The purpose of this study tried to identify the significance of the experience economy in the luxury cruise industry. To achieve this purpose, this study suggested that four dimensions of the experience economy including education, entertainment, esthetics, and escapism positively affect brand prestige. In addition, it was proposed that brand prestige plays an important role in the formation of the following three outcome variables: social value, brand attachment, and brand loyalty. Data were collected from 312 luxury cruise passengers via an online company’s system in the U.S. The data analysis results showed that all four dimensions of the experience economy have a positive influence on brand prestige, which in turn positively affects social value, brand attachment, and brand loyalty. Both theoretical and managerial implications of the results are discussed.
Theme parks have many contributions to their destination, local and regional economies, tourism, etc. If they meet the changing demands of theme park visitors, more satisfied and revisiting visitors are acquired. This study attempted to determine the dimensions that influence theme park visitors’ perceived service quality, satisfaction and behavioral intentions. In this context, this study aims to analyze the dimensions of servicescape and experiential quality and determine the influence of these dimensions on visitors’ service quality perception, satisfaction and behavioral intentions. The data of this study were collected through a questionnaire applied to 301 visitors of a theme park operating in the city of Istanbul. Descriptive statistics and the factor analysis were used for analyzing the data obtained, and path analysis was utilized for testing of the theoretical model. Study results revealed that "communicative staging" was the variable which best represented the dimension of servicescape, while "surprise" was the variable which best represented the dimension of Experiential Quality. There is also a significant relationship between the dimensions of "servicescape" and "experiential quality", on the one hand, and "perceived service quality", on the other. Finally, a significant relationship was found among "perceived service quality", "satisfaction" and "behavioral intentions". In general, this study contributes to the managers of the tourism and leisure industries.
The purpose of the study is to identify the important attributes of the motivational factors that influence Chinese students’ decision to write online reviews on social networking sites about Korea tourism after visiting major tourist attractions in Korea. A questionnaire survey was administered to 315 Chinese students attending universities in Korea and the resulting data were collected and analyzed. The results have important practical implications for tourism administrators and tour operators wishing to better understand the reasons for posting private blogs and how to encourage tourists intending to visit tourist attractions in Korea.
As competition and interest rates continue to rise, it becomes more critical to understand how leveraging in a competitive market will impact casino firms whose returns are sensitive to changes in financing costs. However, research on the effects of leverage and competition on firm value is scarce. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to explore the effectiveness of leveraging strategies by examining the moderating effect of competition on the relationship between leverage and firm performance in the U.S. casino industry. Analyzing a panel dataset of U.S. publicly traded casino firms from 1992 to 2014, this study finds an inverted U-shaped relationship between leverage and firm performance in the U.S. casino industry while the negative effect of leverage intensifies for highly leveraged casino firms as levels of competition increase. The findings of this study provide valuable insights into whether or not a leveraged growth strategy can contribute to improving performance in the competitive casino markets.
Shrines’ market appeal and authenticity drive religious tourism branding initiatives. Ideal packaging strategies further determine product performance in religious destinations. This article examined the potential contribution of market appeal and authenticity to religious tourism branding in the Kenyan Coast, Western, and Eastern regions. Multistage Cluster Sampling was used to sample 700 respondents. Surveys were conducted using structured interviews between February 2012 and April 2013. Questionnaires targeted communities, tourists, and tourism developers. Questionnaires examined the types of shrines, utilization rate, perceived importance, and current development levels. It further assessed applicable religious tourism branding strategies within regions. Data analysis involved factor analysis, ANOVA, and t-tests. Results indicated that Kenyan shrines serve natural, physical, and cultural purposes, which determine their market appeal. New brands, line-extensions, and brand extensions emerged significant product branding strategies (p < 0.05). Thus, it implied perceived loss of product authenticity.
This study explored factors influencing property owners’ attitudes toward tourism development in two very different counties in North Carolina: one coastal (n = 854) and one in the mountains (n = 619). Attitudes toward the impact of tourism and sustainable tourism development were compared for permanent and second-home residents and between the two counties. Findings include the fact that 22% of property owners in the coast and 12.8% of property owners in the mountains thought that the impact of tourism in their community was such that they wished they lived or owned property elsewhere. Permanent homeowners were more likely than second homeowners to have this opinion. Second homeowners in both counties perceived that they had little or no influence over tourism-related issues, a perception stronger in the coastal county than mountain.
Since there has been little empirical research on the phenomenon of healthcare hotels, this study examined them in order to provide a clear understanding of these facilities and international medical/healthcare tourists’ overall perspectives on them. A model was developed and tested that integrated conation into an existing theoretical framework related to image. A field survey was conducted to collect data. A confirmatory factor analysis was used to evaluate measurement quality, and a structural equation modeling was utilized to test research hypotheses and achieve study objectives. A series of modeling comparisons using a structural analysis were conducted. The test results verified the completeness of the proposed model and demonstrated the superiority of the proposed research framework, which comprises conative image factors as the most proximal determinants of overall image, over alternative models. In addition, the results of the structural analysis suggested that cognitive image involving perceived quality and value has a positive impact on affective image; affective image forms conative images involving visit intention and commitment, and conative image exerts a positive impact on overall image. Moreover, an examination of the indirect impact of study variables suggested that affective image and conative image components are necessary mediators in the model. Theoretical implications and the advertising and marketing implications for practitioners are discussed.
This study sought to investigate on hotel investors’ perspectives on the role of the public sector in Kenya’s competitiveness as an investment destination for the tourism industry. The study adopted an exploratory research design involving 24 executives drawn from hotel companies that operated 3- to 5-star hotels in Kenya. The study found out that entrepreneurship, and legislation and regulation functions were considered the most significant roles of Kenya’s public sector in creating a competitive environment for the tourism sector. The study further found out that the public sector roles of coordination, planning and stimulation were considered of less significance to attracting hotel investments. The paper recommends that the government seeks to address the noted concerns and notes the need for further research on the efficacy of the different investment promotion initiatives in view of the amount of resources that the government commits in terms of incentives to the sector.
The number of restaurateurs owning farms or gardens that supply part of their operations’ fresh produce and other food products has increased considerably over the past few years. This phenomenon, termed "hyper-local," involves a significant commitment that goes well beyond purchasing local food. Hyper-local restaurateurs take on the tasks of a farmer/gardener, a job that requires a variety of skills and presents numerous challenges. While some research studies have addressed local purchasing, local farm-to-restaurant relationships and decision making, and various consumer issues, very little work has focused on the hyper-local phenomenon. Therefore, this exploratory qualitative study was undertaken to understand the reasons why some restaurateurs are entering the farming business and to learn about the financial, operational, and customer-related benefits and challenges encountered by restaurateurs operating their own farms. A case study approach was used to gather information from three restaurateurs that currently own and operate farms that provide products for their restaurants. The study explores the benefits, rewards, and challenges of these types of operations, their possible financial issues, motivations of the restaurateurs, and issues that could impact the growth potential of this trend.
Recent socio-economic gains made by China have transformed the country into an enormous outbound travel market for destinations such as New Zealand. Various official statistics that pertain to this market are produced for the purposes of evaluating its behaviour and affirming its commercial value. An analysis of articles published in New Zealand newspapers demonstrates that media-disseminated statistics are used to assess the capabilities of the Chinese outbound travel market, reflect a desire for objective measures and can be broadly associated with a series of managerial interventions. Connecting publically available statistics with certain actions taken by tourism organizations must proceed cautiously. However, the correspondence between official statistics that quantify dimensions of particular issues and certain industry actions can be mapped, to some extent, in proximate terms. Statistics help to make problems and opportunities connected with a phenomenon – in this case, the Chinese travel market – discernible and thus more compatible with management intervention. Enumeration and industry action are intertwined in a manner that merits study by tourism researchers. To chart the connections between data-based depictions of a travel market and industry responses, this paper marshals evidence from New Zealand newspapers – publications that chronicle important dimensions of the country’s tourism industry and are a significant means of public communication. A sequence of statistically based episodic portraits of the Chinese market produces a changing object of scrutiny and intervention for a variety of interested parties.
