Analysing online travel reviews to identify temporal changes of a destination image

Abstract

The goal of this study is to examine how destination image and destination sentiment change over time using content from online travel reviews. We explore the evolution of Finland’s destination image from 2013 to 2018 by analysing 10,197 unstructured Chinese travel reviews. With a mixed analysis approach, we identify the evolutions of the perception of destination attributes, destination structure, and destination sentiment at functional, the mixed functional-psychological, and the psychological levels. The results show that the perceptions of destination attributes can evolve and change surprisingly rapidly, even in the case of a country-level destination. Although the structure of destination image seems to be stable, individual dimensions may evolve rapidly. In terms of destination sentiment, the evolving trends of destination sentiment can be even in the opposite direction of the evolution of destination attributes. These findings improve the research on the dynamic characteristics of destination image and provide industry insights for destination marketers in formulating long-term marketing strategies and monitoring destination image development.