Image and destination: A geographical approach applied to Banff National Park, Canada

As intricate mental constructions, destination images reflect cultural, intellectual and existential backgrounds of individuals, communities and social groups, as well as marketing strategies. In the case of Banff National Park, for example, marketing strategies have promoted a potential need for wilderness and natural environment related experiences that is expressed in western post‐industrialized societies. However, touristic development often creates places structured to fit suitable images suggested by the market and leads to the co‐existence of multiple images for a single destination. The resulting tourist landscapes very often are divorced from the original setting, atmosphere, and characteristics of the real place.