When people feel that their freedom of choice is eliminated or reduced, they may experience unpleasant arousal. Creative tourism and the quality of the tourism experience are more likely to occur when an individual has the opportunity and freedom to choose travel options and perceives control over the activity. While freedom of choice is an essential part of tourists’ enjoyment, less research attention has been given to freedom of choice in the context of tourism destinations. This study focused on mainland Chinese travelers at a recently emerging gambling capital of the world as a case for investigation and aims at filling this literature gap by proposing a "freedom of choice—satisfaction—destination loyalty" paradigm. Hence, the main purpose of this study is to evaluate a theoretical model by examining the relationship among freedom of choice, satisfaction, and destination loyalty and the mediating effect of satisfaction between freedom of choice and destination loyalty. The study also examines the potential moderating effects of gender on the aforementioned relationships. The structural model indicates that freedom of choice had a direct and positive impact on destination loyalty, but this relationship is partially mediated by satisfaction levels. However, the model did not discover a moderating effect of gender. Based on these findings, this study discusses conclusion and implications for research and practice in the context of tourism literature.
The purpose of this study is to model and empirically test outbound tourism demand of Turkish travel market. For this purpose, panel cointegration tests and panel fully modified ordinary least squares method, which produces asymptotically unbiased and normally distributed coefficient estimates, are employed for 12 Turkish travel markets. The results indicate that there is a cointegration relation in the model, and income, relative price, and word of mouth are significant determinants affecting outbound tourism demand of Turkey for the 12 destinations. Managerial implications are discussed.
This study used 268 household and 13 key informant interviews to get the views of Livingstone city residents on economic, environmental and sociocultural effects of tourism on local households and the city. Results show very few economic benefits at household level with residents perceiving big tourism-related businesses, the state and its officials to be the main beneficiaries. Although tourists were commended for helping vulnerable residents, they were blamed for contributing to prostitution and diseases by local residents; and were targeted for petty thefts by unemployed youths. Sociocultural effects of tourism are significant for residents but are routinely ignored or glossed over by tourism development practitioners. Tourism had resulted in a general improvement in the city environs. It is concluded that tourism development projects must target increased benefits for residents to increase benevolent attitudes from them towards tourism in their city, and to ensure a more sustainable variant of tourism is achieved in the tourist capital.
Today, understanding the reason for tourists choosing an Islamic destination over other destinations is considered a vital aspect of Islamic tourism studies. In this paper, an attempt is made to analyse the factors influencing the behavioural intentions including congruence between self-concept and destination personality, destination personality and tourist’s satisfaction and perceived experience. The targeted respondents of the present research consist of foreign tourists who chose a historical-Islamic destination. Data were analysed through structural equation modelling. Results show that the tourists’ perceived experience and satisfaction influence the behavioural intentions of the tourist. Furthermore, the congruence between self-concept and destination personality influences the tourists’ perceived experience and satisfaction and finally, perceived experience influences tourist satisfaction.
The increasing willingness to travel as well as the increasing number of airlines create a strong competitive market in the air transport industry. In such circumstances, paying attention to the market needs is the prerequisite of the success and profitability of the company. Hence, nowadays, airlines endeavor to provide their customers with appropriate services and incentives to maintain the existing customers and attract new ones. The importance of providing appropriate incentives, on the one hand, and lack of resources, on the other, have led to airlines’ incapacity to provide good services for all of their customers. A logical solution in such a situation is to determine strategies to provide services for customers based on their value. The value model developed in this study is based on a combination of four variables, namely, relationship Length, Frequency, Distance and Recency, which is named LDcFR model. Using these variables along with the imperialist competitive algorithm clustering technique and Markov chain will determine the value of each passenger. The results of the study indicate that the LDcFR model is useful for determining the passenger value.
This study examines the assumption that tendencies to dissociate oneself from other tourists relate to the desire to position own characteristics (using travel motives as an example) in a positive light. Results suggest that tourists tend to perceive themselves to be different to other tourists (referred as typical or average tourists) concerning most measured travel motives; yet, the direction of perceived differences between oneself and other tourists was not systematically related to levels of desirability associated with each motive. Implications for studying tourist experiences are being discussed whilst methodological limitations of the present study are acknowledged.
A multi-disciplinary reading in cross-cultural service interactions in hospitality and service management literature was undertaken focusing on employee’s attitudes and behaviour that are seen to influence service quality. The interplay of the competing constructs of employee personality, emotional intelligence and cultural intelligence in the service encounter was looked at in relation to employee performance and customer perception of service quality. The reading suggests that cultural intelligence of service employees was the most relevant construct in the encounter. As there are no studies linking cultural intelligence to service quality, the dialogue with the literature allowed the development of a theoretical model of relationships which proposed that cultural intelligence is related to service quality through employee performance. This reading adds to the cross-cultural hospitality and service management literature and has potential implications for management and employee training and development in these fields.
Most studies on community participation in tourism planning only advocate the importance of the concept and/or identify barriers without articulating the required actions or strategies to actually promote community participation. Based on a study in two protected areas in Malawi, this paper identifies and discusses possible strategies that can enhance community participation in tourism planning associated with protected areas in developing countries. Data were collected through in-depth interviews and focus group discussions. The study participants were from protected area management agencies, government departments, non-governmental organisations, tourism operators and the local population surrounding the two protected areas. The findings suggest the need for a rethink on how local communities around protected areas are involved in tourism planning in developing country contexts. Six strategies emerged as major prerequisites to achieve full and active community participation: public awareness and education; capacity building; creation of linkages; use of appropriate participation methods; involvement of appropriate local community organisations and decentralisation and coordination of relevant management organisations.
Covent Garden is firmly established in London’s tourism landscape due to its commercial sector, distinctive architecture and provision of different forms of performing arts including the UK’s leading Opera House at its core. This study aims to understand the factors that shape the tourists’ perception and experience of this long standing urban precinct and the influence that the Royal Opera House exerts on these processes. It contributes to the understanding of how a well-established area is perceived and experienced by tourists exposed to a range of stimulating factors including a cultural flagship for the performing arts. A social constructivist approach was adopted to address this complex area of study from a non-foundational perspective. A total of 306 semi-structured interviews were conducted in a variety of locations revealing that age and nationality are fundamental elements underpinning the tourists’ perception and experience of place leading to a process of cultural appraisal.
Surprisingly, there have been few published studies monitoring a destination’s brand image over time. This temporal aspect of destination image is an important gap in the literature, given consensus around the role perceptions play in consumers’ decision making, and the ensuing emphasis on imagery in destination branding collateral. Whereas the majority of published destination image studies have been in the form of a snapshot of perceptions at one point in time, this paper presents findings from a survey implemented four times between 2003 and 2015. Brand image is the core construct in any modelling of destination branding performance, which has emerged as a relatively new field of research in the past decade. Using the consumer-based brand equity hierarchy, the project has benchmarked and monitored destination brand salience, image and resonance for an emerging regional destination, relative to key competitors, in the domestic Australian market; and the survey instrument has been demonstrated to be reliable in the context of short break holidays by car. What is particularly interesting to date is that there has been relatively little change in the market positions of the five destinations, in spite of over a decade of branding marketing communications by the regional tourism organisations and their stakeholders, and more recently, the mass of user-generated travel content on social media. The project did not analysis the actual marketing communications for each of the destination marketing organisations. Therefore, an important implication is that irrespective of the level of marketing undertaken, the destination marketing organisations seem to have had little control over the perceptions held in their largest market during this time period. Therefore, it must be recognised that any improvement in perceptions will likely take a long period of time, and so branding needs to be underpinned by a philosophy of a long-term financial investment as well as commitment to a consistency of message over time, which given the politics of destination marketing organisation decision making represents a considerable challenge.
