ISSN: 1579-9794

Hikma 23(1) (2024), 231 - 251

Around the World in A Click: A Reflection on Translation

Quality in Tourism Promotion

La vuelta al mundo en un clic: reflexiones sobre calidad en

la traducción de promoción turística

ADRIÁN FUENTES-LUQUE

afuentes@upo.es

Universidad Pablo de Olavide

ARÍA CRISTINA VALDÉS RODRÍGUEZ

cris@uniovi.es

Universidad de Oviedo

Fecha de recepción: 10/04/2023

Fecha de aceptación: 23/10/2023

Abstract: Quality tourism means quality products. Much of the tourist content

is translated. Therefore, quality translations are necessary to ensure positive

levels of tourist satisfaction. The differentiation of a brand is achieved through

the perceived image (Andreu et al., 2000, p. 49). There are three components

in the formation of the image: beliefs and attitudes associated with the product,

level of knowledge about the destination, and expectations about the product

(Nobs, 2003). Precisely, translation plays a crucial role on the last two

elements. Often, users' expectations are not considered when designing,

creating and translating tourism promotional material, which results in

unsuccessful and even failed promotional campaigns that can damage the

image of the destination and the products it offers. Since perceived image is

not a static parameter, all participants in the promotional development of the

tourist destination should review the tourist products and services on offer and

their projected image, trying to adjust market niches, products, and

destinations to existing or potential tourists, a process in which the translation

of tourism promotional texts plays a decisive role. In this paper, we delve into

the issue of quality in the translation of tourism promotional material (whether

printed, on websites, apps, and social media), through the analysis of several

international tourist promotion campaigns.

Keywords: Translation quality, Tourist promotion, Translation standard,

Promotional discourse, Image

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Resumen: Lograr la calidad turística implica contar con productos de calidad

y, dado que gran parte del contenido turístico se traduce, es necesario realizar

traducciones de calidad para garantizar niveles positivos de satisfacción por

parte del turista. La diferenciación de una marca se logra a través de la

imagen percibida (Andreu et al., 2000, p. 49). En la formación de la imagen

intervienen tres componentes: las creencias y actitudes asociadas con el

producto, el nivel de conocimiento sobre el destino turístico y las expectativas

sobre el producto (Nobs, 2003). Es en estos últimos dos elementos,

precisamente, donde la traducción desempeña un papel crucial. Con relativa

frecuencia, no se tienen en consideración las expectativas de los usuarios a

la hora de diseñar, crear y traducir el material promocional turístico, lo que

suele dar lugar a campañas promocionales poco exitosas (e incluso fallidas)

que pueden dañar la imagen del destino y de los productos que este ofrece.

Dado que la imagen percibida no es un parámetro estático, todos los

participantes en el proceso de desarrollo promocional del destino turístico

deberían revisar los productos y servicios turísticos implicados, así como la

imagen proyectada, tratando de ajustar los nichos de mercado, los productos

y destinos a los turistas reales y potenciales, proceso en el que la traducción

de los textos de promoción turística desempeña un papel decisivo. En el

presente artículo, examinamos la cuestión de la calidad en la traducción del

material de promoción turística (ya sea impreso, en páginas web, aplicaciones

y redes sociales), ilustrándola a través del análisis de diversas campañas de

promoción turística internacional.

Palabras clave: Calidad en la traducción, Promoción turística, Estándar de

traducción, Discurso promocional, Imagen

OURIST PROMOTION: BEHIND THE SCENES

Tourist promotional material generally invites us to go around the world

in a click, with a growing trend of offering new forms of information and devices

which allow us to make better informed decisions about our next trip or stay.

In this paper we will be dealing with the issue of quality, identifying the main

factors that affect the final promotional product and particularly focusing on

the aspects that should be considered to build up a translation standard in

tourism.

Tourism is undeniably a robust source of income worldwide and a form

of intercultural communication, which brings about possibilities of cultural and

social contact through different tourist products and services, which often

require translation demands to be met.

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In this context, firstly, we need to clarify what we mean by “tourism

product” and by “tourism quality”. According to Foris et al. (2018), who offer a

comprehensive review of quality models for tourist products:

[T]ourism products can be defined as products that satisfy the needs

of tourists. The first important characteristic of the tourism product is

its complexity: the tourism product is a composite one, consisting of

several goods and services offered to satisfy the tourists needs. It

generally includes accommodation, transportation, and dining, as

well as attractions and entertainment. Consequently, measuring

quality of the tourism product must consider a lot of product

distinguished features. (p. 161).

