Developing a conceptual framework for slow travel: a grounded theory approach

This paper discusses the sociocultural phenomenon of slow travel and explores and clarifies definitional issues. The 30-year-plus antecedents of slow travel are examined. A literature review shows a concentration on four key features: slowness and the value of time; locality and activities at the destination; mode of transport and travel experience; and environmental consciousness. Links to the slow food and slow city movements are discussed, and evidence that slow travel is an important emergent form of tourism in Europe, accounting for 10% of the holiday market, is provided. A grounded theory approach continues the exploration, involving 23 in-depth interviews with practitioners and academics, which revealed that their core requirements for slow travel centred on slowness, the travel experience and environmental consciousness. There was a lack of consensus about the eligibility of car travel and high-speed rail. Slow travel is seen as a group of associated ideas rather than as a watertight definition; it is a mindset about travel rather than a tangible product and concentrates on lack of speed rather than slowness per se. The conclusion shows it to be a growing part of the sustainable tourism paradigm and proposes a working definition of slow travel.     

Personalities of Travel Agents with Strong Sales Records in Taiwan

Studies have shown that a certain personality leads to higher job performance. This finding has led many companies to use personality traits when they hire employees. Despite abundant studies on personality, little is known about suitable personality traits for travel agents, especially in Taiwan. With 230 travel agents working in sales departments for corporate clients and transient travelers in Taiwan, their personalities, actual sales records, and managers’ performance evaluations were used to identify significant personality traits affecting job performance. The results reflect different personality traits for travel agents working with corporate clients and individual transient travelers. The results revealed that travel agents working with corporate contracts have strong commanding and continuative personalities but weak innovative and independent personalities. On the contrary, the agents working with transient travelers showed strong innovative, commending, independent, and sympathy personalities but a weak deliberate personality. Based on the findings, the implications are discussed.     

旅游专业本科生择业标准及其对旅行社的就业认知

旅游专业学生在本行业就业率低的问题一直困扰着旅游学术界、教育界和旅游行业,不少学者从不同角度研究并试图解决这一问题,但却很少从学生择业标准的角度去考虑.文章运用并检验里查得森(Richardson)择业影响因素量表,测量旅游专业本科生的择业标准及其对旅行社的就业认知,结果表明:学生认为旅行社不具备其择业时最看重的因素(“融洽的同事关系”、“喜欢的工作”、“良好的晋升机会”);并且学生认为旅行社具备的主要就业因素是其择业时最不看重的(“出国旅行的机会”、“专业对口”、“职业流动性”);学生认为旅行社存在超工作时间、超工作量、晋升机制不合理、起薪不理想等行业不规范现状,但学生也认为旅行社具有锻造高技能、有责任感人才的就业优势.根据学生择业标准与旅行社的就业认知IPA分析结果,文章提出了相应的对策来改善旅游本科生行业就业率低的问题.     

旅行社与汽车俱乐部经营自驾车旅游的比较研究

在国内自驾车旅游快速发展的今天,旅行社和汽车俱乐部作为该领域中两大类主要经营实体,在组织自驾车旅游时,凭借着各自的优势正在发挥着越来越大的作用.但是,由于它们所属行业特点等原因,二者在许多方面尚存在问题.本文从不同角度,将旅行社与汽车俱乐部所经营的自驾车旅游进行了比较研究,因此对相关企业、行业乃至政府相关部门的决策都是十分有意义的.     

关于旅游线路专营的思考 --兼与孙建超等老师商榷

解决旅游线路开发中的外部经济问题,是我国旅行社业走向良性发展的迫切需要。本文从孙建超等老师的文章入手,阐述了旅行社一体化的局限性,以及建立旅游线路使用权市场在解决旅游线路开发中的外部经济问题上所起的作用,并指出建立旅游线路使用权市场才是更合理的选择。     

旅游线路专营的经济学分析

旅游线路开发中存在着外部经济问题,旅游线路专营是对这一问题的一种尝试性解答;但由于交易费用过高,旅游线路专营将很难实现真正的专营。旅行社的纵向一体化是更合理的选择。     

Community agency and sustainable tourism development: the case of La Fortuna,Costa Rica