Whilst considerable attention has been given to the role of cultural tourism in city development and the ‘gentrification’ of inner city areas, there has been little research into the experiences of cultural tourists. Past research shows that their experience is conceptualised as a ‘pre-programmed’ product made especially for mass consumption. It is often assumed that the commoditisation of urban tourism results in ‘standardised’ city environments, loss of culture and traditions, loss of place distinctiveness and subsequent loss of ‘authenticity’. According to this line of reasoning, cultural tourists consume ‘specimens of the artificial’ which are mass produced, predictable, standardised, superficial, and hence ‘inauthentic’. The central focus of this article is the ongoing debate concerning the consumption of tourists’ cultural experiences within the context of city tourism. Issues associated with the various dimensions of ‘authenticity’ that inform cultural tourism studies are critically assessed. Finally, by way of conclusion the article offers a fresh perspective for understanding the consumption of urban experiences.
Film-induced tourism has various socio-cultural, economic and environmental impacts on local destinations. Considering that destination managers and tourism development authorities aim to plan for optimal tourism development, and at the same time wish to minimize the negative impacts of this development on the local communities, monitoring residents’ opinions of perceived impacts is a good way of incorporating their reaction into tourism planning and development. This study’s main objective is to explore residents’ perceptions of film-induced tourism and the impacts of filmmaking on the development of a destination. Specifically, the research examines residents’ perceptions of filmmaking impacts on two Portuguese municipalities (Arcos de Valdevez and Estremoz) given their features in two popular television soap operas. Data is collected by means of an Internet survey, in which residents’ perceptions of these impacts are solicited. Residents generally agree that the recording and exhibition of the television soap operas are important to the municipality, and contribute to the increased number of tourists. Given that residents consider that the positive impacts are more significant than the negative impacts, they would support the recording of other television series in their municipalities. Although perceptions of residents from Arcos de Valdevez and Estremoz were similar, some significant differences were found.
In this article, the quality of web communication in nautical tourism is assessed, through an analysis of tourist ports websites. Tourist ports address their offer to a large variety of actual and potential customers (boaters, charter companies, crews, etc.), with every group having different drivers for interest in the port, variable expectations and specific needs to be satisfied. As a consequence, tourist ports should be capable of fine tuning their communication strategies and tools to the peculiarities of each group, to attract potential users, provide useful information to actual users and generally encourage loyalty toward the port itself. Websites, given their potential in reaching a wide international audience with rich and adaptable contents, play a major role in this purpose. This article puts forward an original evaluation tool to measure the quality of tourist ports websites, in terms of both quantity and value of the information provided; this tool is subsequently tested on a sample of tourist ports in Northern Sardinia (Italy), an area of great importance for nautical tourism in the Mediterranean Sea. Our work not only supports theoretical reflection about the quality of web communication in nautical tourism but also contributes practical recommendations to port managers on how to improve the quality of the port website.
This article presents a bibliometric review analyzing 15 years of research published between 2000 and 2014 in the journal Tourism and Hospitality Research. Raw citations metrics were gathered using "Publish or Perish," a data-miner software from Harzing, using Google Scholar as a base. The analysis focuses on six key metrics of the journal’s publications: (a) the nature of authorship, (b) the most influential articles, (c) the most influential authors, (d) the most prolific authors, (e) the themes covered, and (f) the manuscript characteristics of the articles published during the period. Notes for contributors, book reviews, conference reports/proceedings, practice papers, and editorials were excluded from the scope of this research, and 292 research articles appearing in the journal during this time were included in the investigation. Data were analyzed using SPSS and Excel. The article provides an overview of the evolution of the journal and presents some key trends in ongoing research within the industry. The study finds a clear trend toward coauthorship with a substantial increase in triple-authored articles. The majority of the articles have gone from being single authored in 2000–2004 to being dual authored in 2010–2014. Articles on marketing and consumer behavior, HR management, and environmental aspects have experienced a steady increase while strategic implications, hospitality and tourism operations, impact assessment and mitigation, and education have received a decreased attention. There has been a significant drop in theory development articles, in favor of quantitative research designs, in particular survey studies. Qualitative research designs rest relatively constant; however, case studies and interviews have lost ground to content analysis manuscripts. Contributions further include insights that can aid editors in determining future directions of the journal, guidance for potential authors in their quest to get published, and identification of new opportunities in research areas for the journal and researchers alike.
The aim of this paper is to identify Warsaw residents’ perceptions and attitudes toward the UEFA EURO 2012 tournament. The investigation focused on how residents of Warsaw perceived the impacts of the tournament one year after the event. A questionnaire survey was applied using a stratified sampling method to 480 residents of Warsaw. The results of the survey and ordered logit regressions show that although the residents did not perceive that the economic benefits of the tournament were spread uniformly, a large majority valued the tournament’s role in promoting Warsaw as a tourist destination and enhancing the international identity of the city. Whereas residents generally displayed positive attitudes toward EURO 2012 in terms of lifting their pride and bringing the community closer together, they also noted some negative impacts of the event. The opinions expressed about the tournament depended on the age, education, and income of the responders. A majority of the residents agreed that the positive impacts of EURO 2012 outweighed the negative.
Colombia is a country that has achieved significant tourism growth in recent years. However, there is limited empirical evidence about its tourism development. Organizational innovation in tourism enterprises is one of the keys to Colombia maintaining positive tourism development. This empirical study analyzes organizational innovation in 364 of Colombiás tourism companies. The findings show that "Directing and Management (The way of directing and managing company)" and "Commercialization and Sales (The way to directing and managing the commercialization and sales of a company)" have a significant relationship with Colombiás tourist enterprises organizational innovations.
This manuscript investigates the complexities and challenges in the management of the Ololosokwan community conservation area in Northern Tanzania. The conservation area is adjacent to the Serengeti National Park, just south of the Tanzanian-Kenyan Border where nomadic Maasai Pastoralists are free to cross international borders in search of grazing for their cattle. The Ololosokwan community is faced with the difficulties of managing a number of conflicting land-uses and community aspirations while striving toward the maintenance of a successful and sustainable community conservation area in collaboration with a private tourism operation. Benefit sharing was found to be an effective way in which to heal negative stakeholder engagements of the past, and active participation in the development of community livelihoods was found to be a more meaningful pursuit in this cause than merely sharing money. Despite opportunities for stakeholders to show that they are willing to work together, existing conflict is likely to continue as stakeholders still mistrust each other and often align themselves with groups that share common interests.
The personal and community-wide benefits of parks are well documented in previous studies. Despite a strong recognition of park benefits in the literature, there has been limited inquiry focused on the relationship between visitation and perceptions of the personal and community-wide benefits of parks. Consequently, this paper revisits the influence of visitation, as well as other key variables, on public perceptions of the benefits of parks. To achieve this objective, a survey was administered to 1584 participants from Australia. Overall, the Australian public was quite positive about the benefits of parks. Results revealed a strong association between visitation, age, gender and public perceptions of park benefits. Residing in an urban or regional location had little effect on perceptions of park benefits. Future research and management attention should be directed towards improving non-visitors', young people's and males' perceptions of the benefits of parks.
The study used web-based simulated hospitality scenarios to examine cultural differences in emotional cognition of facial expressions among Chinese and American subjects in an exploratory study. Results indicate that the two cultural groups interpreted smiling and direct eye-gaze similarly. Although a smiling face elicited positive emotional affective responses from both cultural groups, smiling alone was not sufficient to stimulate more positive subject reactions: Smiling needs to be accompanied by direct eye-gaze to fully elicit positive reactions from subjects. Study results suggest that global hospitality standards should reflect findings of psychological research on emotional labor and also that business normative guidelines should encourage the display of smiling faces along with direct eye-gaze to motivate a positive customer experience. No support was found for tailoring facial expressions related training to customers’ cultural backgrounds.
