An Exploratory Study into the Meaning of Phantasmal Destination and the Phenomenon of Phantasmal Tourism through the Grounded Theory Method: The Case of Shangri-la of Yunnan,China.
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文摘
This study focused on destination planning based on theories of human geography. The research aims to investigate a new type of tourist destination, named phantasmal destination, an imaginary space, set within a real one, that is based completely on a myth that has no basis in history. The main focus of the study is what the attributes of such destination are and how a phantasmal destination interacts with the realistic lived-in world. The study takes a micro-perspective to examine of the traveler process in visiting the phantasmal destination. In particular, travel inspiration, expectations, perception of the destination, personal psychology, and travel experience are explored. Following the constructivism paradigm, an inductive qualitative research approach is chosen, and grounded theory approach is adopted for the exploratory research. Guided by the overall findings and informed by the data analysis paradigm, a theoretical framework was developed. This framework illustrated the tourist process when searching out a phantasmal destination, marked by their travel inspirations, perceptions, expectations, and experience, and factors influencing the searching process were identified. This framework suggests that the phenomenon of phantasmal tourism is affected by both external stimuli such as urbanization and commercialization), and personality. In addition, travel motives, perception, and expectation interactively affect each other and together influence the overall travel experience. The most important contribution of this study is the discovery and identification of this new type of tourist destination. This study shows that destination managers can take advantage of this phenomenon by carefully designing and marketing suitable destinations once their phantasmal attributes are confirmed. Diligent design and marketing, informed by sound research, will also lead to better-designed and managed destinations that neither insist on the acceptance of the myth nor attempt to contradict it. Such destinations will also be appealing to visitors other than phantasmal, carrying a degree of interest to other types of tourists.