If activities, services or goods can be included under the label of tourist

products, from a more comprehensive umbrella-type approach, we may also

refer to tourist destinations as products, as they need to satisfy the needs of

tourists if they pursue to become real tourist destinations. In its glossary, the

United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) defines the main

destination of a tourism trip as “the place visited that is central to the decision

to take the trip” (WTO 2023a). By extension, all the other products are in some

way elements which are inextricably bound to a specific destination.

Therefore, the total quality management of tourist products and materials also

entails the evaluation of the networked array of tangible and intangible

elements that are related to a destination and contribute to its excellence.

According to a recent survey with the latest data (Statista 2024), the

tourist economic sector contribution to the world’s gross domestic product

(GDP) amounted to US$7.7 trillion, which is an extremely significant share of

the planet’s economy. The three leading world tourist destinations are: France

(over 89 million visitors in 2020), Spain (84 million visitors), and the United

States (79 million in the same year). (WTO 2021). In 2020, Spain was 2

tourist earnings worldwide (and 1

in Europe) with US$80 billion. Besides,

tourism is the first source of income for many countries. In the case of Spain,

this amounts to 16 % of its GDP and nearly 18 % of jobs in the country. This

shows the huge importance of tourism not only globally, but also at national

level, and its repercussion on the image of Spain abroad.

Kelly (1997) defines the tourist text as “anything published by any

organization that is designed to either give information to visitors or to

advertise a destination and encourage travelling to that destination” (p. 35).

The two main functions of tourist promotional texts are informative and

persuasive. In this sense, these texts are intended to provide information

about a given destination to potential tourists and to attract them to a particular

destination or event. The variety of texts can be extremely diverse.

Nevertheless, we will particularly focus on tourist promotional texts here.

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New media, including the Internet, social media, and mobile apps, have

opened new possibilities for the development of fresh ways of attracting

tourists. Such media also pose new and complex challenges for software

developers, marketing and creative teams, and translators, which merit

specific studies. In this sense, the characteristics and potential of new forms

of text such as dynamic brochures, interactive personalized menus, and social

media platforms, surely call for a more open, interdisciplinary approach, with

a strong intercultural component that surpasses the linguistic level.

Tourist promotional texts are composed by a combination of textual,

iconic, and graphic elements. Depending on the medium or channel, the

proportion of these elements will vary. Most institutional tourist campaigns use

text/graphic advertising in general or specialized written publications, where

space is limited. A tourist text is the outcome of a complex process that

includes a heavy load of concentrated marketing, culture, and the use of

different semiotic and linguistic systems. The translated version should follow

the same conventions, but this is not always the case. As a result, ineffective

translations are produced, which compromise the objective of the final

product. This is due to the fact that translators are often not included in the

target text production process, thus yielding a target text that may not fulfil its

functional purpose, consequently jeopardizing a potentially successful

reception of the message in the target culture (Fuentes, 2016, pp. 98-99).

Tourism promotion depends heavily on translation (or rather, quality

translation, to be precise). However, such link and dependency are little

known, and institutions are not aware enough of such importance. Recognition

of the key role of both translation and translators is unfortunately and unfairly

marginal. In this sense, synergies from the different stakeholders are both

welcomed and needed.

1. T

HE NOTION OF IMAGE IN TOURIST PROMOTION

Sharma and Pradeep (2007, p. 49) defines “image” as “consumer

perception of a product, institution, brand, company or person which may or

may not correspond to reality”. In this sense, it could be said that “the

differentiation of a brand is achieved through the perceived image” (Andreu et

al., 2000, p. 49). As mentioned before, three components are normally

established in the formation of an image: beliefs and attitudes associated with

the product, level of knowledge about the destination, and the expectations

created by the product (Nobs, 2003). It is precisely in the last two elements

that translation plays a key role. User expectations are frequently overlooked

in the creation and translation process of tourist advertising material, giving

rise to failed promotion campaigns that can damage the image of the

destination and the products it offers. For instance, one of the main assets of

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the United Kingdom (UK) as a tourist destination is the British monarchy and

the events around it. Thus, in the official tourism promotional website, potential

visitors are invited to “take in royal experiences to mark the dawn of a new

era.” (VisitBritain 2023) The localized Spanish version misses the allusion to

the monarch by mistranslating “royal” as real (Vive experiencias reales que

marquen el amanecer de una nueva era, VisitBritain 2023), while some

reference to the monarchy would have preserved the invitation to participate

in some of the key events of the new king.