In response to research revealing only 21% of protected areas worldwide have ‘sound’ management practices, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature has introduced The Green List for Protected Areas. A system of certification that has resulted from recognition of the need for global standards for protected area management. While not focused specifically on tourism, visitation and visitor management practices where relevant to the overall management of a park are important components. For many protected areas, tourism is integral, relying on visitors and tourism for financial support. Increasingly, partnerships between conservation and tourism are contributing to changes in attitudes around the issues of biodiversity conservation and environmentally responsible business practices. This paper discusses The Green List concept and a case study of one of the successful pilot sites, Arakwal National Park in Australia. The paper also explores partnerships between conservation and tourism and how these partnerships could unfold through the work of The Green List. The work of the Global Sustainable Tourism Council which encourages such partnerships is also discussed, focused on sustainable tourism criteria.
Commercial air service is important to residents and tourists in small communities, but small communities have seen a reduction (and sometimes elimination) of commercial air service. Anecdotal evidence suggests that flight interruptions (delays and cancellations) negatively impact these airports, as local residents drive to nearby hubs instead of flying from the local airport. This study looks at the impact of delays and cancellations by considering their effect on an entire travel itinerary. This study investigates 207 itineraries from eight small American airports to 11 hub airports. On average, passengers on about one in six (16.4%) connecting itineraries would face a missed connection due to delay or cancellation. In addition, delays on origin flights magnify across connections. An average delay on the initial flight (68 min) would lead to an average arrival delay of 90 min across all itineraries, while a cancellation would lead to an arrival delay of over 10 h. This study also introduces a measure of overall lateness that combines delay and cancellation percentages with final destination arrival times across nonstop and connecting itineraries. These flight interruptions may have consequences on maintaining air service, which affects community residents and potential visitors.
Few researchers have examined travellers’ experience with destinations despite the importance of their attitudes, behaviour and perception in selecting destinations. Current study aims to examine the relationship between risk perceptions, motivation, information source, travel experience and destination image among experienced international business travellers in Iran. The total number of 234 valid questionnaires was collected from international business travellers and structural equation modelling was employed using partial least squares path-modelling analysis to assess measurement and structural model for reflective constructs. Our empirical results support the negative relationship between destination image and risk perception, travel experience and risk perception while information sources were found to be unrelated to travellers risk perceptions. The results further shown that information sources and destination image, information sources and motivation, motivation and travel experience and destination image are related. However, the partial least squares-multigroup analysis results reveal that the significance of path coefficients differs across various demographic subgroups. Moreover, our results support experience and risk perception as a second-order reflective construct. Practical and theoretical implications are discussed along with a discussion on research limitations.
This paper examines host and backpacker perceptions of the environmental impacts of backpacker tourism on local communities in less-developed countries. The discussion is based on data collected in 2011 via surveys and interviews with host and backpacker populations in the Yasawa Islands of Fiji. The results suggest that there is a significant difference between the perceptions of hosts and their guests towards the environmental impacts of backpacker tourism. Backpackers believe that they generate a higher extent of negative environmental impacts on the destination than those perceived by their hosts. This study broadens the understanding of the impacts of backpacker tourism from dual perspectives – both the hosts and guests.
The primary purpose of this study is to investigate guests’ perception of green hotels through a content analysis of online hotel reviews. A total of 7370 comments were collected, and 737 green comments were analyzed based on TripAdvisor’s top 10 green hotels. Our results indicate that the majority of hotel green practices are perceived as positive. Hotel guests consider some green practices, such as a reflective roofing system, a storm water management system, and guest training, as sincere efforts by hotels to be green and they complement them. However, some hotel guests assert that hotels may just be using green practices as a marketing tool or to gain financial benefits. Some green practices, such as temperature control, low water pressure, and degradable utensils, are actually not positively perceived. Therefore, our results suggest to hotel operators how they should implement being a sincere green hotel and how green practices should be approached to build environmental friendly branding strategies.
Bangkok, Thailand is in a unique position to benefit economically and has become one of the world’s most popular tourist destinations, due to its function as a hub for international travel in Southeast Asia. Thus, this study examines how past experiences, age, income, gender, education level, occupation, and regions affect international tourists’ reasons to visit Bangkok. After conducting chi-square analysis on 400 participants, significant differences were found among the varying income levels, occupations, education levels, and regions of origin and their reasons for visiting Bangkok. However, no significant differences were found based on age and gender regarding reasons to visit Bangkok. As far as regions of origin, Europeans were most likely to visit Bangkok as a stopover in route to another destination. This lays the foundations for further research focusing on what Bangkok can do to increase their status as a destination for European travelers.
The study examines the effect of market intelligence practices on firm performance in the small- and medium-sized tour operators in Malaysia. Specifically, a conceptual model is developed which hypothesizes that firm innovativeness relates positively to market intelligence acquisition and market intelligence utilization which, in turn, affects firm performance. A self-administered questionnaire survey is used to garner responses from a sample of 81 tour operators. The findings indicate that firm performance is positively related to market intelligence practices both in terms of market intelligence acquisition and market intelligence utilization. In addition, it also shows that the relationship between firm innovativeness and market intelligence acquisition is stronger than the relationship between firm innovativeness and market intelligence utilization. These findings may imply that even though market intelligence practices are more prevalent among larger firms, small- and medium-sized tour operators may also benefit from having formal information processing systems and in particular in terms of acquiring and utilizing information. The limitations of the study and recommendations for future research are also discussed.
The evolution of tourism destinations is influenced by a range of factors including the policy and planning framework, the role of destination management organisations, and integration of tourism into the local and national economy. The aim of this paper is to describe how the private sector can influence destination development, by considering a luxury safari lodge (Mombo Camp) and its holding company (Okavango Wilderness Safaris) within the Okavango Delta of Botswana. Through a series of stakeholder interviews and literature review, the research found that Mombo had influenced the destination’s quality standards, how it is marketed and promoted, and also in the conservation of endangered species. Over the course of 30 years, the holding company has also been influential in the development and implementation of tourism and conservation policy, environmental awareness among youth, and also conservation research. The findings of this study suggest that destination planning authorities should encourage reputable private sector operators that have a long-term interest in the destination and promote sustainable tourism practices, including those that can mobilise a network of facilities and attractions, can collaborate with their competitors, and can support and advise government on policy and its implementation.
Interpretation in protected areas can help reach conservation goals and inspire a new generation of knowledgeable and dedicated park supporters. However, few research projects have examined this connection in a comprehensive manner. This 2011 study evaluated perceived knowledge, interest, appreciation, and advocacy impacts from interpretive programs at Miquelon Lake Provincial Park (MLPP), Alberta, Canada. Of 497 respondents, 19.7% attended an interpretive program. Among attendees, 89% rated the programs as excellent or very good, and most agreed that interpretation increased knowledge about nature (88%), interest in future programs (87%), and appreciation for MLPP (82%). Somewhat fewer but still a majority of attendees agreed that interpretation increased their desire to support AB Parks (71%), their awareness of environmental issues (69%), and their desire to help the environment (61%). Attendees (and nonattendees to a lesser extent) supported the role of interpretation in the park. The key constraints for not attending were lack of awareness, awkward timing, and being too busy. Park interpretation at MLPP appears to generate positive impacts related to the environment, regarding learning, awareness, appreciation, and a desire to help.
