Destination image change through the course of a visit: a longitudinal study

Abstract

Purpose. Image change through visit experience with a destination is a common assumption, yet with rare empirical support to date. Thus, this study treats destination image as an interactive system of cognitive and affective components that are dynamic and changing through the course of an experience with a destination. Design/methodology/approach. This longitudinal study tracks the change in images of 162 European visitors to the Gran Canaria Island one month before a two-week trip, on the last day of the trip, one month after the trip, and one year after the trip. A one-way repeated-measures analysis of variance with Bonferroni post hoc tests was conducted to evaluate the change in visitors’ cognitive, affective, or holistic images of Gran Canaria Island. Findings. The Gran Canaria Island’s one-month post-visit image was more positive than the pre-visit image reflecting an improvement because of visitation. However, this improvement did not last long since the one-year post-visit image was not as positive as the one-month post-visit image. Surprisingly though, principle component analysis revealed more factors with more image items in the pre-visit image, whereas post-visit image factors were fewer in numbers and more generic, reflecting a reduction of details in the image after the visit. Originality/value. This study is one of the very few efforts that contribute empirical evidence for the role of visitation in destination image evolution. It focuses on the pre and post-visit changes in the cognitive image and pre-, during, and post-visit changes in affective and overall images of a tourist destination in Europe.