Cultured Divergence of Consumption Values in Vacation Experience

The primary objective of this study is to identify and understand, from a cultural perspective, the departure of Chinese consumptive values from their U.S. counterparts on a vacation experience. Through analysis of travelogues by tourists from China and the U.S., three salient themes were identified. They are Scenery, Food and Mood. Although all three were emphasized by both Chinese and American tourists, a closer look revealed that they’re being valued quite differently. What is important to the overall satisfaction of an experience in fact differ for the two groups. These exhibited divergences are found to be underpinned by different cultural dispositions, which are pivotal in shaping and influencing distinctive values. The results allow meaningful understanding of the uniqueness of Chinese consumption values, which are buttressed by its complex cultural system

The Use of Consumer-Generated Feedback in the Hotel Industry: Current Practices and Their Effects on Quality

Consumer-generated feedback is hard to ignore these days. Word-of-mouth has expanded beyond a customer’s immediate friends and family; with the help of technology it reaches thousands of current and prospective guests. In light of this, scholars and practitioners are exploring the subject of consumer-generated feedback. Today, most of the research regarding this subject focuses on the use of consumer-generated feedback to make purchase decisions. In contrast, the present study explores the use of such information for the purposes of improving hotel operations. This article examines the amount of value placed on consumer-generated feedback, the relative importance placed on positive and negative feedback, and its effects on perceived quality. Furthermore, this study inquires as to the specific uses given to consumer-generated feedback in the hotel industry. It is the researchers’ contention that valuing feedback has positive effects on perceived quality. The findings conclude that hotels can use consumer-generated feedback to take actions such as modifying training programs and operating procedures, as well as identifying patterns of complaint and praise

Leisure Travel of Korean Families of Children with Disability: Motivation and Activities

While research to understand family as a leisure travel unit has received healthy attention in recent years, rare attention has been given to families of children with disabilities. This current study attempts to investigate the tourism motivation and activities of Korean families with disabled children through a sample of 161 family travelers. Utilizing factor analysis, this study identified five motivational factors and seven activity factors. Among them, ‘family competence (mastery)’ appeared to be the most important motivational factor for families of children with disability while ‘sedative outdoor activities’ were the what they do the most during a family leisure trip. This study also examined the interrelationships among the motivation and activity domains and identified significant linkage between trip motivations and activity choices. Theoretical and managerial implications and recommendations to more effective service the group of families were discussed

Effect of Vacation Duration and Frequency on Travelers’ Subjective Well-being

Despite the substantial number of research on subjective well-being (SWB) and happiness in recent decades, limited efforts have been devoted to understanding vacation’s effect on travelers’ SWB and happiness. In addition, vacation duration and frequency, two critical travel characteristics in shaping SWB status have not been fully addressed. Based upon the affective theory of happiness, the purpose of the current study was to empirically examine travelers’ SWB with different vacation duration and frequency. The results showed that longer vacation improves travelers’ contentment with specific life domains and affect greater while more frequent vacation improves travelers’ global life satisfaction and contentment wit specific life domains greater. This study may have potential implications for public policy initiative and destination marketing organizations

The Projected and Perceived Image of the United Republic of Tanzania

While Tanzania has enjoyed increasing popularity as a tourism destination, there is a lack of research on Tanzania\u27s tourism image. This research aims at examining the government\u27s projected and perceived image of Tanzania and identifying the congruency between these two images. The study utilized the Tanzania Tourist Board and Tanzania Travel and Tourism Online websites as well as 364 blogs on travel to Tanzania between 2003 and 2008 from TravelPod. Results indicate that while there is a relative level of congruency between the projected and perceived images of Tanzania, many visitors are beginning to note the negative effects of tourism on the local communities. Furthermore, while the government is attempting to project Tanzania as a business and leisure destination, Tanzania is currently only being perceived as a leisure destination in online travel blogs. Implications for destination marketing organizations were discussed

From Farmland To City-Land: Dissecting Leisure Travel Experience Of Chinese Urban Re-Settlers

This study brings attention to a neglected traveler segment, i.e. the rural-to-urban resettlers. Using a mixed-methods approach, the study examines important elements of their leisure travel experience, including destination activity participation, leisure travel motivations, motivation-activity linkages, and sense making of travel in relation to life changes. The unique psychological and behavioral characteristics of this traveler segment are thereby revealed. The findings are discussed in relation to life transitions and lifestyle changes caused by displacement and resettlement. As an initial report of Chinese urban resettled farmers’ destination experiences, this study has conceptual, practical, and policy-related implications

Tourist shopping style preferences

Shopping has been recognized as the most popular activity for both domestic and international tourists. With many destinations adopting shopping as a positioning strategy, the development of shopping products is central to tourism promotion. The present study attempted to develop a tourist shopping style typology by evaluating tourist\u27s shopping attitudes and preferences. The Consumer Style Inventory (CSI) was adapted into the tourism setting to develop a tourist shopping style typology. The adaptation of CSI assists in solidifying theoretical foundations for tourism shopping research. The exploration of the interrelationship between tourists\u27 shopping psychology, tourist demographics, and their actual purchases revealed valuable practical information on how to strategically integrate shopping into tourism planning and marketing. © The Author(s) 2013

Conceptualizing Transformative Guest Experience At Retreat Centers

Transformative experience in a hospitality service setting is an under-addressed area. The aim of this study was to understand the transformative guest experience at retreat centers and highlight the mechanism that helped trigger the changes. The analysis of 119 online guest reviews about four popular retreats in Thailand dissected the transformative retreat experience, including guests\u27 pre-trip state of mind, domains of changes, retreat activity participation, and stimuli in the service environment. The changes were further conceptualized on a series of spectra based on durability, magnitude, and tangibility. The findings may serve as an integrative framework to understand the mechanism by which the retreat experience acts as a functional means to guests\u27 well-being and personal transformation. Theoretical and managerial implications of the findings were discussed, followed by recommendations for future research