12 research outputs found

    Success factors of theme parks – An exploration study

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    Theme parks are important products for the leisure and tourism industry but the analysis of their critical success factors seems to be a neglected area in leisure and tourism research. Most authors agree that authenticity as well as the staging of experiences is a main factor influencing consumer’s decision to buy a leisure or tourism product. Thus, this paper discusses authenticity and the staging of experiences as critical success factors for the management of theme parks. Empirical data gathered from personal interviews with theme park managers in Austria, Germany and Switzerland reveal the assumption that the literature is not in line with the critical success factors of theme park management. The paper concludes by outlining future research on success factors of theme parks as well as implications for their management

    Antecedents of innovation activities in tourism: an empirical investigation of the Alpine hospitality industry

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    Innovative hotels are more successful in outperforming their non-innovative competitors due to their ability to develop new products and services. The aim of this study is to shed light on which determinants foster innovation and, therefore, account for innovation management strategies. Quantitative data was collected through application of self-completion questionnaires in 244 hotels located within the Alpine region focusing on the federal state of Tyrol, Austria and South Tyrol, Italy. The results of the study revealed five firm-internal dimensions influencing innovation behavior: Employee engagement, customer engagement, information technologies, innovation mana-gement, and innovation networks

    Antecedents of innovation activities in tourism: an empirical investigation of the Alpine hospitality industry

    Get PDF
    Innovative hotels are more successful in outperforming their non-innovative competitors due to their ability to develop new products and services. The aim of this study is to shed light on which determinants foster innovation and, therefore, account for innovation management strategies. Quantitative data was collected through application of self-completion questionnaires in 244 hotels located within the Alpine region focusing on the federal state of Tyrol, Austria and South Tyrol, Italy. The results of the study revealed five firm-internal dimensions influencing innovation behavior: Employee engagement, customer engagement, information technologies, innovation mana-gement, and innovation networks

    The connection between VFR experience based and sociocultural dimensions of international students and mainland Chinese students

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    Purpose – This paper aims to present the host experience of student hosts in Hong Kong, a popular educational destination for international students from mainland China and other countries. This study examines the interconnection between the experience-based and sociocultural dimensions of visiting friends and relatives (VFR) travel, considering the overall host experience, the host–guest relationship and post-hosting changes in perception of both the VFR experience and destination. Design/methodology/approach – This research adopts a qualitative approach to compare the experience-based and sociocultural dimensions of VFR travel considering international university students as VFR hosts in Hong Kong, taking a student sample from both mainland Chinese and overseas students. Based on a voluntary sampling approach, the research team had face-to-face interviews with the students that agreed to participate. The interviews were conducted voluntarily and anonymously and included those students who had hosted any friends or relatives in the past 12 months. A total of 26 interviews were successfully completed, including 10 mainland Chinese and 16 non-mainland Chinese students. Findings – The results confirm that the VFR host experience is generally shaped by an integration of internal characteristics (sociocultural characteristics of both hosts and visitors) and external environment (urban infrastructure and tourism resources). The two groups distinctively express their host experience that shows some areas of cultural barriers and geographical proximity. Research limitations/implications – The limitations of this research mainly lie on its relatively small sample size because of constraints in accessing the contact information of international students across universities. These shortcomings should be improved by adopting a research design that uses other sampling approaches, such as snowball sampling, to include a wider scope of students from different local universities, or convenience sampling, to interview and compare responses of international students from various educational destinations. Alternative data sources may be considered, for example, through usergenerated contents from online and social media platforms that contain sharing of students as hosts. Practical implications – The geographical and cultural proximities influence VFR tourism development and social construction of values and the consequent hosting behaviour. The unique role of international students should be further explored, especially in the Asian context. The outcome of VFR travel must be evaluated and studied more from cultural and personal dimensions than economic gain, which should be relevant to host perspective such as improved quality of life, social ties and place attachment and psychological benefits. The changing risk perception caused by the COVID-19 pandemic may be examined through some forms of travel intention. Social implications – Firstly, the destination marketing organisations of the educational destination should address the difficulty faced by student hosts in terms of external attributes such as local culture, urban infrastructure, tourism resources and information accessibility. Secondly, to target the hosts, some specific VFR-related products and services may be developed for international students through local tertiary institutions such that the role of hosts as ambassadors can be facilitated and enhanced. Thirdly, the functional role of international students can be distinctive based on their unique network, activities and knowledge constructed upon learning during the period of education.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
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