Over the past decade, several scholars have argued that livelihood diversification in terms of off-farm activities is key for rural households to escape from poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Although the continuous growth of tourism in many SSA countries has created an additional off-farm income activity, empirical evidence is lacking to substantiate the poverty alleviating impact of tourism employment as being consistent and universal at the household level. Using the case of Kibale National Park in western Uganda, the aims of this paper are (1) to analyze the actual income composition of different types of rural livelihood strategies by means of cluster analysis, and (2) to compare the financial impact of tourism employment with alternative off-farm income activities. Results show a large differentiation in income compositions of households around Kibale National Park. In general, households engaged in off-farm income activities have higher levels of overall household welfare. Tourism employment generates low incomes compared to alternative off-farm activities, but still enables households to strengthen livelihood strategies by investments in on-farm or alternative off-farm activities.
Financial sustainability of conservation areas is one of the cornerstones for enabling effective conservation management. However, the current status of conservation area funding is widely detached from the need, and this disparity is intensified in developing countries. Therefore, identifying and valuing the revenue streams and finance needs of conservation areas is an important step in the process to become financial sustainable. This paper assesses the revenue potential of conservation areas in Mozambique national parks and reserves. The analysis describes the revenue generation of 93 conservation areas in Mozambique in 2013 to (i) the economy, (ii) the Government of Mozambique and conservation area management authorities, as well as (iii) respective communities bordering conservation areas. The analysis determined that the total annual revenue generation within the conservation area network was USD 24.4 million in 2013 from tourism-linked activities. The component of total revenue that accrued to either national Government of Mozambique or conservation area management was USD 3.33 million in 2013, and USD 606,500 of this accrued to communities surrounding conservation areas. The research has demonstrated that revenue generation of the conservation area network contributes approximately 10% to the tourism sector’s total contribution to the economy of Mozambique. In addition, this research highlights the difficulties of revenue generation from conservation areas in least developed countries and the effects of a lack of data on justifying the value of a conservation area network from an economic perspective.
The International Union for the Conservation of Nature World Parks Congress is held once a decade, and brings together thousands of the world’s experts on protected areas. In 2014, the Sydney World Parks Congress and the parallel event, Global Eco, provided a platform for 125 presentations relating to tourism and visitation. This paper presents a synthesis of the body of work shared at Sydney, including some of the cutting-edge issues, best practices, and inspiring initiatives relating to sustainable tourism. In particular, it compares issues that were highlighted at the 2003 World Parks Congress, and how they have evolved and progressed over the past decade. The paper highlights the role of different stakeholders from different corners of the world in promoting sustainable tourism practices. It also considers the relevance of tourism to the themes of the World Parks Congress, and how the sector is reflected within the official records of the 2003 and 2014 World Parks Congress. Looking forward to the next 10 years, the paper reflects on specific challenges, gaps in knowledge, and areas for further research and outreach.
This paper investigates hospitality employers’ perspectives of two key interdisciplinary subjects, i.e. sustainable development and information technology in the context of hospitality education, particularly graduate employability. A qualitative approach is deployed at this stage of the research with semi-structured interviews conducted with employers of hospitality graduates that represent diverse stakeholders in the industry. Respondents had varying interpretations of the meaning of sustainable development and the role of technology in their businesses. Sustainability is not currently prioritised as a critical employability skill; however, employers clearly appreciate the value of sustainability for their business and recognise how technology might support sustainable development. This is the first effort to investigate employers’ perspectives of the interdisciplinary subjects of technology and sustainable development in hospitality management undergraduate education.
Companies with innovative behavior seek differentiation and are constantly reconciling needs and internal objectives with new market opportunities and restrictions imposed by the institutional framework. The involvement of the wineries with the service sector, by adapting to wine tourism, raises an innovative process which requires some organizational change. This study deals with this issue, arguing that the wineries’ change process toward wine tourism development may occur as a result of internal drivers and external pressures. In this sense, the wineries are analyzed through two different points of view: an intraorganizational perspective with the dynamic capability approach, and an interorganizational perspective with the institutional theory. Structural equation modeling methodology is used to estimate and validate the model, which aims to explain the causes and effects of wine tourism development. Results support the propositions that through wine tourism development, the wineries create, extend, and modify their processes, building and using dynamic capabilities, whereas institutional factors shape firms’ behavior and ensure social legitimacy, besides improving their organizational performance.
The aim of this paper was to examine the satisfaction of voluntourists derived from various aspects of their trip. Framed within the Existence, Relatedness and Growth Theory, the paper examines volunteers’ motivations, expectations and satisfaction based on their financial and time investment volunteering with Volunteer Eco Students Abroad (VESA), the intereactions they had on the trip, and the extent to which travellers felt as though they contributed to community goals. In 2012, the researchers carried out in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 16 Canadian voluntourists following their time in St. Lucia, South Africa. A thematic analysis was used to interpret the data, resulting in three themes: ‘Evaluating Investment’, ‘Contribution to Community’ and ‘Opportunities and Reaffirmations’; sub-themes were matched with aspects of Existence, Relatedness and Growth Theory. Findings elicited several levels of expectations of voluntourists revealed through their feelings of satisfaction or dissatisfaction. On the lowest level, voluntourists expect adequate food and water whilst volunteering. Informants highlighted the various ways they raised fund for the trip, and this impacted their level of accountability for contributing to the community. Volunteers also expect volunteer organizations to be transparent regarding the use of funds and expressed dissatisfaction when this did not occur. Volunteers anticipated a feeling of connection between the hosts and themselves and were frustrated if they felt more time could have been allotted to working with community residents. Lastly, informants expected the experience to provide an opportunity for self-learning and professional development and overall were satisfied with this element of the trip.
This study attempts to explore behavioral characteristics of international tourists visiting Istanbul in guided tours, and to examine the differences and similarities among tourists of different nationalities using data provided by Turkish tour guides. Data were collected utilizing a survey site designed for research for Turkish tour guides working in Istanbul, Turkey. The results suggest that there are three underlying dimensions of tourists’ behavior during guided tours, namely, shopping, activities, and social interaction. Significant differences are observed among seven nationalities. Pair comparisons of the groups belonging to the three dimensions are conducted for the purpose of revealing similarities and differences. The Japanese are found to be the most distinct tourist group in comparison to others. Finally, conclusions and implications are discussed at the end of the study.
This study explored the important role of brand prestige in the casino industry. More specifically, based on a literature review, it was proposed that (1) brand prestige positively affects three outcome variables: social value, customer satisfaction, and revisit intentions; (2) social value has a positive influence on customer satisfaction and revisit intentions; and (3) customer involvement plays a moderating role in this process. Based on the proposed hypotheses, a conceptual model was developed and tested using empirical data from 236 casino customers who had played casino games in the United States. Data analysis results showed that brand prestige is an important determinant of social value and customer satisfaction, both of which bear a significant impact on revisit intentions. Lastly, customer involvement plays an important moderating role in the relationship between brand prestige and customer satisfaction. The possible interpretations and managerial implications of these findings are provided in the last section of the article.
Visitor information centers provide destinations with an opportunity once visitors are at the destination to provide information and recommendations. As a result, destinations who manage visitor information centers benefit from being aware of who visits the center, what information is important to such visitors, and how well the center does at providing the information and services. Therefore, this study compares demographic characteristics of visitors who visit and those who do not visit visitor information centers, as well as if reasons for visiting such facilities (e.g. general information, get a map of the area) are associated with demographic characteristics. The study also conducts an importance-performance analysis of a visitor information center’s services. This study found visitors who stopped at the visitor information center were older and more likely to be retired than visitors who did not. The study also found that demographic characteristics, such as age and employment status, were associated with reasons for stopping at a visitor information center. Importance-performance analysis revealed areas where the visitor information center can focus to improve their performance (e.g. knowledge of staff) and where resources might be redirected as a result of less important services (e.g. activities/tour booking service). Practical implications of the study are discussed.
