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Knowing why tourists travel is the most fundamental question among the study of tourists behavior. Although it is the most basic question, knowing the wants and needs of tourists in traveling is a complicated task. The wants and needs of tourists are often regarded as travel motivations. As per dictionarys definition, motivation is something that stimulates interest or causes a person to act in a certain way.
Cook (1999) simply explained travel motivation as the drive to travel. Weaver & Lawton (2000) stated that travel motivation is different from travel purpose in that indicates the intrinsic reasons why the individual is embarking on a particular trip.
Over the years, many theories were developed to explain tourist motivations for traveling. One very common theory used in the study of travel motivations of tourist is Maslows hierarchy of needs. This theory by Abraham Maslow in his 1943 work, A Theory of Human Motivation, explains that as humans meet basic needs, they seek to satisfy successively higher needs that occupy a set of hierarchy.
A pyramid of five levels represents human needs which Maslow further grouped into two as deficiency needs and growth needs. Deficiency needs are related to physiological needs while growth needs are related to psychological needs. Table 4 summarizes the different human needs identified by Maslow.
Love/belonging : Need for friendship, sexual intimacy, having a family and need to belong in a group Esteem : Need to be respected, need for selfrespect and need to respect others; need for recognition, need for activity that gives the person a sense of contribution and self-value
Actualization : Need to make the most of ones unique abilities and need to strive to be the best
Physiological
Tour packages that offer frequent rest stops y Easily accessible food outlets in theme parks y Sleeping shelters strategically located
y
Safety
Reservation service provided at governmentapproved agencies or location y Cruise ship lines providing medical facilities and doctors y Tour guide services provided in exotic or unfamiliar locations
y
Belonging
Group tours with people having similar interests and/ or backgrounds y Group recognition gained by membership in frequent user programs provided by airline y Trips to explore ones ancestral roots
y
Esteem
Elite status in frequent-user programs such as gold, silver or bronze y Incentive travel awards for superior company performance y Flowers champagne and other tokens provided to guests in recognition of occasions
y
Self-actualization
Educational tours and cruises y Theme parks providing educational opportunities and glimpses of other cultures y Learning the language and culture before traveling to another country.
y
Philip Pearce (Roy,1999). It attempts to explain individual behaviors on the basis of stages in a tourist life cycle which is said to be similar to an individuals experience of work.
Need for basic services (food, space, toilets) for restoration and personal maintenance and repair
Stimulation
y
Need for excitement and safety (fun & thrill of rides, experience of the unusual, out of the ordinary settings and different foods and people)
Relationship
y
Need to build and extend personal relationships (tenderness, affection, joint fun, joint activities, altruism and being directly involved)
Need to develop skills, knowledge and abilities (how others see a person and ones desire to be competent, in control, respected and productive)
Fulfillment
y
Need to feel peaceful, profoundly happy (magical as if transported to another world, spiritual and totally involved in the setting)
This model emphasizes that the choice of destination of a tourist driven by two forces: push and pull. The first force, push, pushes a tourist away (from home) and the second one, pull, is a region-specific lure that pulls a tourist towards a destination. The push refers to a general desire to go and be somewhere else, without specifying where that may be. Kozal pointed out that these are intangible, intrinsic desires of a tourist to go on vacation (Hansal and Eiselt, 2004). Pull, on the other hand, refers to the tangible characteristics or attributes of a destination that are primarily related to its perceived attractiveness.
Another way of understanding tourists is knowing how they decide on tourism product/services and destinations. Their decision-making process would provide tourism business insights to effective marketing and advertising techniques to effectively reach their target markets. There are a number of frameworks that explained this process. The following discussions show the works of Schmoll, Matheison and Wall, and Hansal and Eiselt.
SCHMOLL
The Schmoll model emphasizes four successive fields which he believe exert influences on the decision of tourists (Cooper and Fletcher, 1993)
Field 3. External Variables : These involve the prospective travelers confidence in the service provider, destination image, past experience and cost and time constraints. Examples : confidence and travel trade intermediary, destination service, previous travel experience, assessment of objectives, subjective risks, constraints in time, cost, etc. Field 4. Characteristics and features of the service : These also have a bearing on the decision and its outcome. Examples : cost/value relations, attractions/amenities offered, range of travel opportunities, quality/quantity of travel information, type of arrangement offered.
A five-stage model of travel-buying behavior was developed by Mateison & Wall. Similar to the Schmoll model, their model also identifies four interrelated factors.
Travel preparations & travel equipment : Travel takes place once bookings are made and confirmed, budgets organized, and clothing and equipment are arranged. Travel satisfaction evaluation : During and after travel the overall experience is evaluated and the results influence subsequent travel decisions.
Hansal & Eiselt (2004) provided a simple explanation of the decision-making process of tourists. This process is divided into two phases which are described as:
Planning phase where travelers decide on the basic parameters concerning their trip. Decisions in this phase are made at home, usually over a significant amount of time prior to the trip. y Modification phase during which details are decided. This phase covers modification made during the trip.
y
MARKET SEGMENTATION
Market segmentation is similar to tourist typology. It is another way of classifying tourists and understanding them. Segmentation is sort of grouping people with the same characteristics such as geographic, demographic, psychographic and productrelated characteristics.
Japanese
y y y y
Market is focused on women in their 30s, 50s and 60s. Senior market is increasing. Can travel to Asian destinations Top five activities of Japanese tourists: observing natural and scenic beauty; cultural and historical sites, visits museums and art galleries. Most Japanese go to destinations for rest and relaxation and are particularly attracted to spa treatments.
Koreans
Their favorite travel destinations are China, Japan, Thailand, the Philippines and Hong Kong y Natural sceneries and local culture attract tourists. Relaxation and shopping are gradually becoming two other important destination factors in travel. y Prefer package tours
y
Chinese
Outbound passengers from the cities of Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou are experienced tourists and are often repeat outbound travelers. y They are matured and many of them take an outbound trip every year as part of their lifestyle. y Prefer sightseeing and city travel y Chinese tourists go to ADS ( approved destination sites)
y
Indians
y y y y y
There are 28 million passport holders in India who are potential travelers. Leisure groups are largely family oriented that looks for family fun. Travel in groups. Source market is wide and complex because of its size and variety. Indians are also very price-sensitive.