Walking and tourism: the imagery of European cities

Transcription

1 Paper presented to Walk21-V Cities for People, The Fifth International Conference on Walking in the 21 st Century, June , Copenhagen, Denmark Walking and tourism: the imagery of European cities Les Lumsdon, Professor of Tourism, University of Central Lancashire, UK Contact details: Lumsdon, Les PhD, M.Sc, B.Sc [econ], MCIM, MILT, PGCE Professor of Tourism University of Central Lancashire Lancashire Business School Department of Tourism & Leisure Management Preston, PR1 2HE Lancashire United Kingdom Telephone: Fax: Abstract The city short break market is an important one. Thus, the perception that visitors have about a city before visiting it, or choosing not to visit, is a vital factor in choice behaviour. The extent to which a city s vision and quality of life is portrayed in its imagery is therefore a key link in the process of attracting visitors. The purpose of this presentation is to compare how different cities project their destination image in terms of open spaces, forms of transport, and other attractions. Research Method Imagery is primarily conveyed to the visitor in terms of brochures and websites and a sample of material is drawn from current promotional material issued by approximately 20 city destinations across Europe. The research method is referred to as semiotics; it is an analysis of the contents and mood conveyed by pictorial material in printed/electronic material such as brochures. Over 1000 pictures are examined and the findings are subjected to interpretation based on a categorisation developed by previous studies in tourism. The analysis is in progress and will be complete in approximately four weeks. A number of implications are drawn regarding the findings especially with regard to best practice in reflecting a quality of the destination through visual imagery.

2 Biography Biography: Les Lumsdon is Professor of Tourism at the University of Central Lancashire, Preston, UK. He is involved in several tourism research projects which analyse the relationship between tourism and transport. In particular, he has written several articles on non motorised transport and tourism development. Les Lumsdon PhD, M.Sc, B.Sc [econ], MCIM, MILT, PGCE Professor of Tourism, Department of Tourism and Leisure Management, Lancashire Business School Preston PR1 2HE Tel: Fax:

3 Walking and tourism: the imagery of European cities Les Lumsdon, Professor of Tourism, University of Central Lancashire, UK Tourism continues to play an increasingly significant part in the economic regeneration of many of the great cities of Europe. The qualities that make cities sufficiently appealing to the visitor are essentially human rather simply a matter of topography. A combination of heritage, cultural forms and other dimensions of city life combine to offer a sense of place. These other dimensions include stadiums, events, retailing and hospitality. For many cities, these have become tourism pursuits in their own right. However, as Orbasli and Shaw (2004, 100) note: The spaces in-between are as much part of the tourism product as are the heritage attractions, retail outlets and hospitality businesses. These spaces include pedestrian routes, narrow thoroughfares, open spaces, formal gardens, squares and concourses which are collectively referred to as the public realm; these are the linkages between historic quarters and accommodation, between transport terminals and restaurants or shops. Without them the cities of Europe would not have a visual completeness (Human, 1999;80). Nor would they be able to function if visitors made such short discretionary trips by car in central zones; there would be excessive congestion. These spaces in-between also allow visitors to play out their part; to gaze, to participate in the life of the resident, to spend and for many it is an integral part of the tourist experience. Imagery It is within this contextual background that the paper investigates the way in which tour operators and destination management organisations portray the image of European cities as a place to stay for short breaks [i.e. overnight stays of 1-3 nights]. This is not a new area of study. There has been a sustained interest by tourism academics in the subject of destination images and how they are constructed during the past 20 years. According to Pike (2002) most studies of destinations have attempted to determine the role of destination image mainly from the perspective of destination choice and secondly with regard to levels of visitor satisfaction. Of the 142 studies analysed between 1973 and 2000 most measured the level of support for certain destination attributes as recorded by the visitor. Pike found that very few of the studies focused on the role of the supplier in presenting the image of the destination. These studies, however, confirm the importance of the destination image as an influence on the travel choice behaviour of the visitor. In several of the classic studies of buyer behaviour, the choice of destination by the visitor is made in relation to a number of factors of which image or more precisely perception of a destination is significant. The image of the city is presented in words and pictorial references in printed literature and website presentations. Brochures depicting cities in Europe tend to signal history, tradition, culture and sightseeing opportunities. However, the image presented of the city by the tour operator [the organisation which brings the package of transport, accommodation and entertainment together for the customer] does not necessarily capture all of the dimensions of the destination. This is impossible given the