Recent investigations suggest that human resource practices influence organisational performance through their effect on key mediating variables. However, the link between human resource management practices and innovation performance is yet to be determined and little is known about the variables that can mediate this relation. The diverse results of studies in this field seem to suggest that the sector of activity may determine specific aspects of this relation. By analysing data from a single industry, this paper aims to increase understanding of the mediating role of human capital in the relation between human resource management practices and innovation. Data from a survey of 109 firms managing hotel establishments in Spain show that, in the hotel industry, some human resource management practices affect innovation through their influence on human capital. Recruitment and selection human resource management practices, however, do not enhance the level of human capital of the firms studied, although they do determine their innovation performance.
Research in the important area of evaluating the relationship of hotel room sales with hotel amenities, for instance, food and beverage sales is limited. While this study focuses on differences in overall profitability when considering the transient rate at hotels, the authors have utilized data from hotels with food and beverage operations in order to provide additional insights for this sector. The results show that when modeling the profitability of a hotel, several items are important and should be included when analyzing profitability. The segment of the market, type of hotel, location of the hotel, number of rooms, and average daily rate are all found to be important factors in determining profitability and should be included in models of profit. The transient rate is controlled for in all models but is found to be a significant factor in determining the profitability of a hotel in only some specifications.
Small hospitality firms are very important to the Egyptian economy because of their potential contributions to economic growth and job creation. However, there is a paucity research about small hospitality firms in developing countries, i.e. Egypt. This research bridges a gap in knowledge and investigates human resource management practices in small versus large hospitality firms in Egypt. A pretested questionnaire was self-administered to workers in four groups of hospitality firms: large chain, large independent, small chain, and small independent. The results showed that chain hospitality firms are more likely to practice formal and appropriate human resource management in comparison to other independent firms regardless their size. The results showed that there are statistical significant differences within small firms and also within large firms. Small hospitality firms are not homogenous and recognizing the level of heterogeneity within these firms, will lead to better understanding human resource management practices in these firms. Policy makers in Egypt should pay serious attention to small hospitality firms. Failure to this will impact negatively on the hospitality industry and ultimately on tourism development, which is critical to the Egyptian economy.
The profile of five battles fought by Australians in the Great War (1914–1918) was traced over the past century using the frequency by which they were cited in the popular media. The pattern of these frequencies appeared to remain much the same from 1915 until the 1990s with battles involving very large numbers of casualties at Pozières and Passchendaele having a higher media frequency than smaller battles at Fromelles and Villers-Bretonneux. Gallipoli's status as Australia's best known battlefield has been consistent from 1915 until the present day. Over the past decade however, the media frequencies suggest that there has been a re-prioritization in the importance of these five battles. The discovery of lost graves at Fromelles and the introduction of a Dawn Service at Villers-Bretonneux has elevated the importance of these two sites, with the result that tourist visitation to them has also increased.
While to some extent there is disharmony in defining the term ecotourism, most tourism research agrees that the eco prefix is a definite pointer to environmental or natural resource management as a core value to the concept. However, the inherent gap between theoretical conceptualization of ecotourism as "green practice expected to address adverse outcomes of conventional tourism" and actual environmental impacts of this form of tourism raises the question of whether or not ecotourism in practice complies more closely with its defining criteria. In this regard, this article explores the term ecotourism as a metaphor for pro environmental behavior, uncovering its derivatives as constructed by tourism players in Kenya. The study covered five focal areas for ecotourism identified by the Ecotourism Society of Kenya, analyzing excerpts from hypertexts that operate at the supply side of tourism to read motivations for references to the term. The readings were then compared to The International Ecotourism Society definition of ecotourism which was taken as a neutral position. The findings revealed that environmental sustainability was an insignificant concern, as compared to product promotion and corporate image in informing the concept of ecotourism in focal areas. Consequently, the "eco prefix" metaphor in tourism is informed by economic and social logics, serving stakeholders other interests. The authors recommend a revisit to the practical basis of the concept for actors in ecotourism focal areas, with keen considerations to linguistic adequacies of the term's use.
The lodging industry has recently placed a greater emphasis on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in an effort to present itself as a responsible global citizen. The objective of the study was to identify hotel general managers’ (GM) perceptions of their corporate-level Corporate Social Responsibility culture. The data were collected via an online survey of Florida hotel general managers using a CSR scale developed by Turker in the year 2009 and a Social Attitude Scale. A total of 123 surveys were returned and deemed usable, equating to a 22% response rate. The overall results indicated that GMs had a positive perception of their corporation’s CSR culture. In addition, the results of the study indicated that there was a positive correlation between the GMs’ personal attitudes toward CSR and their perception of their corporation’s CSR culture. Also, GMs of smaller hotels tended to have a more positive perception of their corporation’s CSR culture, although there was no difference based upon ownership structure. This study contributes to the general CSR research body of knowledge and is unique in terms of providing a number of benchmarks for the hospitality industry.
This paper uses dynamic panel model to compare the effect of terrorism on developed and emerging country demand for tourism in Kenya. Quarterly data spanning 2010Q1 to 2013Q4, sourced from the Kenyan National Bureau of Statistics, for 27 developed and 34 emerging countries is used. Intensity of terror attack measured by fatalities significantly reduces tourist arrivals from developed countries but not from emerging countries. A 1% increase in fatality reduces arrivals from developed countries by 0.082%. This translates to 2487 visitors per year, or roughly 155.8 million Kenya shillings lost annually from an increase of one fatality per quarter.
This study aims to examine the casino experiences of South Koreans within the framework of the four realms suggested by Pine and Gilmore's concept of the experience economy. Employing a qualitative research method, the current analysis focuses on how casinos are experienced and contextualized by contemporary South Koreans who imbue casinos with different meanings depending on how the individuals have experienced these places. The results reveal that the concept of the experience economy provides a new perspective for casino researchers to shift focus away from the rational behavior of casino visitors to focus more on their subjective and emotional experiences. The findings particularly show that South Korean casino visitors get easily absorbed in the casino environment, although they are unlikely to be completely immersed; at the same time, most of the visitors remain passive participants in gambling activities. Several salient practical implications are provided for casino researchers and marketers.
This study aimed at identifying the factors that likely favor or hinder the development of cruise tourism in an emerging Southern Italian tourist destination. We conducted semistructured interviews with key players in this business, showing that the following are relevant enablers of cruise tourism development: the accessibility of tourist resources, the supply of integrated services to cruise lines and their passengers, cooperative relationships among private and public operators, and the creation of a distinctive image. However, cruise tourism development can be inhibited by poor professionalism on the part of tourist firms, the lack of a clear tourist regulatory framework, the fragmentation of the shore-based offer, and the risk of environmental degradation. The study thus contributes to the research on cruise tourism development, which is still in its infancy, and provides policymakers and practitioners with suggestions for facilitating the emergence of the cruise industry.
Tourists' perceptions of climate change affect decisions and choices to visit destinations, which are disappearing because of climate change impacts. Values and motivations are two of the personal variables underpinning tourists' decisions. The study addresses both the limited values research in tourism and reveals unconscious motives by using projective techniques. Projective techniques avoid some of the social desirability bias present in much ethical research. Choice ordering technique and the list of values assist by assigning importance, with narrative responses providing meaning. The construction technique builds a story from a stimulus, with photo-elicitation using participants' personal holiday photographs. A sample of pre, during and post visit tourists to the Arctic and Venice were interviewed. Results, which provide a more nuanced understanding of how the personal variables of values and motivations are underpinned by self-interest, inform policies and the messages designed to influence pro-sustainability behaviour.
