Tourism destination image development: a lesson from Macau

Purpose – Drawing upon an analysis of resident and visitor survey data and Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) press releases in 2012, the purpose of this paper is to understand the tourism destination image for this tourist historic city produced by these three key stakeholder groups in Macau. Design/methodology/approach – This is achieved using a new stakeholder analysis tool, developed from previous studies, which compares the perspective of the MGTO, the city’s destination marketing organization, with that of its residents and visitors. This study examines the perceptions that residents and visitors have about the general images projected and generated in Macau. Findings – This research highlights the multiplicity of images and producers of images in Macau. Originality/value – The lesson from this case study is that public sector agencies need to acknowledge more clearly the tourism planning role of the host community in particular. The possibility of detecting disconnections and misalignments of shared destination imagery by residents and visitors has implications for the public sector in Macau and other destinations in relation to managing and developing a destination and contributes to a greater understanding of stakeholders and sustainable tourism development overall.