Destination experiencescape for coastal tourism: A social network analysis exploration

Abstract

Destination experiencescape is attractive and offers the tourist a range of leisure experiences. However, studies about destination experiencescape for coastal tourism have received little attention. This study explored the components of coastal tourism destination experiencescape from the tourists' perspective. Meanwhile, this study discussed the internal relationships of the perception network from three levels: network nodes, transmission paths, and overall network. The results indicate that the destination experiencescape for coastal tourism can be conceptualized into seven dimensions: sensory, functional, social, cultural, natural, hospitality culture, and auxiliary components. A bidirectional interaction mechanism exists between these seven dimensions, constituting the network of destination experiencescape elements. Among them, the marine landscape, located in a prominent region, is the most influential element. This study reveals the structure characteristics of the destination experiencescape network for coastal tourism, which provides a reference for landscape planning and sustainable development of coastal cities.

Management implications

This study offers several practical implications for destination managers and marketers. Firstly, destination managers should not only pay attention to the maintenance of prominent regions, such as natural and architectural landscapes but also pay close attention to the construction of ordinary areas, such as intangible culture and service quality. Secondly, in addition to identifying prominent elements in the experiencescape, destinations need to optimize the overall network structure of the experiencescape to maximize network efficiency. Lastly, destination marketing organizations should comprehensively consider the strengths and weaknesses of tourism resources, stimulate the development of ordinary regions driven by prominent regions of the experiencescape.