The aim of this study was to examine extrinsic and intrinsic motivations as the antecedents of work engagement and to empirically test the motivation crowding theory using hospitality employees. The findings showed that intrinsic motivation played an important role in improving employees’ work engagement. The study also found that there was no indication that employees’ intrinsic motivation diminished when extrinsic motivation entered. It is also suggested that employers need to understand that creating a comfortable workplace environment and making jobs more interesting and meaningful will increase employees’ intrinsic motivation, which will help employees to engage more at work. Motivational antecedents of work engagement have been rarely studied and no studies have been conducted to research impacts of extrinsic and intrinsic motivators on employees’ work engagement in the hospitality industry, particularly in small restaurant businesses. In addition, empirical studies on motivation crowding theory are needed due to the inconclusive results.
China has been, and still is, by far the fastest growing tourism source market in the world. Chinese outbound travel has seen a rapid increase because Chinese authorities have not only implemented policies which facilitate the Chinese outbound tourism but also, the rising standards of living in China have expanded the demand for overseas tourism. The objective of this study is to examine the development of Chinese tourism in Greece, identify the motivation factors of Chinese tourists who visit Greece, determine the destination attributes of Greece which attract them and discover their activity preferences in Greece. A qualitative research using semi-structured, in-depth interviews with 19 interviewees was conducted, 17 of them with Chinese tourists, conducted in the district of the Acropolis (Athens) and two with professionals in the field of tourism in Greece. Results show that the most significant push–pull factors for Chinese tourists visiting Greece are cultural exchange, the relaxation-escape from their routine, prestige, the history of Greece, the blue and white color of Cyclades, Greek hospitality, archeological sites, good quality of the hotel services and, finally, Greek food and good event organisation. The research findings could help to build a strategy for the Greek tourism authority to prepare itself to become a more active player in the Chinese outbound market. The recommendations include simplification of the visa issuing procedure and direct flights connecting the two countries, proper preparation of the accommodation sector (a better understanding and respect for the Chinese culture), improvement of amenities such as public safety and communications and effective contact with more tour operators in China.
This study aims to investigate the key antecedents and consequences of the overall perceived value of the online purchase decision-making process for a tourism service. To this end, the spillover effect of the tourist’s perceptions of the purchasing channel on their evaluation of tourism service quality and on overall perceived value is analysed. A questionnaire was administered to 150 tourists who had purchased hotel accommodation via the Internet. Structural Equation Model (SEM) was then used to analyse the formation of overall perceived value. It was found that the tourist’s overall assessment of a tourism service is not only influenced by their perceptions of the establishment itself but also by their impressions of the medium they used for information and booking purposes. This paper breaks new ground in the study of overall perceived value formation, by jointly analysing the purchase, consumption, and post-experience assessment phases, whilst addressing both online and offline media. These aspects are reflected in the spillover effect provoked by the interaction between the online purchasing channel and consumption of the service.
This paper presents the empirical results of a recently concluded research study about managing menu innovation in a consumer market that has reached to its saturation level. Such market condition resulting in increased competition and, therefore, a need for increased innovation is essential. In this study, an investigation was carried in substantiating the effect of market saturation toward the relationship between innovation orientations and new menu innovation process. The region of Klang Valley was chosen as the study setting for its dynamic and matured consumer foodservice market. In this investigation, the theoretical conceptualization and the empirical validation of the proposed menu innovation process as a second-order hierarchical model along with the moderating variable of market saturation as first-order constructs were first advanced using both Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS version 19) and partial least squares. Empirically, the measurement and structural models of this study confirmed adequate estimations based on partial least squares path modeling parameters. In line with the strength of partial least squares to explain complex relationships, the use of path modeling has made it possible to advance the theoretical contribution to this study. The results show that the moderating effect of market saturation on the link between the exogenous and endogenous variables found to have a medium effect size (f2 = 0.289) and significant at < 0.05). The findings point to managerial challenges in shaping competition as evidence of radical innovations is still being pursued, although slightly weaken. This study, apart from its contribution to the model development of menu innovation process, has meaningful implications for restaurateurs to stay afloat in such a market condition.
The purpose of this study was to analyze the relationship among employee empowerment and other complaint management procedures concerning guest satisfaction, intention to return, and intention to recommend the firm to others. The results indicated the importance of empowering frontline employees to properly accept, process, and react to complaints for an efficient complaint management strategy. In addition, the results showed that the three critical attributes for overall firm satisfaction, customer loyalty, and intention to recommend the firm to others included welcoming and understanding guest complaints, providing fair compensation, and promptness of complaint handling process. This study will enable hospitality and other service-oriented organizations to identify aspects of their operations that require more investment in order to ensure service improvements that would ultimately lead to better performance.
This paper deals with the building and managing of corporate reputation of 4 and 5 star hotels in Athens-Attica, as well as with the role of leadership in corporate reputation. A primary research in hotel firms in Athens-Attica helped identify i) to which extent a charismatic leadership and the skills of a leader positively affect the reputation of hotels, and ii) to which extent a charismatic leadership is related to the leader's skills. The statistical analysis of the research results revealed on the one hand a number of positive correlations between the factors and variables examined and on the other hand some not particularly strong correlations between their sub-factors, thus allowing both reaching conclusions and making suggestions for further research.
Little is known about how guests respond to a hotel based on the way they perceive management's treatment of staff. This study suggests that during their stay at the hotel, the more guests witness episodes where staff members are fairly treated, the more they will display (a) satisfaction with hotel service and (b) customer citizenship behaviour directed at the hotel as a whole. It then suggests that (c) service satisfaction serves as a mediator to explain why justice perceptions would lead guests to citizenship behaviour. Data were collected from 343 guests in seven sampled hotels in the Canary Islands (Spain). Results provide support for the effects of justice on citizenship and partial mediation. Given that guests’ citizenship helps the hotel to function, the results warn managers about ‘looking the other way’ or getting involved in episodes of employee mistreatment. In addition, the support for service satisfaction as a mediator suggests that by striving to achieve management's fair treatment of staff, managers also communicate to guests that they aim to provide satisfactory service and, therefore, are deserving of their help.
The theoretical relationships among tourists’ perceived destination image, satisfaction, and future behavioral intentions are very important for the tourism industry and have been studied by many scholars. This paper examines how these relationships differ for tourists with different travel experiences by studying 514 Mainland Chinese outbound travelers to Macau. The conceptual model incorporates the exogenous formative concept of perceived image and the endogenous reflective concept of visitor satisfaction as well as the visitors’ behavioral intentions. This study not only verifies the conceptual schema in three assumed relationships but also confirms that the importance of perceived image for satisfaction is higher for first-time visitors than it is for returning visitors. The confirmative measure model reveals that the dimension of ‘leisure activities’ contributes the most to the overall destination image. Finally, suggestions for tourism development organizations are provided based on the findings of this study.
The continuous growth and economic contribution of Germany’s commercial aviation industry are directly linked to the implementation of new marketing practices. Especially in light of challenging market conditions and fierce competition within a highly segmented industry, new marketing paradigms assist airlines to overcome difficulties in order to promote their brands, products and services more effectively and in a circulated manner. In this regard, Social Media Marketing provides German airlines with a powerful set of marketing tools and multiple platforms to digitally gather, communicate, collaborate and share content with its customers. Despite a growing public awareness, an extensive review of current and relevant literature revealed that consumer perceptions on German airline organisations’ Social Media practices have not been examined. This paper aims to address this.
This study was conducted to analyze the relationship between followership, occupational burnout, job stress, and customer orientation of the employees at service encounters at luxury hotels (544 people) with the structural equation analysis by using AMOS statistical program. The results are as follows. Overall detailed factors of followership were shown to lower occupational burnout and job stress. Also, when occupational burnout is high, it was shown to increase job stress. When job stress is high, it appeared to decrease customer orientation. Therefore, the predictive factors for enhancing followership is important, and the followership among organization members should be increased through organizational support and superior's leadership toward subordinate by holding meetings or mentoring among members, or by promoting internal marketing such as having internal communication, providing education and training, and utilizing reward system.
