Training or vacation? The academic conference tourism

The current study concentrates on factors affecting the intentions of academics attending an academic conference. It highlights the importance of academic conferences and academic conference tourism and discusses meetings, the convention industry and also their utility in the career development of academics. Through qualitative research and a review of the literature on conference tourism push and pull motivation factors are suggested. The power of these factors to predict the intention to attend an academic conference is examined through quantitative research and regression analysis. The results indicate that ‘pull’ factors are better predictors of the intention to attend an academic conference than motivational ‘push’ factors

A netnography study to uncover the underlying dimensions of customer experience with resort brands

The interest in customer experience has increased at a phenomenal rate. However, research to capture the true meaning of the concept is limited. This study aims to address the question of what are the underlying dimensions that constitute the construct of customer experience. The netnography method is utilized to validate a priori concepts that have been identified in the literature within the context of resort-hotel brands in a Sharm El Sheikh resort in Egypt. The results identified eight dimensions; comfort, educational, hedonic, novelty, recognition, relational, safety and sense of beauty which are consistent with major studies on experience

The different shades of responsibility: examining domestic and international travelers' motivations for responsible tourism in India

To address the scarcity of research concerning the demand side of responsible tourism, the present study examines the motivations of domestic and international travelers in India. Data were collected using an Internet survey distributed via e-mail and Facebook to the clients of five responsible tourism operators in India. Using Dann's push–pull typology, factor analysis uncovered nine underlying motivations for responsible tourism, with significant differences between domestic and international travelers for these factors. Cluster analysis revealed three distinct segments of travelers – Responsibles, Novelty Seekers, and Socializers – that differ in their core underlying motivations for responsible tourism and in their socio-demographic characteristics. The study contributes one responsibility-specific push and one pull factor to the literature about travel motivation. Also the findings suggest that operators and destination marketers must develop their products and marketing communications to address the heterogeneity of motivations underlying responsible tourism.Accepted manuscrip

Visitors' experience in a modern art museum: a structural equation model

This study aims to provide a better understanding on the museum experience by studying visitors’ motivation, satisfaction and likelihood to return to the Museum for Modern and Contemporary Art (MART) of Rovereto (Italy). The empirical data were obtained from a survey undertaken from September to November 2009. A theoretical model to analyze the attractiveness factors of the museum based on two exogenous variables (push and pull motivation) and two endogenous variables (satisfaction and loyalty) is used and a structural equation model is estimated as a confirmatory tool of the hypothetical model. The findings reveal that tourists visiting the MART are mainly motivated by push factors, as relaxation, looking for a new experience and learn new things. Loyalty also positively influences the probability to return to the MART and recommend to friends and family. However, visit the city or the region of Trentino has no impact on satisfaction and loyalty to the MART. Besides, loyalty to MART does not imply the probability to recommend a visit to Rovereto

Cyprus' image—a sun and sea destination—as a detrimental factor to seasonal fluctuations. Exploration into motivational factors for holidaying in Cyprus

Cyprus is established as a summer destination. To aid the destination in developing its winter season as well, this research uses a qualitative inductive approach to explore the tourists’ current image of the island and their motivations of visiting it. The research indicates that the current image, which essentially portrays Cyprus as a sun-and-sea destination is thought to dissuade tourists from perceiving the island as a year-round destination. Nonetheless, increasing the pull factors of the destination through the development of unique special interest products can help in extending the tourism season as well as broaden its narrow image

Research on the Foreign Direct Investment Factors of Japanese Hotel Industry in Taiwan-Taking Okura Hotel as an Example

Due to the impact of COVID-19 in 2019, the global hotel industry has been severely impacted by the disconnection of the tourism industry. However, even with the impact of the epidemic, the Japanese hotel industry’s investment in Taiwan has not stopped. What are the factors that drive the Japanese hotel industry to defy the threat of the epidemic and choose Taiwan as its destination for foreign direct investment? This is the research goal of this article. This article intends to adopt Push-Pull-Mooring (PPM)migration theory to construct the possible factors of why the Japanese hotel industry chooses Taiwan as its foreign direct investment destination. These factors consist of three effects to describe Japan Okura hotel’s migration. First, the push effect refers to factors that induce people to leave their place of origin. Second, the pull effect refers to factors that attract people to a destination. Third, the mooring effect refers to intervention variables for push and pull effects that facilitate or inhibit the determination of movement. The finding is that push and pull factors still play an active role in promoting Okura Hotel’s investment in Taiwan, even if the influence of some factors is slightly reduced due to the shift in international conditions. With the development of globalization and high technology, mooring factors are no longer the reason that hinders Japanese Okura’s investment in Taiwan. Combined with push and pull factors, PPM migration model can fully explain why the Japanese hotel industry chooses to conduct foreign direct investment in Taiwan, even if it is affected by COVID-19.It’s just that COVID-19 has not stopped so far, and the unstable situation on both sides of the strait may impact the original PPM model and affect the results of the analysis. It is worth further observation and research by subsequent researchers

Understanding Motivation Towards Overseas Travel of Senior Indonesians

The ageing Indonesian population is seen as one of the most attractive markets to the tourism industry. While literature on senior travel motivation is abundant, however, to the author’s knowledge, empirical studies that focus on examining Indonesian senior outbound travel behaviour is still rare. This study initiates a novel inquiry into the push and the pull motivational factors of Indonesian seniors when visiting destination in overseas. Questionnaires were used to collect data from 246 Indonesian seniors aged over 55 years who had travelled abroad. The results revealed three push factors of: 1) self-exploration; 2) relaxation; and 3) relationship enhancement; whereas five pull factors were found namely: 1) facilities and hygiene; 2) destination familiarity; 3) value for money and destination proximity; 4) local attractions; and 5) supporting travel facilities in host destination

The Influence of Seasonality Factors on Hotel Occupancy in Jordan

Tourism in general is a highly competitive industry. In order to maintain its growth and survival in this aggressive environment, tourism sector ought to hold advantages over other competitors in the market. Such advantages are granted through providing various services that match and exceed customers’ expectations and demands.In a related development, hotel occupancy rate isdependent upon tourism and affected byseasonality, which indicates fluctuations of demand and supply in the tourism industry. This article discusses the nature of seasonality, the principal factors driving the phenomenon and how they influence hotel occupancy rate particularly in Jordan. The concluding section outlines possible strategies which could be introduced in tourism destinations to mitigate seasonality in visitation and lengthen the season during which visitors arrive. Keywords: Seasonality, Natural Factor, Institutional Factor, Hotel Occupancy, Jordan DOI: 10.7176/JTHS/57-02 Publication date:June 30th 202

Career choice of tourism students in a triple-whammy crisis

Hong Kong hospitality and tourism industry has been battered by the triple whammy of social unrest, Sino-US trade war and COVID-19 pandemic in recent years. To understand how vulnerable tourism students may be in terms of career shock when facing the three major challenges, 407 tourism students in Hong Kong were surveyed. Structural equation modelling found a positive correlation between affect (an intrinsic, motivating factor) and extraneous events (an extrinsic, demotivating factor), indicating that motivation and demotivating factors may co-exist. Affect was more positively correlated with three career choice outcomes (intent to join the industry, desire for a lifelong career, and resilience in face of unfavourable circumstances) than was Extraneous. In face of career shock arising from extraneous events, tourism students still tend to have a strong intent to join the workforce, take it as a lifelong career, and remain resilient despite the hardship. However, the career shock was a greater concern for those in hotel-related disciplines and for students aged over 20 than younger ones. The findings offer an empirical basis to guide policy makers, academia and the industry in strategy formulation to ensure sustainable quality and manpower supply in the post-crisis future