Vahid Ghasemi

Destination image (DI) has an important role in destination choice. DI is considered as one of the main factors in destination competitiveness. The main aim of this study was to explore the projected image of Portugal as a tourism destination. The projected image was obtained through an analysis of the pictures of the official page of destination management organization of Portugal on Instagram (@visitportugal). The research used a sample of 1,306 photos. Samples included photographic and textual data. Visual content analysis and content analysis were adopted to analysis data. Appling content analysis for images refers to break a picture into a number of categories.
The results showed that the projected destination images of Portugal were dominated by attributes related to natural attractions. In addition, the geographical distribution of the DMO photos showed that 880 photos (67%) of all 1,306 DMO photos were associated with nine destinations. Food/drink category was the most engaging image for followers. Additionally, the findings indicated that the most common applied hashtags for describing Portugal as a tourism destination and inspire travelers to visit were related to nature-based activities (e.g., nature, river, beach, ocean, sea).

This study analyses residents' perceptions and attitudes towards tourism development and community integration in tourism planning in an island tourism destination whose economy is widely influenced by the presence of big external investors. Findings reveal that residents believe that tourism planning should be more sensitive to residents and tradition, and be able to guarantee a higher level of heritage proximity in order to achieve a more indigenous/endogenous-oriented development. Exploratory factor analysis and hierarchical and non-hierarchical cluster analysis were conducted. Four clusters were identified ('enthusiastics', 'moderate supporters', 'critics', and 'indifferents'), with significant differences in terms of employment reliance on tourism, length of residence, contact with tourists in everyday life, and level of education. Conversely, they did not differ based on gender, age, employment status, or geographical proximity to the tourist area, thus providing some contradictory insights when compared with previous studies. From a theoretical point of view, the findings seem to suggest that studies devoted to the investigation of residents' view and attitude toward tourism should concentrate more on the personal values of respondents and less on their socio-demographic characteristics, which often render the findings of cluster analysis very site-specific and hard to generalise. Managerial implications are discussed, and suggestions for further research are provided.

ایجاد زمینه­ های مناسب فرهنگی-اجتماعی در میان جوامع میزبان و مهمان در توسعه صنعت گردشگری، ضرورت انکارناپذیری دارد. با توجه به شرایط اقتصادی ایران و نیاز اساسی آن به ایجاد اشتغال از یک سو و نیز تجارب نسبتاً موفق ترکیه در توسعه و برنامه­ ریزی گردشگری از سوی دیگر، مهم­ترین ضرورت­ های پژوهش حاضر را شامل می­ شوند. بررسی تطبیقی خط­ مشی­ های توسعه گردشگری در ایران و ترکیه، مطالعه و تحلیل روابط اجتماعی بین جامعه میزبان و مهمان و تأثیر آن بر توسعه گردشگری این کشورها، محورها و اهداف اصلی تحقیق حاضرند. در جهت دستیابی به اهداف این پژوهش از روش تحقیق اسنادی و میدانی استفاده شده و بر پایه نظر کارشناسان، 8 عامل مهم و موثر به مثابه مولفه­ های بررسی روابط اجتماعی بین میزبان و مهمان تعیین شده­ است. نتایج پژوهش حاضر نشان م ی­دهد که دلایل تجربه موفق ترکیه در حوزه گردشگری عبارتند از: نهادینه­ سازی چهارچوب مفهومی مناسب از صنعت گردشگری، ارائه تصویر مناسب از جوامع میزبان به گردشگران، افزایش ظرفیت­ های اجتماعی مهمان­ نوازی در میان آنها، استفاده از پتانسیل­ های فرهنگ محلی (بومی) برای افزایش جذابیت مقاصد گردشگری، اتخاذ راهبردهای موثر تبلیغی، عقد قراردادهای مستقل وزارت گردشگری با عمده فروشان تور، برگزاری جشن­های خاص فرهنگی و فستیوال­ های بین­ المللی. یافته­ های پژوهش در مورد ایران نشان می­ دهد که ایران علی رغم جایگاه ممتاز خود در نقشه جهانی گردشگری، سهم بسیار اندکی از بازارهای جهانی گردشگری دارد که عمدتا ریشه در چالش­ های متعدد اجتماعی – فرهنگی دارد. ایران می تواند به عنوان یکی از مقاصد
جذاب منطقه، با سیاست­گذاری­ های مناسب و هدفمند توسعه گردشگری و تامل در تجارب کشورهایی همچون ترکیه گام بردارد.

The general objective of this study was to explore meanings and perceptions that might be involved in the image formation of Iran as a heritage destination by tourists that could help develop a brand in the future. A combined textual and pictorial analysis was applied aiming to achieve this goal in order to produce useful and important information for the process of creating a brand for Iran as a destination. In terms of heritage, it will be interesting to explore the main attributes of each cultural attraction and try to promote them more accurately, based on the USP (Unique Selling Proposition) of Iran. this study highlights the relevance of sensory perceptions as a way for creating a bond with the cultural heritage. This should be explored in the process of defining an image and a brand for Iran as a tourism destination.

Tourism phenomenon is significantly based on the sociocultural dimensions of any society. This is particularly true in the case of Iran, a country that possesses a large number of cultural heritage and religious attractions. Overall tourism policies in Iran can be considered as much more consequential from the standpoint of the country’s specific socio-religious context rather than from explicit planning patterns. In Iran, religious tourists tend to concentrate mostly at the Shia shrines of Imam Reza in Mashhad and that of his sister Fatima in Qom. This study aims to contribute to the still emerging scientific debate around the prospects and challenges of tourism development in Iran, giving particular attention to its potential growth in religious tourism
development.