Heritage tourism brand experiences: The influence of emotions and emotional engagement

Despite growing research on the role of emotions in tourist experiences, there is limited research on how emotional engagement enhances the brand experience at tourist heritage sites, in particular when negative or mixed emotions are involved. The aim of the research is to explore how emotional engagement influences heritage tourism brand experiences (HTBEs). This study provides an understanding of the type of mixed emotions that are experienced by visitors during heritage tourism brand engagement and how their emotional engagement influences HTBEs. Data for this study came from 36 interviews conducted with visitors who participated in an HTBE – the Australian New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) Gallipoli; and supported by other data triangulation methods including photos, journals and memo analyses. Findings not only reveal several mixed emotions that influence the heritage brand experience but also uncover the factors (such as story-showing) that elicit these mixed emotions. The research makes an explicit theoretical contribution through a heritage tourist brand framework that explains the process of emotional engagement during heritage tourist brand experiences.