There is a conceptual gap in the marketing literature, as to date there has been no published empirical research on festival switching intentions, festival satisfaction, festival image, festival affective impacts, and festival quality that have focused in the context of food festivals. This study seeks to fill this conceptual gap by identifying the dimensions of festival quality and empirically examining the interrelationships among festival switching intentions, festival satisfaction, festival image, festival affective impacts, and festival quality. A multidimensional and hierarchical model is used as a framework to synthesize the effects of festival quality, festival affective impacts, festival image, and festival satisfaction on festival switching intentions. Statistical support is found for four primary dimensions and 13 subdimensions of festival quality for food festivals. The hypothesized paths between the higher order constructs—festival quality, festival affective impacts, festival image, festival satisfaction, and festival switching intentions—are confirmed. The results of this analysis contribute to the services marketing theory by providing additional insights into festival switching intentions, festival satisfaction, festival image, festival affective impacts, festival quality, and the dimensions of festival quality. The results of this study will also assist festival management in developing and implementing market-orientated service strategies to increase festival quality and festival affective impacts, enhance festival image and festival satisfaction, and decreasing attendees’ switching intentions to other food festivals.
Tourism to areas traditionally inhabited by ethnic minorities has become an important topic in China during recent years, but the attendant issue of ethnic cultural conservation has become an increasing problem. This study investigates residents’ attitudes toward cultural conservation and their perception of the impact of tourism. The study site is the ancient city of Fenghuang in Hunan province, China. The study’s results show that residents in Fenghuang agree with the cultural conservation, and that their positive perceptions of the impact of tourism are influenced by their attitudes toward cultural conservation. This result means that there is the positive relationships between tourism development and cultural conservation in ethnic minority area. All results reflect the importance of residents’ attitudes toward cultural conservation in the development of tourism, so the study may be useful for both tourism developers and cultural managers.
Using partial least squares-structural equation modeling, we investigated the relationship between residents’ perceptions of the sociocultural impacts of tourism development and community participation in Pantai Cenang, Langkawi Island. We also investigated the moderating role of gender, age and education level on these relationships. The results revealed significant positive relationships between the positive and negative perceptions of residents and community participation; moreover, residents’ gender and age had a moderating effect on these relationships. These findings have implications for tourism development planners and government authorities seeking to expand the involvement of local residents in tourism developments.
Tourism is one of the fastest growing industries in the world. San Antonio is one of the Texas’ top tourist cities and a major tourism destination nationally. The city has a rich and unique historic urban landscape characterized by its river with its famous "Riverwalk," historic neighborhoods, and major landmarks such as San Antonio Franciscan Missions which are on the U.S. "tentative list" as possible UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Local government has completed a multiyear project to restore and enhance 13 miles of the San Antonio River both north and south of downtown. It is expected that the river improvement project will reinforce the connection to the San Antonio Missions and encourage visitors to circulate along the river beyond the downtown area. Master of Architecture students of The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) explored the sustainable tourism alternatives in the Mission Historic District in the spring semesters of 2012 and 2013. The Advanced Design Studio (ARC 6136) focused on research-based exploration and application of advanced design theory relative to alternative tourism. This course discussed the relationships between the design of architecture, tourist city, and the alternative practices of tourism. Students investigated the tourism potentials in the District such as sustainable tourism, rural tourism, recreational tourism, cultural heritage tourism, and culinary tourism, and develop master plans for the selected sites. Students were expected to plan, program, and design the proposed tourism activities and tourist spaces on both urban and building scales. This paper focuses specifically on culinary tourism, cultural heritage tourism, and rural tourism, and discusses how to enhance the attractiveness of the destination for visitors and residents; expand the tourism activities offered; and provide maximum efficiency in the economical, historical, social, and cultural dimensions of tourism through sustainable development practices and proposed design projects.
Foreign residents of a country are the foreigners who came from another country and are temporarily residing in the country for any purposes rather than just travel and/or tourism. Foreign residents have some characteristics of both local residents and international tourists. Regarding this population, previous studies have addressed many topics, including migration/immigration/emigration, citizen/citizenship, nationality, community, membership, assimilation, identity, status, and overseas study and expatriation. This study, however, investigates foreign residents’ perception, attachment, life satisfaction, and loyalty. Using the data gathered from the foreign resident population in Vietnam, this study found that four constructs have significant correlations. The outcomes also acknowledged the important roles of the affective components of psychological constructs, and provided implications for the social management of and tourism marketing toward the foreign resident population in Vietnam.
This research combines machine learning and human intelligence to analyze 2654 Facebook messages initiated by 26 hospitality companies to develop the taxonomy of Facebook messages in business-to-consumer (B2C) communications. Facebook messages can be classified into two broad message types: Sales/Marketing messages, with five sub-categories of Social Responsibility, Direct Boasting, Indirect Boasting, Product Highlight, and Campaign/Sales, and Conversational messages, with four sub-categories of Call for Action, Provoke Feedback, Advice/Suggestions, and Updates. By comparison, Conversational messages received more "Likes" and comments than Sales/Marketing messages. Direct Boasting, Product Highlight, Call for Action, Provoke Feedback, Advice/Suggestions, and Updates received more "Likes" than other types; Provoke Feedback and Call for Action received more comments. As compared to current literature, the results allow managers to advance more specific strategies to better engage with Facebook users and provide a more thorough taxonomy for additional analysis on companies’ B2C messages on other social media websites.
This work examines the influence of different leadership behaviours of hospitality managers on employee job satisfaction to close open gaps in leadership research, especially in the German context. Bass’s (1985) full-range leadership model was selected as a framework of this study. A quantitative survey methodology was used to assess leadership influence on employee job satisfaction, and 101 hotel employees in Germany completed the survey. The data analysis involved three major stages: correlation analysis, multiple regression analysis and MANOVA. The results from this study suggest that German hotel employee job satisfaction is strongly affected by leadership behaviour. In this regard, the influence of transformational leadership on employee job satisfaction differs widely from transactional and non-leadership behaviour. Earlier studies have indicated a situational or cultural impact on appropriate leadership style, and this study furthers this concept with a new geographic area (Germany), which can therewith be added to the hospitality leadership research.
Tourism development has principally focused on the tangible tourism products thereby overlooking the intangible element such as service. This study aimed to evaluate food service attributes in gastro-tourism development in the Western Tourist Circuit, Kenya. A total of 166 top and middle level managers were selected from 62 hotels for this study using multi-stage sampling method. Several food service attributes were identified and used to structure self-administered questionnaires. The data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Factor, regression and importance-performance analysis. The findings indicate that perceived importance-performance of food service attributes in gastro-tourism development varied considerably. Three factors identified were food service output, food service input both perceived to be important with good performance; and food service process perceived important but hoteliers’ performance on the same was poor. The findings provide intuitively appealing strategies for hoteliers and tourism promoters in Western Tourist Circuit, Kenya to set priorities for developing gastro-tourism through food service attributes.
The aim of this study is to assess the implementation of relationship marketing by independent Egyptian hotels and to determine the organisational and environmental factors affecting its implementation. The study consisted of two phases: a telephone interview and an email survey. Telephone interviews were conducted for the purpose of identifying hotels that are familiar with and/or implementing some sort of relationship marketing. Information generated from the interviews contributed to the selection of 86 hotels for the email survey. Findings revealed that hotel size in terms of the number of employees, financial resources allocated for relationship marketing, business expertise (the period of time the hotel is in the business) and customer pressure are the dominating factors affecting the implementation of relationship marketing. The study provides evidence on the relatively under researched area of independent Egyptian hotels. Appropriate consideration of these factors will help hotels to improve the effectiveness of relationship marketing. Future research should focus on further factors influencing the implementation of relationship marketing and address the customer’s perspective.