What can online reviews reveal about Tourism Destination Image? A netnographic approach to a pilgrim destination in India

• Published in: Tourism recreation research Vol. ahead-of-print; no. ahead-of-print; pp. 1 - 17
• Main Authors: Nayak, Naresh, Polus, Reni, Piramanayagam, Senthilkumaran
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Routledge 06.01.2023
• Subjects: netnography; Pilgrimage tourism; Tirumala Tirupati; tourism destination image
• ISSN: 0250-8281; 2320-0308
• DOI: 10.1080/02508281.2022.2160921

The purpose of this study is to examine the destination image of Tirumala Tirupati as one of the most popular pilgrimage sites in India using three Tourism Destination Image (TDI) components namely cognitive, affective, and conative. Netnography was selected as a research method, where data were collected online via a Google Review website. A total of 925 online reviews posted between 2018 and 2022 were analysed using content analysis. Results of the study reveal that Tirumala Tirupati's destination image consists of both positive and negative comments on all three components. Visitors were particularly impressed by the cognitive components of Tirumala Tirupati as a pilgrimage tourism destination, in particular the natural attributes, the general and tourist infrastructure, and cultural and historical attributes. The visitors also evaluated the overall experience on the affective level as highly positive due to the religious characteristics of the site. Despite the negative comments regarding the management of the institution, the overall conative image attributes were positive. Visitors' intention to revisit and recommends were high. This paper ends with a discussion of the theoretical and practical implications.