The tourist services and tourist imaginary, Ambato ‘study case

Abstract

Introduction. This article focuses on the study of the imaginary that tourists have regarding a destination, taking Ambato as a reference. The imaginary is a process that seeks to subjectively interpret the perspectives that the tourist has only with the fact of referring to a destination. In other words, it seeks to analyze what is projected in the mind of the traveler prior to visiting a destination, considering that, for each tourist, there will be an ideal destination. Objective. Characterize the imaginary of the tourist projected in the destinations and their tourist offer. Methodology. The research has a mixed approach; It is quantitative in the sense that statistical data was collected and from a qualitative perspective the results are discussed from the hermeneutics of tourism. Its scope is descriptive phenomenological correlational. With a non-experimental cross-sectional design. Results. The most popular destination in the tourist imagination due to its tourist attractions is the United States and Mexico in Latin America, and Turkey with the study of tourists in relation to the European continent. Conclusion. To make the travel decision, it is based on the projection of the destination in areas such as political, social, environmental, economic, cultural and security, which are the elements that make up the tourist's imagination and directly affect the offer of a given geographical space.