Resumen de Evaluating the Guimaraes 2012 European Capital of Culture: national and international tourists' behaviors and perceptions
Laurentina Cruz Vareiro, José Freitas Santos, Paula Cristina A. Remoaldo, J. Cadima Ribeiro
In 2012, Guimaraes hosted the Euroepan Capital of Culture (ECOC). An evaluation of this event was needed because public, private, and community funds were involved. This analysis considers tourists as external and independent stakeholders who assessed the cultural activities developed during the event as well as the attributes of the city. The main objectives of the research conducted were to assess the visitors' motivations during the hosting of the Guimaraes ECOC 2012, their perceptions towards the city, and if national and international visitors kept different perceptions of it. For 2 months, in the summer of 2012, a survey was applied to 390 visitors. The results revealed that hosting the 2012 ECOC was a major contribution towards attracting new visitors to the city (though many of the visitors stayed only for a short period of time). Based on tourists' perceptions, the tangible heritage was clearly detached from the set of attributes associated to Guimaraes, whereas the intangible heritage was less noted. The Portuguese tourist seem to be more prone to value the tangible heritage than the foreign tourists. Overall, Guimaraes received a very positive evaluation relating to the city's image and, as stated by tourists, visiting it was declared to be highly recommended. Following the obtained empirical results, the need for changing the city's promoted image emerges, which has been too centered on its tangible heritage. In doing so, it is believed that there will be longer overnight stays by visitors.