4 limitation of brochure space, thus in design terms the iconography is simplified and manipulated to encourage certain positive perceptions (Wilson, 1994). Negative aspects such as litter, traffic or anti-social behaviour are omitted. It is a matter of presenting iconic features to help a potential visitor to build a social construct or a perception about a place. In many respects, city destinations are clearly substitutable as they offer similar experiences. Thus, the aim of any city is to project an image that highlights unique, aspects so as to be distinct from competitor destinations. The pictures presented in the brochure are therefore representations of the city and act as a proxy given the intangible nature of the short break offering. According to Uzzell (1984) the messages and pictorial references create a mythology about a destination that leads to the visitor to build a social construct or a set of expectations about a place. In its basic form the brochure is a visual stimuli to encourage consumption (Mackay and Fesenmaier, 1997). Research method The research approach has been referred to as interpretative semiotic analysis focusing on the visual images (Albers and James, 1998). Semiotics can be defined as follows; The study of systems of signs is called semiotics. Since signs are used to create and convey meaning, semiotics has also been referred to as the study and structure of meaning. Semiotics examines the communications of meaning in its direct, indirect, intentional and unintentional forms. (Echtner 1999;47) This study has replicated a research method developed by Dann (1996) in analysing holiday brochures in both a quantitative and qualitative manner. The focus of Dann s work was to investigate how people are portrayed in brochures and his categorisation related to four groupings: visitors only, locals only and locals and tourists pictured together. As his work progressed Dann found that in 25% of all pictures there were no people at all and this made up the fourth category. Thus, in the analysis of cities four categories, as identified by Dann, are used but they are augmented by the following sub-groupings; 1. Visitors actively engaged in a pastime such as rowing a boat on a lake, 2. Visitors sightseeing, i.e. they are walking, 3. Locals-craft such as street artists, selling puppets and clogs, 4. Locals-authentic costume such as a horse and carriage set or gondoliers, 5. Visitors and Locals- mixed group in settings such in streetscapes, markets and cafes. The analysis therefore involves a cross referencing of the categories of non-people and people pictures into eight contextual backgrounds which have been defined as follows: Cityscape: panoramic, roof top or birds eye view of a city, usually from a distance Streetscape: the focus of the picture is on the immediate surroundings of a streetsuch as the frontages of the buildings or other features such as canalside Gardens and parks: formal gardens featuring close shots. These are not open spaces where people are invited to linger or to undertake an activity

5 Water: main feature of the picture is the water marina or river. Café lifestyle: street cafes-awnings and umbrellas where the focus is on watching the world go by Night life: impressionist approach featuring either glaring lights, the opera or the theatre Produce and crafts: such as flowers, clogs, cooked meats such as hams, puppets Attractions & heritage: Mainly buildings such as city halls, palaces, cathedrals or ancient monuments The analysis of the pictures involved an evaluation of six brochures produced by several major tour operators promoting city breaks from the UK to cities across Europe and one brochure which featured breaks in London for overseas visitors. The list of city destinations included in the study is presented in Table 1. Table 1: City destinations City Amsterdam Antwerp Barcelona Bergen Berlin Bilboa Bologna Budapest Bruges Brussels Estoril Florence Frankfurt Geneva Gent Gothenburg Graz Hamburg Helsinki Interlaken Koln Krakow Lille Lisbon Lucerne Luxembourg Lyon Madrid Maastricht Milan Monte Carlo Munich Naples Nice Prague Opporto Oslo Reykjavik Riga Salzburg Seville Sienna Sorrento Stockholm Strasbourg Talinn The Hague Toulouse Turin Verona Vienna Warsaw Zurich

6 Results The results of the quantitative analysis are summarised in Table 2. There are a number of interesting findings. Firstly, the tour operators clearly have a preference for the use of pictures which do not include people. Over 68% percent of the pictures exclude people. However, 20% of pictures include a mixture of visitors and local people; these feature primarily café lifestyle settings or in streetscapes where people are sitting down. Only 10% of the pictures feature people walking. This contrasts with the presentation of three settings - cityscape, water or heritage through buildings - without any people as the dominant imagery and accounting for 54% of all pictures presented. Table 2 Summary of results: image projection of cities Cityscape reetscape Gardens and parks Water (river, sea, marina) Café Nightlife Produce Attractions lifestyle and crafts & heritage Retail Sport Totals No people Visitors active Visitors sightseeing Locals craft Locals authentic costume Visitors and Locals Totals Cityscape Streetscape Gardens and parks Water (river, sea, marina) Café Nightlife Produce Attractions lifestyle and crafts & heritage Retail Sport Totals No people 10.3% 5.5% 2.0% 17.7% 0.3% 2.4% 2.7% 25.7% 0.8% 0.9% 68.4% Visitors active 0.0% 0.0% 0.4% 0.3% 0.0% 0.1% 0.0% 0.4% 0.1% 0.0% 1.3% Visitors 0.3% 1.3% 0.8% 3.5% 0.0% 0.1% 0.1% 4.4% 0.0% 0.0% 10.6% sightseeing Locals craft 0.0% 0.8% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.7% 0.3% 0.0% 0.0% 1.7% Locals authentic costume 0.0% 0.8% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.3% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 1.1% Visitors and 0.3% 6.2% 1.3% 0.9% 9.0% 0.4% 0.4% 1.2% 0.5% 0.0% 20.2% Locals Totals 10.9% 14.6% 4.6% 22.4% 9.2% 3.4% 3.9% 32.0% 1.5% 0.9% Total number of pictures 746 A preliminary qualitative interpretation of the pictures has also been made. In this respect, the city destination is being presented in terms of heritage primarily. There appears to be very little variation across Europe. Furthermore, the image projection is one which is termed by Dann as paradise contrived ; Now and then places can be highlighted simply by presenting a series of empty sights which somehow encapsulate their essence. (Dann, 1996; 69)

