opinion that tourism strengthens the developing economics within these destinations. Nonetheless many tourists would use other forms of media sources such as looking at the foreign office website to see advice being given. As the perspective given through the media online can sometimes be misleading, meaning a negative image is presented. Following on from this the argument of Thailand being recognised as a place for ‘sex tourism’ showcases the negative image which has been derived from past tourists.

The many different destinations which have different image perceptions associated with them are for a variety of different reasons. Narrowing down a specific issue, can be tedious however can be used as a way of analysing the influence in which the media plays a major role within the development and rejuvenation of tourism to a region. By focusing on the issue with imagery influencing the economy and the amount of tourists travelling to a destination, this is a major influence. However the issue with this is tourists will form an opinion before they travel to a region the example of Tunisia which is used showcases the issues outside the resort. However when looking at the influence this has on tourists residents of a country will tend to conceal issues as the economic benefit from tourism is so great.

Urry., J and Larsen., J. (2011) The Tourist Gaze 3.0. 3rd Edition. London: SAGE Publications.

This particular paper was chosen because the destination image requires more attention of the researchers as it is an important factor in the development of modern tourism industry. It is also interesting theme to deal within. The author has addressed the key concepts of the tourist destination perception pointing out the topical examples of Tunisia, Syria and Thailand. Political and social issues as political unrest and non compliance of ethics regarding the examples were identified.

This discussion paper begins with a clear introduction that explains the relation between destination image and tourist decision making process as according to Cooper (2008) destination image in the combination with motivation and behavior provide a pull factors influencing the demand. In addition, essential factor as mass media as indirect communication tool was taken into consideration and discussed by the author.

Politic conflict was discussed regarding the Tunisia and Syria situation. The author explains that along with the country image, relationship between locals and tourists is the vital component of inbound tourism demand. The given example revealed that different politic views, conflicting world views and war attacks contribute to the decrease of tourist numbers that lead to country’s economy drop as a consequence of different industries collapse. Moreover, the author took into consideration stereotypical image of the country that appears during the political unrest time and can influence the opinion and choice of potential tourists for a long time if the government doesn’t attempt to restore the image. The mass media role could be highlighted as basing on Korstanje and Clayton (2012) it has a significant influence on the perception of risk, however safety and security are Maslow's psychological needs.

The example of worldwide sustainable perception of Thailand as a sex tourism destination raised the ethical issues connected to the high demand of prostitution within the country, however the image definitely contribute to the increasing interest to the country and inbound tourism development. The image is well promoted and is attractive for many tourists despite the significant issues that arises.

Overall this discussion paper is well structured, argumentative and discusses the tourism demand concepts and issues in the destination image context. The arguments were approved by the academic sources. However, there is no evidence of discussion of the attempts or ways of the destination image recovery and promotion approaches for the future development within the tourism industry. Furthermore, the paper demonstrates only negative effects of the image concept and impression about the country in all of the arguments.

COOPER, C., 2008. Tourism: principles and practice. Harlow: Financial Times Prentice Hall.

KORSTANJE, M.E. and CLAYTON, A., 2012. Tourism and terrorism: conflicts and commonalities. Worldwide Hospitality and Tourism Themes, 4(1), pp. 8-25.

The main reason for choosing this specific topic is because of a common interest in the subject, and because some discussed issues related to my work as well. In the same way, this topic is very thought-provoking and it is definitely worth to investigate and comment.

As we can see, the author employed a sedately wide range of syntactic structures flexibly to build cohesion and coherence and develop a fluent readable style that comprise control of emphasis respectively. What is more, the discussion paper shows critical thinking and the importance of the examples that were given is significant, such as Tunisia and Thailand. Furthermore, the examples show that contradictory world views and global conflicts including political parties have a dramatic impact not only for those specific destinations, but all over the economy and tourism industry.
Every destination has its own brand image. Also, the factors such as convenience and cost play a meaningful role in decision-making of the destination. Yet, possibly the most powerful motivator and influence is the image of the tourism destination (Davies, 2003).Under these circumstances, images are the brand identity which tourist can be perceived.

As for the image of Thailand, according to Rittichainuwat, (2001) destination image can be both negative and positive image, if two destinations have almost offering the same characteristics for the traveler perception. As a result, the more positive image of a destination place, the more likely that the traveler will go there.

Important to realize, that the author mention that Thailand has suffered from a negative image because of prostitution, pollution which led to the decline of tourist attractions. What is more, the image of Thailand is an erotic destination. In the same way, the image of Thailand is also linked to international news coverage by saying that Thailand is a place for prostitution. All these privative, images can, obviously influence tourists and might make them not to visit Thailand.

However, Thailand is not only positioning as a ‘land of smile’ as a result of friendly and safe destination place, but at the same time it is considerable as natural, cultural and historical attractions. Nevertheless, Thailand has been perceived as a reasonable price, breath taking beaches and other various attractions (Rittichainuwat, 2001).

The discussion paper has provided general information about the perception of the tourists through the image of different destinations and their image dimensions. However the review identified mostly the negative image which affects tourists in choosing destination. Alternatively, there is a discussion about tourism demand and destination image context respectively.
In conclusion, image plays a significant role for tourist contentment and the preconceive image of destination will impact on their vacation destination.


Davies, R. (2003). Branding Asian Tourist Destinations – A Series.Retrieved 12 May 2015 from http://www.asiamarketresearch.com/columns/tourism-branding.htm.

B. N. Rittichainuwat (2001).Thailand’s International Travel Image Mostly Favorable.Travel and Tourism Marketing.