Heritage destination love

Abstract

Purpose Although love has received considerable attention in the marketing literature, there is limited past research on love in a tourism context. This study aims to overcome past research negligence by proposing the concept of heritage destination love. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative approach was undertaken, face-to-face in-depth interviews with 35 respondents in London to discuss about the concept of heritage destination love antecedents and its consequences, tourists’ behavior and tourists’ feeling, passion and love about the destinations as playing a magnificent role in tourism development. Findings The outcome reveals that heritage destination love has three elements – passion, emotional attachment and identification. Originality/value Despite its limitations, the current study offers theoretical insights of the psychological theory of the love triangle in relation to heritage destination love.