Brand and image go hand in hand and are constructed by the interplay

of all the different elements involved in the promotional campaign of a

destination or tourist product, including the tourist text, as defined above by

Kelly (1997). This definition points out to the broad range of texts which fall

within the umbrella of tourist discourse, given their complexity due to several

reasons: different formats and media (paper, audiovisual media, social media,

software applications, etc.), nature (static, such as printed ads; dynamic, such

as pop-ups and banners; or interactive).This entails an internal complexity in

terms of the combination of graphic, visual, verbal, iconic, symbolic or aural

elements of the promotional text depending on the medium.

Moreover, promotional tourist texts always go beyond local territories

and cultures (Shi-xu, 2015), since they aim at appealing visitors or customers

from other places selling as their unique proposition a different and positive

experience. Therefore, when elaborating a promotional text, tourist authorities

or companies make efforts to project a particular image of the destination or

tourist product which nurtures the brand as well. In this context we understand

the brand as “the unique combination of product characteristics and added

values, both functional and non-functional, which have taken a relevant

meaning which is inextricably linked to that brand, awareness of which might

be conscious or intuitive” in Morgan and Pritchard’s terms (2001, p. 15).

The differentiation of a brand (a destination) is achieved through the

“projected image”, a concept coined by Andreu et al. (2000) which refers to

the values, images or slogans tourist authorities, institutions or companies

wish to project about a determined destination or product. The projected

image is a “pull factor in the destination decision process, which is transmitted

by communication channels targeted at the potential tourist” (Ashworth, 1991;

in Andreu et al., 2000, p. 50). The image projected by a given tourist

destination is derived to a great extent from the different advertising

campaigns. For example, in the case of Spain, according to Andreu et al.

(2000, p. 52), during the 1970s and 80s, there was no coherence in

communication strategies for the design and creation of promotional material.

This situation was aggravated by the fact that neither the target audience nor

the main features of the target users were clearly defined. From the

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intercultural mediation point of view, this shows the importance of translation

as a key element for successful communication. It is also necessary to

establish appropriate feedback mechanisms that will allow for the different

participating agents to reassess and fine-tune the elements of the tourist

advertising campaign.

The perceived image, on the other hand, is a “dynamic concept on that

previous knowledge [the potential tourist has about the destination], the

experience at the destination, and the tourist’s evaluation of that knowledge

will affect his/her image of the destination [sic]” (Hu & Ritchie, 1993; in Andreu

et al., 2000, p. 51). The satisfaction level that results from an evaluation

process can help improve the destination image. Since the perceived image

is not a static parameter, those involved in tourist advertising should be in

constant review of the tourist products offered and the projected image, trying

to adjust market niches, products and destinations, and existing and potential

tourists. In our view, the translation of tourist advertising texts plays a decisive

role in this process. Thus, countries like Australia, Spain and the UK, and more

recently Saudi Arabia, have developed user-friendly and very attractive

institutional tourist websites with different contents, layout and products for

different target audiences. This would reflect the importance of appropriately

targeting niche markets.

2. Q

UALITY IN TOURISM PROMOTION

In the field of tourism, translation equals intercultural mediation

processes which demand a solid intercultural competence of translators if a

functional and effective target text reception is desired. For instance,

translators should be fully aware of cultural differences related to the language

choice and corresponding locales, since there are different varieties of

Spanish for Spain, Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, or Chile; likewise, English

may have variations for the United Kingdom, the United States of America

(US), Australia or Canada. Another example of cultural expertise is that

translators should have a sound knowledge of mutual perceptions and

stereotypes both in the source culture and in the target culture, as well as

knowledge of user’s needs and expectations. Therefore, tourist translators

stand close to marketing experts, as they should prove rich linguistic and

cultural competence and creativity skills.

