Should consumers of travel promotional material expect that graphic images representing a destination be a true representation of the actual travel experience?

One would hope so, but occasionally images used are not exactly what they seem.

The latest such incident has been reported by New Zealand’s Sunday Star Times http://www.stuff.co.nz/sundaystartimes/4034294a6442.html . It appears that whilst the title of the New Zealand tourist campaign is 100% Pure New Zealand, some of the photographs that have been used in the promotions are not quite 100% pure! The photograph above of two kayakers enjoying the company of dolphins is apparently a digital reconstruction of two photos – one of the kayakers, and another of the dolphins.

Such modification of images has been defended by representatives of Tourism New Zealand because they do not materially alter the reality of tourism in that country.

Perhaps not on that occasion, but there have been a number of other misleading (and perhaps more serious) blemishes noted recently. Previous such cases have included the use by Fiji of images of the Cook Islands for promotional purposes in the 1990s, and in early 2000 a district in the United Kingdom used images from the South Island of New Zealand to promote its tourism.
Royal Nepal Airlines recently apologized to Peru for promoting Nepalese tourism under the heading “Have You Seen Nepal?” but using an image of Machu Picchu, perhaps the most iconic attraction in all of South America.

Things are perhaps not always quite as they seem!

Submitted by John Kumm www.onlinetravelconsultant.com