Fonte: Journal of Tourism & Development; n. 16 (2011); 115-126
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Resumo: Over the last decades, tourism has become one of the most important sectors of the international economy, including the Portuguese and the Spanish economy. Its contribution to the Gross Domestic Product and job creation makes tourism a vital sector in the sustainable development of Portugal.In this context, managing tourism resources of a country under a Marketing approach is a paradigm shared by the international leaders of tourism like the USA, France or Spain. Consequently, destination image has become one of the most relevant assets in tourism management of a country or region.This paper wants to illustrate the advantages of applying a mixed methodology in analysing a destination image. The results indicate that Portugal is distinguished from other destinations by the Unique gastronomy, Affordable prices and Open character of its people. This way, the results allow professionals of Portugal’s tourism management to know the specific perceptions that the Spanish tourists have over Portugal.