Undoubtedly, quality tourism requires quality products and

communication strategies and processes. As such, there is a need for quality

translations of texts that can ensure positive satisfaction levels on the part of

the tourist. But what is expected from a quality translator in the translation of

tourist texts? If we consider tourism as an export product, then it follows that,

as Séguinot (1994) points out, the intercultural competence of the translator

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(in many different terms) is an essential element in the commercialization of

the tourism trade. The equation between quality tourism and quality products

has often led to a demand of quality promotional materials to obtain high levels

of satisfaction on the part of tourists. In the present context, tourism has

become widely internationalized, as an experiential action and as an

emotional experience. Therefore, promoting a tourist destination requires a

strategic plan and decisions to reach a wider audience of potential visitors,

which comprises the translation of various types of promotional materials.

Additionally, the use of diverse technological media for promotion has brought

about significant changes which affect the way users are addressed and how

content is presented in monolingual or multilingual contexts.

Regarding the notion of “quality”, it is generally agreed that it is difficult

to define what we mean by quality in tourism. Foris et al. (2018) point out that

a tourist product is “not only a collection of tangible products and intangible

services, but also psychological experiences” (p. 161), which are projected to

potential tourists under convincing premises. The more efficient the promotion

is, the more successful the experience of tourists will be, and tourism

institutions and organizations plan their promotional efforts accordingly

pursuing an optimal experience for their target clients. However, they do not

always succeed and particularly they tend to fail in language and cultural

aspects.

The UNWTO has launched A Practical Guide to Tourism Destination

Management with case studies and snapshots which do not deal with the

issue of language or communication, even though the UNWTO acknowledges

that multilingualism is “a core value of the United Nations” and language

diversity, “an integral part of tourism experience” (WTO, 2023b). However,

among the goals of the Department of Language Services of this organization,

“upholding language standards and establishing terminology” and ensuring

“that the official documents of the UNWTO, including all decisions and

resolutions of its governing bodies, are produced in all the official languages”

are limited to the internal work of the organization.

Generally speaking, the analyses Foris et al. (2018) carried out

“highlight the relatively low number of the tourism organizations ISO 9001

certified, and the causes that explain this situation”, which seem to be varied

and, among them, we underline the tendency towards “focusing on technical

issues, without taking into account social aspects” and the “lack of the staff

training in the field of quality” (p. 164).

Other forms to ensure quality started from classifications and rankings

of a more specific selection (Michelin Guides, Fodor guides, Lonely Planet,

hotel rankings, for instance) to the contemporary set of locally based

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classification schemes or quality awards (Q) in the form of marks, labels,

quality certification or criteria based on user reviews (Trip Advisor).

However, these quality systems still seem to fix sight on specific

elements without adopting a more global approach to the tourist promotional

material. In fact, the UNWTO defined the quality of a tourist destination as:

The result of a process which implies the satisfaction of all tourism

products and service needs, requirements, and expectations of the

consumer at an acceptable price, in conformity with mutually

accepted contractual conditions and the implicit underlying factors

such as safety and security, hygiene, accessibility, communication,

infrastructure, and public amenities and services. It also involves

aspects of ethics, transparency and respect toward the human,

natural, and cultural environment. (WTO 2023c).

Currently there are many certification systems worldwide and

particularly, the aim towards sustainability has resulted in a high number of

environmental quality labels, marks, and awards, related to the sustainable

development of tourist destinations. Therefore, any promotional material falls

within the quality control system and must comply with the established

standards for the destination.

One of the latest implementations of tourist quality, the Smart Tourist

Destinations, has the patronage of the European Union, which defines it

(2021) as “an initiative of the European Commission to support EU cities to

improve tourism services and experiences through innovative digital

solutions” (Smart Tourist Destinations, 2021). This European initiative has

been echoed in countries such as Spain, where the authorities have also

launched a management model of tourism called Smart Tourist Destinations,

considering the cross-cutting nature of tourist activities and the differentiating

features of each destination. For each one some diagnosis takes place

initially, an action plan is designed, followed by a monitoring phase, to identify

some best practices and some improvements.

