DESTINATION BRAND 25 Brand value
Measuring the brand value of destinations in 10 top tourism source markets
In an increasingly experience-orientated travel world, the mere awareness of a destination is becoming less important. More and more people are planning their trips around specific activities, places of longing or emotional experiences – and no longer just according to well-known names on the map.
Whether culinary delights, culture, nature or events: the decisive factor in choosing a destination today is what travellers can experience there – and how strongly these experiences touch them emotionally. Destinations with lasting memories are recommended to others and repeat visits are more likely.
Social media and digital sources of inspiration also reinforce this change: they do not convey geographical names, but impressive images, personal impressions and special moments.
DESTINATION BRAND 25: Making brand value comprehensively measurable
With this in mind, inspektour is surveying the brand value of more than 150 destinations in Germany and abroad for the sixth time as part of DESTINATION BRAND 25 – in a population-representative online survey in 10 top source markets: Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Spain, the UK, the USA and China.
The survey is based on the tried-and-tested four-tone brand model:
The following is measured
- The awareness of a destination in order to be able to map the awareness/popularity of the destination in the respective source market as a first step.
- The likeability of the destination. The higher the likeability rating, the greater the chance of being included in the relevant set of potential destinations.
- The willingness to visit the destination for short and long holidays within the next 12 months and the next 3 years. An important indicator for estimating potential in order to know future destination-specific visit intentions.
- Visitors in the past. This final stage determines how many consumers the brand has already reached. It relates to previous visit experience in the destination in question and serves as a benchmark for future demand potential.
What’s new in DESTINATION BRAND 25?
In order to do justice to the changes in destination inspiration and selection, DESTINATION BRAND 25 has been expanded to include the following approach:
➤ Overall model ‘Awareness’:
In addition to the survey on unaided but also especially aided awareness, inspektour uses a so-called staggered awareness level to determine how concrete the image of a destination is among respondents who state that they know the destination, even if only by name.
Additional focus on ‘brand non-recognisers’: If respondents state that they do not know the destination, it is determined whether the destination is known, if not as a destination, then at least as a place / region.
➤ Data preparation / delivery
The univariate core results are prepared in a management summary in the style of infographics including key takeaways – dashboard access is provided for each destination for all other results (target group analysis, socio-demographic differentiations, etc.).
Note: Nobody is left alone with the dashboard – quite the opposite. For the use of the dashboard, inspektour will organise introductory events, provide explanatory videos for a variety of analysis options and also be available for individual questions / training.
Additional module: DB25 TravelIntent+
Who travels to your destination? For what activities? What are the preferred travel times/seasons? Which social media channels and artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots do your guests use for travel inspiration?
DB25 TravelIntent+ is the add-on module from DESTINATION BRAND 25 for in-depth analysis of those willing to visit your destination for short and long holidays.
The DB25 TravelIntent+ add-on module provides valuable insights into
- which holiday activities are of particular interest to visitors in relation to your destination as travel reasons. The following are taken into account:
- 5 general topics (culinary, culture, nature, active sports and city breaks)
- 5 individually selectable special topics from a predefined pool of topics
- what else generally characterises those willing to visit your destination (i.e. regardless of a specific destination):
- preferred visiting periods and seasons,
- level of interest in approx. 40 holiday activities,
- relevance of approx. 20 experiences when deciding on a destination, and
- use of approx. 30 sources of inspiration (online and offline) – including detailed queries on:
- social media channels (e.g. Instagram, TikTok and Facebook) and
- artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots (e.g. ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot and Gemini)
- how strongly your target groups are represented among those willing to visit your destination.
- what socio-demographic characteristics those willing to visit your destination have (e.g. age, gender, regional origin).
What is the benefit?
- Sound assessment of demand potential
- Thematic & seasonal offer development
- Precise targeting via digital touchpoints
- Strategy development based on real visitor interests
Further key data:
- Fieldwork: mid-October to early December 2025
- Data delivery: from March 2026
- First DB25 core results presentations: from mid-February 2026
Would you like to participate in DESTINATION BRAND 25?
Unfortunately, the registration period for DESTINATION BRAND 25 has already ended. Nevertheless, you can still place an order afterwards, provided that your destination is among the 170 destinations considered. We will publish an overview here shortly.