La construcción social de la imagen de los espacios-destinos rurales: Aproximación teórico-metodológica

Abstract

Is proposed in this paper the social imaginary in which tourism is based in the countryside,an area in crisis but appreciated as a space tourist set up once supply conditions. Following the rescue ofrural values, rural life becomes an object of consumption and is forged in the imagination of the touriststo create dreams in these spaces-destinations. The aim of this study is to examine the importance attributedto the idealization of rural areas in the formation of the image of the destination. The empiricalstudy applied to the rural tourism in Galicia, conducted with a total of 400 self-administered questionnaires,has demonstrated that the current idealization of rural space in the collective mind influencessignificantly the perceived image of the destination.