Previous sustainable tourism research has called for the promotion of community-based tourism as a means of achieving sustainable development goals. Such community-based development has been noted as essential for sustainable practices because of its capacity to benefit local populations while reducing tourism's negative consequences. Nonetheless, some researchers have warned that community-based tourism, by itself, does not necessarily lead to sustainable practices. This study examines local social interactional elements necessary for the achievement of sustainable tourism practices. Such practices are attainable when certain attitudinal, organizational and/or behavioral conditions are present within a community. Using a case study methodology, this article examines the interactional elements by which residents of La Fortuna, Costa Rica, engaged in sustainable tourism practices. The study was based on the theoretical notion of the community field. It used key informant interviews and participant observation. The study shows how economic, social and environmentally sustainable practices were made possible through community agency, the construction of local relationships that increase the adaptive capacity of people within a common locality. Key factors found to enable community agency are strong intra- and extra-community interactions, open communication, participation, distributive justice and tolerance.     

旅游合同一方当事人的认定探微

谁是旅游合同的当事人？这是摆在法院面前的一个既简单又复杂的问题。文章从旅游合同纠纷的实际案例出发,试图解决作为复杂问题的旅游合同一方当事人的认定难题。尽管赞同法院裁决时否定单位的旅游合同当事人资格的做法,但不接受其裁决理由,并提出了两种诠释路径：一种是基于现行法制,否定单位具有旅游合同当事人资格的正当性;另一种是面向未来,通过完善立法,承认单位是旅游合同当事人,但赋予作为受益人的旅游者直接请求权。前者适用我国《合同法》有关间接代理的条款,认定单位不是当事人,只是旅游者的代理人;后者建议完善《合同法》有关利他合同的规定,立法确认旅游者作为受益人得就其损害向旅行社提出违约赔偿。     

A content analysis of travel agency web‐sites in Korea

The Internet has become a dominant issue in today's tourism environment. This paper is to provide large travel agencies in Korea with a better understanding of their Web‐based competitive environment. A content analysis of the top 60 travel agencies Web‐sites in Korea suggests that many travel agencies do not develop their own Web‐sites and although travel agencies are using the Web, they have not, as yet, fully utilized capabilities of Web‐sites. This study also suggests some implications for successful cyber tourism marketing, including the establishment of a Web‐site, on‐line selling, customer supports, and cyber marketing mix strategy on the Web. Limitations and further research issues are also suggested.     

我国旅游业线上与线下企业的竞合理论构建--基于扎根理论的探索性研究

\"互联网+旅游\"模式的发展与应用,改变了我国旅游市场的结构、实践方式与营销策略,加大了旅游业线上与线下业务的竞争与合作。本文以在线旅行社(线上)与传统旅行社(线下)的竞争与合作问题为研究对象,运用扎根理论分析方法对在线旅行社和传统旅行社的访谈信息进行挖掘,基于竞合二维模型构建竞合理论模型,从竞合的成因、互动与演化等视角,探索竞合过程的\"推、拉、阻\"等作用力。研究结果表明,旅游企业的战略需求、资源异质性以及风险分摊等因素推动竞合关系的形成和发展,提供综合服务、旅游信息共享、专业人才发展等因素拉动竞合关系演变,利益分配不均、企业文化差异性以及沟通渠道单一或闭塞等因素阻碍竞合关系的深入。本研究首次厘清了在线旅行社与传统旅行社的竞合机制,对实现线上与线下旅游企业的深度融合与互利共赢具有借鉴意义。     

‘It Does Not Harm the Environment!’ An Analysis of Industry Discourses on Tourism,Air Travel and the Environment

While a substantial part of the population in Europe seems well informed about the phenomenon of climate change, uncertainty seems to prevail in terms of its seriousness, its consequences for society and action that needs to be taken in order to prevent ‘dangerous interference with the climate system’. Many people seem to believe that there is no scientific consensus about climate change and that individual behavioural change is irrelevant in the face of uncertainty. Such a ‘psychology of denial’ seems particularly strong in the context of air travel, the fastest growing transport sector. This paper seeks to understand this phenomenon by analysing the discourses surrounding air travel. Four major industry discourses are identified: air travel is energy efficient and accounts only for marginal emissions of CO₂; air travel is economically and socially too important to be restricted; fuel use is constantly minimized and new technology will solve the problem, and air travel is treated unfairly in comparison to other means of transport. The validity of these claims is evaluated based on data and material presented in the scientific literature. Results show that there are substantial gaps between the discourses and the reality of aviation's environmental performance, which might partially explain the controversial understanding of air travel and its environmental consequences among the public.