ABSTRACT

Tourism is a major world industry and very broad in its scope – including the travel trade (retail and wholesale), accommodation, transport, activities, heritage and attractions, retail and food, media, state and industry destination management organizations (DMOs) (McKercher, DenizciGuillet and Ng 2011). Tourism is experiential in nature, and whether linked to business or pleasure, is characterized by sustained consumer interaction with tourism service providers and the destination. The Internet has had a transformational effect on how these consumer interactions take place. This is primarily due to the shift in the power relationship between the fi rm and the consumer, with the Internet providing the information and communications potential to fuel this empowerment (Urban 2005; Pires, Stanton and Rita 2006). Tourists or potential tourists routinely refer to the Web for information on travel propositions, and importantly, consult with other tourists online to establish their experiences and opinions of the tourism service before reservation. It is particularly interesting to refl ect on the infl uence of the Internet on the brand.