From festivals to futures: exploring digital marketing and the role of event and destination images in shaping tourist experience: compendium of publications

ENG- Tourism today is strongly influenced by emotion, cultural authenticity, and digital interaction. Understanding how these factors connect is essential for advancing research and practice in tourism, hospitality, and event management. This doctoral thesis explores the relationships among digital marketing, event image, and destination image and examines their combined influence on tourist satisfaction, recommendation behaviour, and revisit intentions. The empirical research focuses on the Santa Tecla Festival in Tarragona, Catalonia (Spain), a cultural event with over 700 years of history, complemented by a comparative analysis of the Jerash and Fuheis Festivals in Jordan. Together, these cases represent contrasting socio-cultural and technological settings, offering a cross-cultural perspective on how image and emotion shape visitor behaviour. A quantitative approach was used through four interconnected studies with structured surveys distributed in person and online. A total of 400 responses were collected in Tarragona and 223 in Jordan. Data were analysed through multiple regression, structural equation modelling (SEM), and ANOVA, testing 36 hypotheses. The results indicate that while digital marketing is crucial for engagement and visibility, its effect becomes most significant when aligned with emotionally immersive, authentic event experiences. Event image was found to be a stronger determinant of tourist satisfaction and recommendation than destination image alone. The findings reveal a reciprocal image transfer mechanism: successful events enhance destination image, while a strong destination reputation reinforces event perception. Emotional connection and perceived authenticity act as key mediators in this process. Theoretically, the thesis contributes to destination image research by framing cultural festivals as active platforms for image construction rather than as static heritage representations. It positions digital marketing as an indirect but influential factor that operates through emotional engagement and online storytelling. Practically, the study provides guidance for Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs), event planners, and hospitality professionals. It emphasizes the value of integrated branding strategies that synchronize digital narratives with on-site experiences and adapt messages to distinct visitor profiles based on motivation, age, and income. In emerging destinations such as Jordan, festivals can serve as instruments for reputation building and sustainable tourism growth. Overall, this thesis offers a transferable framework that connects digital marketing, image formation, and tourist behaviour, portraying festivals as living cultural laboratories where identity, memory, and community are co-created across physical and digital realms