Promoting the image of a historic city for sustainable cultural tourism: the case of Tlemcen Capital of Islamic Culture 2011

Abstract

Purpose Focussing on the event “Tlemcen Capital of Islamic Culture 2011”, the purpose of this paper is to examine the changing perception of the city’s image, assess its durability and determine its relationship with the development of sustainable cultural tourism. Design/methodology/approach This research is tested by an empirical study that combines a qualitative and a quantitative approach. The qualitative study is based on semi-directive interviews, whereas quantitative study is based on statistics from the Wilaya Tourism Department. Findings The results of this study indicate first of all that the perception of the city’s image by the inhabitants is not static and that it follows the same process of evolution of the perception of the image by tourists but in relation to other factors such as awareness and age. The second result shows that the sustainability of the image must be verified both inside and outside to achieve sustainable cultural tourism. Originality/value This study is in line with previous research with another point of view on the city’s image and another case study which is the historical city of Tlemcen. It serves to examine the evolution of the perception of the city’s image produced by the event and to assess its sustainability.