7 Each city is thus portrayed as a cityscape or is presenting one or more of its finest buildings as iconic markers to attract the visitor. Very few cities project an image of contemporary architecture with the exception of several Spanish cities such as Barcelona, Bilbao and Valencia. In some instances there is an attempt to add a human dimension by including a café lifestyle photograph, which shows people seated, and in some cases with waiting staff in the foreground. For the most part, there is little to differentiate between the cities. Where visitors and residents are shown in an active context this relates primarily to street scenes and people located in squares adjacent to a heritage building or entering a historic quarter. These invariably show large numbers of people walking and sightseeing. They may well be visitors or residents but for the most part they are engaged in the art of gazing which is usually a tourist pursuit. What is missing? With few exceptions there is little to project the diversity and vibrancy of many of the cities and particularly the lack of walking and social engagement expected by the intending visitor when visiting a city. For example, the existence of retailing is almost totally absent with the exception of Milan where shops and fashion are featured. There were very few pictures of markets. Nightlife was also portrayed on a limited scale with the exception of Amsterdam and Paris. Finally, café life was promoted more by Northern Europe than those located in Southern Europe. Implications The implications drawn from this preliminary study suggests that walking, which is a main form of tourism transport at the city destinations, is not effectively reflected in the imagery. A little more than 10% of all pictures in the brochures depict walking and visitor enjoyment of the city at a street level. In contrast, city destinations are presented mainly as heritage destinations with very few pictures reflecting the more contemporary dimensions of city life such as retailing, arts and music. Surprisingly, there are few stereotypical cultural markers other than architectural icons such as the Eiffel Tower or the Acropolis. Beyond these well-known examples, it is not certain whether or not a visitor could distinguish between the different architectural styles and schools of architecture represented in the pictures. The same could be said for café life - the cafes could be situated anywhere in Europe. Thus, the collected images presented by the tour operators serve a purpose to define and signal heritage to the market. In the terms of David Engwicht, this appears to be a very narrow mapping of the mental landscape. There s clearly a need for the tourism marketers to re-appraise the heritage appeal, which is essentially static and to seek opportunities to differentiate by depicting cities as places of diversity rather than monumental enclaves. If cities are to be attractive to visitors then we need to pay more attention to the way in which residents and visitors interact with their physical environment. Whilst there will always be a place for the icon in marketing of cities there s also a need to take into account the everyday culture of the city. That means paying due attention to the spaces in-between where much of social life take places for both the visitor and the resident alike.

8 References Albers, P. and James, W. (1988) Travel photography: a methodological approach. Annals of Tourism Research 15, Dann, G. (1996) The people of tourism brochures. In T.Selwyn (Ed.) The Tourist Image and Myth Making in Tourism, Chichester, J. Wiley & Sons Ltd, Echtner, C.M. (1999) The semiotic paradigm: implications for tourism research. Tourism Management, 20, Human, B. (1999) Kodachrome icons: photography, place and the theft of identity. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 11 (2/3), Orbasli, A. and Shaw, S. (2004). Transport and Visitors in Historic Cities. In: L. Lumsdon, & S.J. Page (Eds) Tourism and Transport Issues and Agenda for the New Millennium, Oxford, Elsevier Pike, S. (2002) Destination image analysis-a Review of 142 papers from Tourism Management, 23, Uzzell, D. (1984) An alternative structuralist approach to the psychology of tourism marketing. Annals of Tourism Research, 11, Wilson, D. (1994) Probably as close as you can get to paradise: tourism and the changing image of the Seychelles. In A.V. Seaton Tourism the State of the Art. Chichester, J.Wiley and Sons