Gender and tourist experiences: assessing women's shared meanings for Beatrix Potter

As a social construct, tourism is premised upon inter-relationships between various producers and consumers. Within this system, gender differences may influence how tourist sites are interpreted and the symbolic associations visitors make with places. Adopting Johnson's (1986) circuits of culture framework and focusing primarily upon women visitors, this paper assesses meanings of Beatrix Potter inspired tourism in the English Lake District. Qualitative evidence highlights how women in particular conjoined an interest in Potter with the tourist visit to mediate other attitudes and values. Such links with non-tourist social practises were usually derived from associations with childhood and family life. The paper also considers how shopping and souvenir purchases helped to perpetuate and redefine this value system. Tourism occurs within a context of larger social-cultural structures and practices. In developing a more complete understanding of such aspects of tourism systems, gender constructs merit increased attention.     

Wildfires and tourist behaviors in Florida

The impacts of wildfires on tourism have largely been examined with emphasis on economic losses and recovery strategies. Given the limited research from a demand perspective, this study examined tourist risk perceptions and reactionary behaviors toward wildfires in Florida. Data (N = 771) was collected among a U.S. sample of non-resident overnight leisure travelers that had visited Florida previously. Three clusters were identified with a larger segment in the middle (Conscious Travelers) of the curve, and higher risk (Cautious Travelers) and lower risk (Courageous Travelers) segments at each end. In addition, the segments formulated a pattern with respect to their perceived levels of risk, threat level of wildfires based on risk types, and travel behavior modifications over specific wildfire situations that could influence future travel behaviors in fire prone destinations. This segmentation strategy is useful for Destination Management Organizations as differential marketing messages could be targeted to each segment during crisis situations.     

Mindful tourist experiences: A Buddhist perspective

This paper distinguishes between the concepts of socio-cognitive mindfulness applied in a number of tourism studies and meditative mindfulness derived from a Buddhist philosophy. An operational definition of meditative mindful tourist experiences is proposed based on forty-three semi-structured interviews involving 77 episodes of meditative mindful experiences. The paper also proposes a framework of meditative mindfulness in tourism. The framework identifies a number of antecedents to meditative mindful experience episodes and reveals several psychological and physical benefits including mental ease and response flexibility. This is the first paper to examine meditative mindful tourist experiences in tourism contexts and to explore their antecedents and consequences.     

Why Heidegger did not travel: Existential angst,authenticity, and tourist experiences

“Authenticity” continues to be debated within tourism studies, as seen in the extensive number of articles published in ATR since 1999 on this subject. Advocates of existential authenticity have used the work of the German philosopher Martin Heidegger to argue that tourists seek experiences that counter the emptiness of everyday life in modern societies and provide them an opportunity to be more authentic. This is, however, based on a partial reading of Heidegger. His work implicitly questions the efficacy of travel as a means of experiencing a greater awareness of one’s own place in the world and explicitly rejects cosmopolitanism as a worldview. Rather than a new intervention, ‘existential authenticity’ is a return to a familiar travel/tourist dichotomy.     

Eudaimonic tourist experiences: the case of flamenco

In recent years, participation in flamenco, as a cultural art form, has gained momentum within Spain and internationally. Engagement in flamenco music and dance workshops in Spain has also become an increasingly significant tourism activity. Despite this trend, little research has looked into the nature of leisure experiences of flamenco. This paper seeks to address this knowledge gap by exploring how tourists experience flamenco music and dance courses in the city of Seville. Through a grounded theory research strategy in which in-depth interviews were conducted with 20 participants, the study reveals that four key themes characterise tourists’ experiences of flamenco. These are: the social and physical environment, which refers to physical flamenco spaces in Seville and tourists’ interactions with instructors and peers; secondly, the experience of challenge, characterised by hardship and sacrifice in the pursuit of flamenco; thirdly, activation of the sensual body or a sense of arousal; and lastly, an intrinsic and deep desire for self-discovery. The study demonstrates that the flamenco tourist experience strongly contributes to self-realisation and fulfilment of those who engage in it, or in other words, that the flamenco tourist experience is eudaimonic in character. The interview findings were linked to literature on self-realisation, self-fulfilment, true self, stress-related growth and related eudaimonic themes. Eudaimonia, or a sense of personal expressiveness and self-realisation, has not been previously established in this context. Therefore, the research findings provide a theoretical understanding of what a eudaimonic tourist experience of dance and music may look like.     

