Museum tourism in Canary Islands: assessing image perception of Directors and Visitors

ABSTRACTThe present study aims to provide a deeper understanding of the image of museums, differentiating between perceptions of Visitors (residents and tourists) and Directors in the museums of a sun and beach tourism destination – Gran Canaria (Canary Islands, Spain). This study analyses the overall image, the cognitive image, and the affective image. The results of this study suggest that Directors tend to understand the overall image of their museums as perceived by their Visitors but fail to perceive the affective feelings aroused by the museum. Directors also have issues understanding some of the ‘intangible cognitive dimensions’ of the image, such as quality of visitation experience, price/value, and museum shop. Academic and managerial implications are discussed.