Investigating attitudes towards three South American destinations in an emerging long haul market using a model of consumer-based brand equity (CBBE)

• We test a model of consumer-based brand equity (CBBE) for three South American holiday destinations.
• We analyse Australian tourists' attitudes towards Chile, Brazil and Argentina.
• These countries are not well known or compelling holiday destinations for Australian tourists.
• Promotional activities should focus on awareness and image building among Australian tourists.

Despite the importance of destination image in market competitiveness, and the popularity of the field within tourism literature, there remains a dearth of published research examining travellers' perceptions of destinations in South America. This manuscript addresses this gap by testing a model of consumer-based brand equity (CBBE) associated with three South American countries; Chile, Brazil and Argentina. The introduction of direct air links and a free-trade agreement in 2008 has led destination marketing organisations (DMOs) in these countries to increase promotional efforts in the Australian market. This study shows that the CBBE model is an appropriate tool to explore consumers' attitudes in the long-haul travel context. The findings provide DMOs of the three countries studied, with benchmarks against which to compare the impact of future marketing communications in Australia. The results provide increased transparency and accountability to stakeholders, such as South American tourism businesses and Australian travel intermediaries.