Photo elicitation: Exploring tourist experiences with researcher-found images

This article provides an example of how researcher found-images have been used in a study where the tourist experience of intangible heritage is at the center. In this research, images were triangulated with in-depth interviews and participant observation in an attempt to flesh out the more intimate aspects of tourism experiences. It is suggested that photo elicitation, in its various forms, presents a fun, creative and multi-sensory alternative to conventional techniques. In this study, the use of researcher-found images in interviews proved to be a valuable tool to research tourist embodied experiences. While images offer many weighty advantages, some limitations do exist. Not only researcher-found images may introduce some positive bias into how informants recollect and present their experiences, but they may also lack the narrative power that visual materials assembled by research participants may have.     

Interrelationships between tourist involvement,tourist experience,and environmentally responsible behavior: a case study of Nansha Wetland Park,China

ABSTRACT

This study examines a model linking three facets of tourist involvement (“importance & pleasure,” “sign value,” and “risk probability & consequence”) with tourist experience (TE) and environmentally responsible behavior (ERB). Data were collected with a self-administered questionnaire in a convenient sampling approach from tourists visiting Nansha Wetland Park, China. In total, 308 valid questionnaires were obtained. The structural equation modeling technique was applied to data analyses. Of three tourist involvement (TI) facets, “importance & pleasure” was found to be the most salient predictor of TE, which in turn led to ERB. “Risk probability & consequence” was shown as a potent predictor of both TE and ERB. “Sign value” did not have any effect on either TE or ERB. Basically, TE served as a full mediator between “importance & pleasure” and ERB, and a partial mediator between “risk probability & consequence” and ERB. Contributions, managerial implications, and future research directions are discussed.     

Exploring religious tourist experiences in Jerusalem: The intersection of Abrahamic religions

By considering the importance of religious tourism for travel and the tourism industry, this study aims to identify religious tourists' experiences in Jerusalem, as one of the most important holy cities. By a survey, 848 data were collected from the Jewish, Christian, and Muslim religious tourists. Results showed that religious tourism experience was a multi-faceted construct, which consists of engaging mentally, discovering new things, interacting & belonging, connecting spiritually & emotionally, and relaxing & finding peace dimensions. By using these dimensions, perceived experience differences of tourists were examined depending on religion. Moreover, religious tourism experience was identified to significantly affect overall tourist satisfaction with Jerusalem. The study concluded with discussion of the findings and their implications.     

Motivations and experiences of Mainland Chinese medical tourists in Hong Kong

Medical tourism has been developing very rapidly in recent years and Hong Kong has emerged as a new medical tourism destination. The purpose of the study is to explore the motivations and experiences of a sample of medical tourists in Hong Kong and hence semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with obstetric patients from Mainland China. The findings indicate that one of the most important reasons for their traveling to give birth in Hong Kong was to avoid China’s ‘One Child’ policy. Variations in staff attitudes were also found among different hospitals and even in the same hospital. The findings also suggest that perceived discrimination by the medical tourists emerges in the form of less favourable service and less information sharing.     

Motivations,experiences and perceived impacts of visitation at a Catholic monastery in New Zealand

This paper explores visitors' motivations and experiences for visiting the Tyburn monastery and retreat centre in the north island of New Zealand, and the perspectives of the nuns on the impacts of the visits. Using a qualitative research approach, the paper presents the findings of semi-structured interviews with 22 visitors and 3 nuns at the monastery; all Catholic in denomination. Findings of the research elicited three key experiential themes which were: “religious experience”, “personal experience” and “social experience”, although the overriding experience was religious. Findings also revealed that all visitors were welcome and were not treated as a burden by the nuns; in contrast to the more negative perspectives that are argued in some previous religious tourism studies. These findings thereby contribute potential knowledge of how a contemporary Catholic cloistered monastery is efficiently and uniquely managed through the Benedictine rule that is followed, which lays out principles of governing or administrating and hospitality, and which protects the devotional experience for its visitors.     