The Innovation Section of the Spanish Tourist Board, Turespaña, has

published a guide with the best practices of the five Spanish destinations

which have been distinguished under the label of Smart Tourist Destinations

or “Destinos Turísticos Inteligentes” (Benidorm, Gijón/Xixón, Málaga,

Santander and Tenerife). By disseminating their best practices, they can

ensure the success of other destinations and identify their own areas of

improvement. Even though language and translation are often neglected in

many rankings and quality distinctions, in this case they are some of the

elements of interest in these destinations. For instance, Tenerife prides itself

for having a website in seven languages, which has been localized to better

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suit a personal experience of the user, with a chatbox in English and Spanish

(versions in French and German are in preparation) and prioritizing a natural

language to facilitate the visit to the island.

Similarly, Spain, as one of the major tourist worldwide destinations, has

recently opted for new models of tourism organization to enhance the benefits

of destinations in the country: the so-called “Co-Op” and “Branded-Content”

campaigns which have evolved from traditional marketing campaigns into

more effective and internationalized forms of promotion (Antón Argudo 2022).

The Co-Op campaigns are characterized by partnering with an online

intermediation channel which co-invests with the Spanish tourist authority,

Turespaña, to guarantee access to a qualified audience. In this case, these

channels will be the Online Travel Agent (OTA) Expedia, which is leader of

travel booking in Europe and United States, and TripAdvisor, a world-

established travel search engine with a monthly traffic of some 490 million web

users.

The second option, the “Branded-Content” campaigns, benefits from

the partnership of renowned brands with a common promotional goal. Spain’s

Turespaña has reached an agreement with National Geographic to promote

Spain as a sustainable, nature and rural destination, and with Conde Nast

Traveller publishing group for premium urban and sun and beach tourism. This

marketing strategy involves launching international campaigns with localized

and translated promotional products, as it already occurs with Conde Nast

magazines and with National Geographic advertising.

This exploratory approach to quality in tourism has provided evidence

that translation does not seem to be one of the aspects of interest in any of

the initiatives and quality management models, which often ignore language

and social factors, even though it is common ground that it is necessary to

adapt tourist-related products and services (including tourist texts) to the

user(s)' environment. Therefore, our contribution will provide a description of

some of these quality factors related to communication and translation, which

are often disregarded, expecting to build up a proposal of some quality

guidelines for the translation of tourism promotional materials.

3. Q

UALITY CRITERIA IN TOURIST PROMOTIONAL TRANSLATION

Some of the macro-textual and marketing strategies that have been

described in the previous section find their counterpart in the real cases we

will examine in further detail below. The concern for better quality tourist

products requires a localization approach and a definition of translation policy

which is founded on language and cultural decisions for every tourist

promotional campaign, as Pierini (2007) hinted. Regarding cultural

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presuppositions, we agree with Agorni (2012, p. 7) in that translators of tourist

promotional material should:

not only consider the amount of background knowledge already

possessed by their intended readership, but also be aware of the

ways in which their own decisions at linguistic and explanatory level

will allow a more or less degree of reader involvement, and

consequently affect the promotion of tourist resorts and attractions.

One of the main claims is that every tourist destination may be

promoted for different purposes and different users, so it is marketed to suit

the specific needs of varied user profiles. An example of how the user comes

first is one of the recent campaigns of New Zealand, which identifies four

different types of potential visitors according to the purpose of the trip. This

preliminary choice will determine the discourse according to the target

reader’s profile, namely, general tourists wishing to visit the country,

professionals interested in working in New Zealand, potential higher education

students, and business people with a view to invest in New Zealand

companies and businesses:

Image 1. New Zealand website

Source. Newzealand.com (14 November 2022)

Another element used in tourist promotion is the global gateway or

language selector which facilitates access to the content. In the New Zealand

official website, when choosing the target visitor option, this is approached not

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by language, but by a selection of countries and flags. The website focuses

only on a few countries and particularly on the English-speaking communities:

for example, both the Canada and the US sites are in English, leaving out

French-speaking Canada in the former case and the Spanish-speaking US

population in the latter. Thus, part of the Canadian and American population

is not being addressed in their own language, or first language.

Regarding the issue of the destination image, every tourist organization

projects an image of a destination either to consolidate or to create or to

modify such destination as a brand. For that purpose, institutions, tourist

boards or companies invest in international campaigns through different

media exploiting the projected image, as the following examples demonstrate.

