Ericeira’s destination personality and the impact of the world surfing reserve recognition: The local stakeholders’ perspective

• Autor(a) principal: Martins, Ana Filipa Camarão
• Data de Publicação: 2021
• Tipo de documento: Dissertação
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
• Texto Completo: http://hdl.handle.net/10071/22924
• topic: Tourist destination; Destination marketing; Destination branding; Destination personality; Sense of place; Self-congruity; Destino turístico; Marketing de destino turístico; Branding de destino turístico; Personalidade de destino turístico; Sentimento de lugar; Congruência com o próprio

This study’s purpose was to uncover Ericeira’s destination personality from local stakeholders’ perspective, informed by sense of place, and to understand if Ericeira’s recognition as World Surfing Reserve, influences or impacts the perception of destination personality by tourism’s suppliers, since the recognition seemed to be a catalyst for local destination branding. Moreover, the study aimed at understanding if CMM’s brand identity development for brand “Ericeira”, as Ericeira’s DMO, matches local stakeholders’ destination personality perceptions, as the latter will determine visitors’ destination image of Ericeira in their direct interactions during tourism consumption. To fulfill the goals above, a survey was conducted with local tourism stakeholders, in which questions about destination personality and differentiating attributes/features, and about the perceived impact of the WSR recognition were posed. Analysis of results showed the WSR recognition isn’t a determinant of destination personality from Ericeira’s tourism supply-side, but it’s perceived as having a direct positive impact on local tourism development and growth. Yet, it was noticeable that local stakeholders don’t overall view surf as something that makes Ericeira a unique tourist destination, while CMM positions Ericeira as a surf and nature tourism destination. Furthermore, results indicate CMM’s formulation of brand “Ericeira”’s identity and personality is generally in agreement with local stakeholders’ perspective on Ericeira’s personality, albeit some discrepancies were identified. This thesis bridges the lack of research done on destination branding and personality in surf tourism settings and opens the discussion towards determinants of destinations’ personalities and their impact on locals’ sense of place.