Culinary tourism experiences: The effect of iconic food on tourist intentions

Iconic food is unique typical dishes that represent and identify a destination and motivate tourists to visit it. This study aims to analyse whether iconic food maintains its power of attraction once the visitor has enjoyed it. We examine the effect of the type of culinary experience on the behavioural intentions. The study compares individuals who have tried the iconic food versus those who have not, but who have enjoyed other local dishes. Data were provided by international tourists of a top culinary Spanish destination. Results indicate that iconic food reinforces the effect of perceived value on the intention to repeat the experience, while a generic experience with the local cuisine favours the intention to recommend. Based on these results, destination marketers should enhance iconic food, not only as a pull factor for first-time visitors but also as an experience that will bring back memories and motivate tourists to return.     

Sexual Minority Adults at a Seasonal Home Campground: An Examination of Common,Unique, and Diverse Leisure Motivations

We examined the motivations of sexual minority adults to vacation at a sexual minority-focused campground and how sexual orientation identity management was associated with leisure motivations. Twenty-nine men and 12 women who owned seasonal homes participated. In responses to open-ended questions, participants expressed many of the motivations typically associated with seasonal home leisure (e.g., socializing, escape, relax). The most frequently mentioned motivation was the sexual minority focus of the campground. The more participants were “out” in everyday life, the less likely they were to mention the sexual minority focus of the campground as a motivation for being there.     

Marine angling tourist behavior,non-compliance,and implications for natural resource management

Wild living marine resources are a common pool resource in Norway, and successful development of marine angling tourism (MAT) – a form of consumptive wildlife tourism is dependent on healthy fish stocks. This article examines foreign tourists' non-compliance with Norway's 15 kg export quota, and the effects of the non-compliance on community wellbeing. Analyses of 528 responses to a 63-question questionnaire compare tourists' pro-environmental behavior at home, with behavior on holiday, and opinions on more stringent management regulations. No statistically significant correlations were found between pro-environmental behavior at home and support for more stringent regulations. Strengthening regulations would likely have a negative impact on both willingness to return and recommend. Findings suggest that the majority of tourists do not view fish as a resource that should be more tightly controlled, if their holiday fishing experience would be negatively affected. Results are compared against studies investigating management strategies for non-consumptive forms of wildlife tourism. Management solutions are identified which might mitigate non-compliance, positively influence environmentally responsible behavior, and address community wellbeing.     

Bringing the past to life: Co-creating tourism experiences in historic house tourist attractions

This ethnographic study concentrates on the co-creation of experiential value between the tourist and tour guide in a single historic tourism site; Huntingdon Castle, Ireland. Built upon the principles of service dominant logic, the research explores how storytelling acts as an engagement platform and value enhancing strategic resource. In doing so, it impels the value co-creation journey and shapes the tourist's experience. Observation is coupled with qualitative interviews to capture the dual perspective of both guides and tourists. Findings exhibit the co-creation process through the performance of stories; how and when people derive pleasure (value); the influencing aspects of the environment or place; and guide/tourist perspectives on how they feel and think during the experience. The research contributes by taking a practical operational view of how co-creation occurs. It goes beyond the guide's perspective and exhibits the importance of co-creation of lived experience in the story enhanced tourism experience framework.     

