As imagens de um festival gastronômico: um estudo sobre o “16º Piraí Fest” no município de Piraí (RJ)

Abstract

Gastronomic tourism has been growing significantly in Brazil and in the world. The gastronomic attractions are considered very promising for the tourist activity. One of the ways it is spread is through gastronomic festivals. Its accomplishment is associated with opportunities for the communities that promote it, as it allows to disseminate and strengthen its cultural identity. In order to have continuity in future editions, in events of this nature, it is indispensable the evaluation in the post-event. This dissertation was based on images from the perception of its participants as a form of analysis of the gastronomic festival Piraí Fest, specifically from the 16th edition. Held in the city of Piraí, municipality of the State of Rio de Janeiro, there are 17 uninterrupted editions. As an exploratory research, we chose data collection through in-depth interviews, with 16 participants, for convenience, of the following groups: tourists, residents, business owners and employees during the event. Data were interpreted through content analysis. As a result, it was found that the image of the event was not known by its managers, nor researched, and that they differ from what they assume. Among the main conclusions, we can see the incompatibility between the identity of the event and the images perceived by its participants and the indispensable insertion of evaluation in the post-event with those involved. It lacks adequate training and dissemination of the identity that has been overlooked in order to understand the image in its plurality. It is suggested comparative studies to deepen the theme.