GPT-Studios. 2022; 2(2): 77-89 | DOI: 10.5505/gpts.2022.39974

Destination Love Analysis Lake Van with Photographs and Comments

Tuðçe Özoðul Balyalý¹, Ezgi Bayram Öz¹, Elvan Ocak^2
1Van Yüzüncü Yýl University, Tourism Faculty, Department of Tourism Guidance, Van, Türkiye
²Van Yüzüncü Yýl University, Faculty of Engineering, Department of Food Engineering, Van, Türkiye

Visitor comments can be easily accessed thanks to the sharing of knowledge and experiences by way of online platforms. You can get an idea regarding the destination, products, and services you are curious about by making use of visitor experiences. The purpose of this research is to determine which elements stand out in the photographs and comments shared by visitors to Lake Van on the Tripadvisor website. 742 photographs and 278 comments created by visitors on the online sharing platform Tripadvisor formed the sample of this research. Photographs and comment analysis was performed on the photographs and comments through the MAXQDA qualitative data analysis program. As a result, visitor comments, comprising prominent components of Lake Van, analogies to Lake Van, prominent components of the city of Van, suggestions, and negative comments are gathered under five themes. Seven themes were obtained from the visitor photographs; local products, activities, attractions around Lake Van, reflections, flora-fauna, historical buildings, and islands. In general, it was understood that the visitors liked the unique view of Lake Van and described it as a must-see place. It is expected that these research outputs will provide an idea about the destination image to all stakeholders and visitors involved in the tourism movement.

Keywords: Lake Van, destination image, destination love, visitor reviews; visitor photographs; Tripadvisor.

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