The sensory dimension of tourist experiences: Capturing meaningful sensory-informed themes in Southwest Portugal

Sensory aspects of destinations have recently been in focus as an important dimension in the process of facilitating positive tourist experiences. The countryside embraces local resources rich in multi-sensory stimuli that could be utilized in the planning and marketing of appealing tourist experiences addressed to segments of tourists, while fitting sustainable local development. This study follows a holistic approach to the five external human senses, aiming to capture meaningful sensory-informed themes adequate for segmenting rural tourists. A self-administered survey in four languages was collected from 181 tourists in Southwest Portugal. A multiple correspondence analysis suggests four sensory-informed themes, tentatively named generic beach-related experience, nature-based experience, balanced experience, and rural experience. The proposed themes correspond to a four-solution cluster of tourists presenting different profiles. The largest segment (73 tourists) corresponds to the rural experience, regarding which tourists mainly refer to the taste of local food and the smell of fresh air.     

Effects of podcast tours on tourist experiences in a national park

This study examines the influence of podcast tours on tourist experiences. Based on theoretical accounts that human voices convey rich social information, this study proposes that podcast tours increase perceived social presence and mindfulness that lead to enhanced tourist experiences and environmental stewardship. A field experiment was conducted at a national park using MP3 players containing podcast tours based on four experimental conditions: 2 information source compositions (single vs. multiple narrator voices) × 2 narrating styles (formal vs. conversational). The results support that even if communicated through audio-only media, the human voice creates a positive social context for meaningful interaction which influences tourist experiences and stewardship. Mindfulness was also found to be an important construct affecting the quality of experiences. The findings support the usefulness of podcast tours as interpretative media.     

Youth travelers and waste reduction behaviors while traveling to tourist destinations

ABSTRACT

This study aimed to develop a robust conceptual framework incorporating volitional and non-volitional dimensions within the theory of planned behavior and cognitive (green image and environmental awareness) and affective (anticipated pride and guilt) dimensions to explicate youth tourists’ waste reduction behaviors while traveling to destinations. A quantitative approach was used. Structural equation modeling was utilized for data analysis. This study proved the usefulness and sufficiency of the proposed framework. Volitional factors were significant determinants of intentions. Our findings also showed that the inclusion of green image, environmental awareness, and anticipated feelings increased the prediction power of the theory. Results also supported the significant role of these integrated variables in increasing waste reduction intentions. Attitude had a mediating role and included the relative importance in determining intentions. This study extended destination researchers’ and practitioners’ knowledge and understanding of visitors’ waste reduction behaviors in the youth tourism context.     

Developing creativity in tourist experiences: A solution to the serial reproduction of culture?

As culture is increasingly utilised as a means of social and economic development, the cultural tourism market is being flooded with new attractions, cultural routes and heritage centres. However, many consumers, tired of encountering the serial reproduction of culture in different destinations are searching for alternatives. The rise of skilled consumption, the importance of identity formation and the acquisition of cultural capital in (post)modern society point towards the use of creativity as an alternative to conventional cultural tourism. This paper considers the development of creative spaces, creative spectacles and creative tourism from the perspective of supply and demand. The need for creativity in developing new products and how to address the challenge of serial reproduction are discussed, and examples of creative tourism projects are examined and contrasted to traditional models of cultural tourism.     

旅游地居民环境行为研究综述

旅游地居民环境行为研究是旅游情境下环境行为研究不可或缺的环节。本文从研究进展、研究内容和研究方法3个方面出发,对旅游地居民环境行为的国内外研究进行梳理和分析。研究发现：（1）旅游地居民环境行为研究起步较晚,大致经历了萌芽（2002—2004年）、起步（2005—2013年）和发展（2014—2020年）3个阶段,国内外研究成果均较少,国外研究成果领先于国内;（2）旅游地居民地环境行为的概念界定尚未统一,测量量表的开发也较为薄弱;影响因素探究是旅游地居民环境行为的研究热点,但形成机制探讨相对匮乏,并缺少旅游地居民环境行为的预测研究;（3）旅游地居民环境行为研究方法较为单一,数据搜集方法以问卷调查为主,半结构式访谈为辅,数据分析方法以结构方程模型为主。基于此,分别从研究视角、研究内容和研究方法上剖析现有研究不足,指出旅游地居民环境行为未来研究方向,以期为旅游目的地环境管理提供有益指导。