A relevant example of the projected image of a destination is one of

Spain’s recent tourist promotion campaigns, which is of high significance since

tourism continues to be the main source of income of this country. In May

2022, the promotional campaign “Enamórate de España en verano” (This

summer, fall in love with Spain) was globally launched in different social media

(Twitter, WeChat, Weixin), livestreaming the promotional video and thus

consolidating the use of social media for tourism (Turespaña Oficial 2022).

The campaign is based on showing two sides of Spain, that is, Barcelona in

the North and Sevilla in the South, as the perfect destinations when Chinese

people were allowed to travel again after the COVID-19 pandemic. What is of

interest here is the perpetuation of clichés and stereotypes about Spain which

are transmitted by Chinese influencers in the streamed audiovisual program:

The film contains text written on the screen, as well as oral text and visuals

about the fame of Spanish football teams and stereotyped flamenco music

and dance, with the aim of making Chinese viewers fall in love with Spain.

While a translator is not involved directly in this text, this promotional tourist

ad shows the importance of the projected image in tourism. When transferring

ads, translators are faced with the decision about how to preserve that image

in the language choices. Having examined the Chinese text, we can confirm

that the key words and ideas any translator should maintain in the target text

reinforce the passion for dance, sport and art in Spain and the invitation to

falling in love with Spain in summer. Three well-known Chinese celebrities,

related to football, flamenco, and travel and with some connections with the

promoted destination, give their testimony about these promotional

messages. Should this campaign be localized to a different market or locale

(be it Korea, Japan, Morocco, etc.), such celebrities should be adapted

accordingly, a process in which translators should play a key role as

intercultural mediators.

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Image 2. Turespaña Twitter page

Source. Turespaña [@Turespana_] (27 May 2022)

The next example of the official tourism website of Spain indicates how

every communication approach entails localizing the content and offering a

display of language options to choose a different language site version.

Visiting the various language options included in the global gateway reveals

that they are not identical, neither in terms of content nor regarding the form,

since they are localized and tailored to the promotional strategy of the

individual target market.

Image 3. Spanish tourism official website (Spanish site)

Source. Spanish tourism official website (Spanish site) (2022)

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The main Turespaña website is localized into different languages

addressing diverse audiences who gain access to the web in English, French,

Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Polish, Chinese, Arabic, and

Japanese. Examples of localized content can be found in, for instance, the

English version, that presupposes that the English-speaking target audience

is British and affected by the Brexit (Brexit info for British tourists); and in the

Italian website, where there is an additional link to a podcast about travel in

Spain, as this format seems to be a popular kind of content delivery channel

in Italy (Doxa 2020).

Image 4. Spanish tourism official website (Italian site)

Source. Spanish tourism official website (Italian site) (2022)

The Spanish tourism official website also includes a specific link for the

Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC),

which offers both an English version and

an Arabic version (Instituto de Turismo de España 2022). The Unique Selling

Proposition (USP), or main advertising strategy, for the promotion of Spain’s

main destinations (Madrid, Barcelona, and Sevilla) for this particular market

differs with respect to how Spain is sponsored in the other localized sites of

Turespaña. There is an evident adaptation to what the destination, Spain,

means to the market segment from the GCC in terms of content and form,

resulting in a culturally customized site of Spain as a destination. For example,

there are three aspects which are highlighted in the text below to appeal the

target visitors from these Gulf countries: the football teams Real Madrid and

Fútbol Club Barcelona, given the interest in Spanish football teams; shopping

Political and economic alliance of six Middle Eastern countries–Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United

Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, and Oman.

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in Madrid and Barcelona, one of the activities Arabic visitors do, and the

common Moorish heritage:

Image 5. Spanish tourism official website (GCC site)

Source. Spanish tourism official website (GCC site) (2022)

What is most remarkable of this example is how the target audience of

the destination conditions the content and the lexis of the text and, thus, the

translation. Evidence of this adaptation is provided in the GCC site, where

there is a special section called “spain Premium” (Spain is written with a small

initial “s”). With a well-selected wording and positive note, the most special

attractions are described to call the attention of exclusive visitors, hence the

user does not only influence the content, but the language used. Therefore,

the offer of products and services of “spain Premium” is reinforced by the use

of premium language, or in Dann’s terms (1996), “the language of euphoria”

(p. 65), such as “Unique, exclusive experiences, with the finest services”,

“Luxury accommodation where quality and customer satisfaction are the top

priority”, or “A memorable trip you’ll want to repeat” (Instituto de Turismo de

España 2022). These examples prove that translators of tourist texts should

have the skills to identify lexical items and ways of address that distinguish

some promoted elements as premium, as a sign of excellence in the source

language, and create the same effect in the target language. In this case, the

projected image directly determines the perceived image of the destination,

i.e., how the specific target audience will create an image of the promoted

destination.

