Branding Barcelona's Flavours: The Intersection of Culinary Heritage, Authenticity and Food Tourism

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2024-12-16
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en
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Barcelona is a true food tourism destination with millions of visitors each year. As this city is the heart of Catalonia, Catalan culinary heritage is part of its culinary identity. With Generation Z being the future food tourists and online branding becoming increasingly important, this study investigates how Barcelona’s culinary heritage and authenticity are affected by online branding within the local food tourism industry and how this impacts the food tourist experience. A qualitative study was performed using critical discourse analysis and semi-structured interviews. Two visitBarcelona webpages and three blogs were chosen to gain insights from both a government and tourist angle. The interviewees were Generation Z food tourists, who visited Barcelona within the last two years. Results showed how culinary heritage and authenticity are intertwined while elements such as tradition, Catalan cuisine, and food markets are highlighted online. This study further showed the significant impact of online branding on tourists' expectations and experience. Although their expectations regarding heritage were largely met, they did question its authenticity due to the online branding strategy of combining heritage and modernisation.
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