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In September 2002, Turespaña chose the slogan “Spain marks” for its

new campaign on the grounds that market surveys indicated that it was

necessary to find a new slogan that would add a more emotional and inclusive

character to the advertising campaign. Turespaña officials pointed out that the

campaign was expected to last for at least four years, and that anything less

than that period of time would be considered a failure. The promotional texts

showed modern, stylish, black and white photographs metaphorically linked

(only in principle) to the “Spain marks” slogan, highlighted in red capital letters,

which summarize some of Spain’s main cultural symbols and stereotypes:

blood, bullfighting, wine, food, flamenco and, of course, passion. The word

“passion” appears in most of the ads, thus continuing the theme behind the

previous “Passion for life” campaign, although, in some cases, it is not clear

what the term “passion” refers to.

On the left-hand bottom corner of each ad, there is an inserted color

photograph, plus the Spanish tourism official logo by renowned painter Joan

Miró, a small map of Spain indicating the scene’s location, and some allegedly

illustrating text which tries to establish a link between the rest of the graphic

elements. As Zanettin (2008,) points out, translators should not only focus on

the linguistic elements, but also pay particular attention (especially in the case

of tourist promotional texts) to the visual elements: “[while the analysis can be

focused on the translation of the verbal component, it cannot dispense with

an examination of how words interplay with visuals in the co-construction of

meaning” (p. 23). Visual elements, and especially images or photographs,

must be “considered as peritextual elements that should be ‘paratranslated’”

(Cómitre & Valverde, 2014, 79). The “Spain marks” slogan itself seems to be

a literal translation from the Spanish España deja huella (“Spain makes a

mark”). In any case, “Spain marks” is neither a good translation of the

expression nor effectively communicates a positive effect, thus failing to

convey the required alluring function of promotional texts, and even producing

a rejection reaction in the reader. There is an obvious pragmatic problem in

the wording of the slogan, as it has more negative connotations in English

than positive ones: the slogan is not understandable, the message is not

conveyed, the expected function is not achieved, and the sought effect is quite

the opposite. Perhaps a possible translation could be something in the line of

“Spain’s indelible mark / lasting impression”.

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Image 6. Spain’s advertisement of the “Spain marks”

campaign

Source. Spain’s official tourism website (2022)

One of the ads shows a large photograph of a smiling fair boy with a

skiing-goggles tan, which is very confusing for the target reader, since the

smaller photo displays a view of a rocky beach on the coast of Alicante. People

do not wear skiing goggles on the beach, and you do not get that tan mark

when you are scuba-diving; the sun is not underwater. Also, the text in the ad

talks about “4,800 miles of coastline”. Few countries in the world still use the

imperial system of weights and measures. The US is probably the main

country in this group. However, this campaign was also aimed at

Scandinavian countries, which, despite their good command of the English

language, might not be so familiar with miles. The text also talks about “445

blue flag beaches”, a term used within the European Union to certify the quality

of a given beach. US or Australian tourists, for example, will probably not know

what the term stands for, as these countries are not part of the Blue Flag

beach scheme.

On a more positive note, the “Spain marks” campaign seems to shift

away from the traditional sun and beach offer, setting a new strategy that is

today in place in the current “You deserve Spain” campaign. This new

campaign offers a wider choice of tourist products, highlighting other aspects

of Spain’s richness, such as culture, art, architecture, golf, flamenco, Spanish

as a foreign language, cuisine, etc.

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Hikma 23(1) (2024), 231 - 251

CONCLUSIONS

The above-described examples have portrayed an overview of some of

the translation quality factors in tourism promotion we would like to underline

with some concluding remarks, which invite to reflect on the need to build up

a translation quality standard for tourism and on the introduction of some

changes in translation training programs. There is a series of assumptions

which derive from the need to produce quality tourist materials, which affect

different stages and aspects of promotional translation.

An initial assumption that might sound obvious is the need to involve

translation and translators in the whole process of tourist promotion from the

earliest stages. The binomial brand-promotion entails linguistic and cultural

processes, so as to decide how to promote a tourist destination, product or

service to different kinds of users. Given that translators, as interlinguistic

experts, know both the source and the target language, and that they are also

competent in gauging and assessing the effect(s) of cultural nuances or the

degree of relevance, for instance, of a text, the creative team and the whole

product management group could benefit from their expertise and knowledge

from the beginning. This would save time, money, and effort, and would

prevent tourist promotional campaigns from misguiding target audiences.

Therefore, in order to ensure the quality of the tourist product, we believe

translators need to be involved in the whole process of promotion, given their

interlinguistic and intercultural competence and expertise.

Secondly, it is evident that promotional materials have become more

widely dependent on the media, particularly in recent times, when the irruption

of digitalization put on the table alternative modes of reaching the target

audiences of every tourist promotional campaign. In particular, in the tourist

sector, the Internet, through the website as its main instrument, has become

the main communication channel for and between different kinds of users:

companies, institutions, individuals, etc. (Sulaiman & Wilson, 2019). Besides,

websites may perform different functions, such as informing, promoting or

disseminating. Consequently, translators (should) have the textual

competence to create and translate multimodal texts and get the best results

from the translation of tourist promotional texts for different media.

Moreover, translators working in the field of tourism should be aware of

how multimedia products, such as websites or social media ads, communicate

and approach audiences differently. Certainly, a functional approach to the

study of multilingual websites is essential, since the function of the website

determines the translation and the localization processes (Valdés, 2008).

Furthermore, the emphasis on the semantic dimension should be abandoned

in favor of paying closer attention to a pragmatic one. As Hickey (2004, 77)

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Hikma 23(1) (2024), 231 - 251

supported, from the perspective of pragmatics, the problem lies in the fact that

translators aim at “semantic equivalence” instead of pursuing “perlocutionary

equivalence”, focusing on the effect on receivers/users. Some of the examples

above have shown that translators are aware of how multimedia tourist texts

approach audiences differently and that there are different user profiles which

determine the impact or effect of translated texts.

Likewise, we propose some cultural and pragmatic preliminary

questions every translator and localizer should bear in mind as a first-time

reader/user of the tourist promotional website s/he is commissioned to

translate. Namely, whether there is a global conception of the world behind

the text, or on the contrary, whether there are elements which are directly

associated with the source culture, or related to the brand or institution, which

require further explicitation or customization. For example, announcements,

news or products that are presented in the text may depend on some

previously known information, unknown to some other users of another

language site, and therefore they may demand certain explicitation.

Thus, to effectively train present and future translation professionals in

the field of tourism, these would need to familiarize with, in the first place,

becoming aware of the complexity of reading a promotional text or any kind

of, particularly, hypertexts for websites. Secondly, they should train in

producing a target text which meets the standards and best practices to result

into more usable and accessible websites, considering textual, discursive, and

cultural aspects. In such discursive approach, not only extratextual aspects

are considered, but also textual and linguistic concerns such as register, style

or text readability, lexical choice or cohesion and coherence, which will ensure

better quality for multilingual websites, especially in tourist promotion contexts.

Related to this macro-discursive and micro-discursive analysis is the

need for training creativity to better “read” tourist promotional texts, that is, to

identify the projected image and the likely perceived image, the role played by

cultural and visual elements, and the use of premium promotional language.

These aspects will help to establish a tourist translation standard, which could

benefit from mutual work with marketing professionals and translation

practitioners, as well as continuous feedback from them to better produce and

translate promotional tourist texts. Bearing in mind the mediating role of

translation in multicultural processes of tourist promotion, we fully agree with

Soto (2013), who makes specific reference to the case of Spain: “We

[translators] must consider tourist translations as an element of mediation and

relationship between the tourists and the places that they visit, and we must

reflect on the necessity of quality tourism translations in Spain” (p. 235).

Equally important is, as mentioned above, to adapt texts to the target tourist

expectations and, as stated by Durán-Muñoz (2008, 380), the quality norms.

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We can thus conclude that it seems reasonable to claim that a translation

quality standard is urgently needed to aim at ensuring the adequacy and

acceptability of the translated or localized tourist content. Such standard

would (and should) subsequently be reflected in translation training programs.

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