The Determinants of Honeymoon Destination Choice—The Case of Taiwan

The purposes of this study were to identify the attributes that determine the attractiveness of a honeymoon destination and to determine the influential variables that affect the destination choice of honeymooners. The results indicated that “safety,” “excellent quality of accommodation,” and “reasonable travel cost” were the three most important attributes determining the attractiveness of a honeymoon destination. Significant differences in perceptions of destination attributes exist across groups of different sociodemographic and traveling characteristics of potential honeymooners. Two sociodemographic variables (i.e., age, monthly income), two traveling characteristics (i.e., length of trip, travel budget), and three destination attributes (i.e., “excellent quality of accommodation,” “nightlife entertainment,” “good place for shopping”) are the significant determinants for classifying Taiwanese potential honeymooners by their destination choices. The findings of this study provide useful information for destination marketers in their efforts to segment the target market precisely and develop promotion campaigns effectively.     

The Impact of a Mega Event on Visitors’ Attitude Toward Hosting Destination: Using Trust Transfer Theory

Despite the popularity of festivals and events, event managers and the hosting countries are not certain whether a successful event leads to favorable attitudes toward the hosting country. This study based on trust transfer theory considers the impact of attitude toward a mega event on attitude toward the hosting country. The study also examines two dimensions of perceived value related to the Shanghai Expo and their influences on attitude toward the event. The study finds that both emotional and functional dimensions of value offered by the Expo are important for evaluation of the event, although functional value is considered more important than emotional value. Supporting trust transfer theory, the study shows that attitude toward a mega event influences attitude toward the hosting country. The study also finds that both attitude toward a mega event and attitude toward the hosting country have a positive impact on visitors’ intentions to revisit China.     

The Flamenco Factor in Destination Marketing: Interdependencies of Creative Industries and Tourism —the Case of Seville

This study builds on the concepts developed by Florida in his work “The Rise of the Creative Class”. In doing so it seeks evidence for the claims made that the creative arts address deficiencies identified in the terminology of ‘cultural tourism’. The case relates to flamenco performances in Seville. The art complex of flamenco survived on the one hand as a symbol of Andalusian culture on the other hand it depends strongly on the international tourism market. Additionally flamenco is used in destination marketing to differentiate Seville from other Spanish cities.     

Dimensions and Effects of Consumers' Travel–Transportation Involvement: The Case of the Mini Three Links

Since its implementation in 2001, the Mini Three Links (MTL) has become the most important transportation means for Taiwanese travelling to China. The MTL is connected to recreation/travel in Kinmen: service providers often include short local trips as part of the transit process. This study focuses on the concept of travel–transportation involvement in the MTL, exploring its effects on consumers’ travel–transportation dependence, identity, loyalty, price sensitivity, and product purchase intention. Travel–transportation involvement is divided into behavioural involvement and social–psychological involvement, which in turn considers attraction, self-expression, and centrality to lifestyle. Survey respondents are passengers using the MTL service at Kinmen Shangyi Airport and Shuitou Port. Structural equation modelling is used to analyse the 380 valid questionnaires; results show that different involvement dimensions have unique effects. Behavioural involvement positively affects price sensitivity. Attraction positively affects travel–transportation dependence, which further improves travel–transportation identity. Attraction also has indirect negative effects on loyalty and price sensitivity, which are mediated by its impact on travel–transportation dependence and identity. Further, centrality to lifestyle negatively affects product purchase intention during the travel process. Self-expression has a direct positive effect on travel–transportation dependence and loyalty, but a direct negative effect on price sensitivity. Finally, self-expression has indirect negative effects on loyalty and price sensitivity; the mediation process is identical to that for attraction. This study is valuable in terms of distinguishing between various effects among previously overlooked dimensions of travel–transportation involvement; it also provides practical implications for related travel–transportation-service practitioners and tourism development within Kinmen.     

Making Reservations Online: The Impact of Consumer-Written and System-Aggregated User-Generated Content (UGC) in Travel Booking Websites on Consumers’ Behavioral Intentions

This study examines how consumer-written and system-aggregated user-generated content (UGC) on travel booking websites jointly influence consumer behavior. The purpose of this research is to test the effects of different types of UGC on various consumer behavior outcomes. Experiment 1 found a significant interaction effect between UGC type (consumer-written versus system-aggregated) and valence (positive versus negative) on product evaluation, perceived information value, and satisfaction. Experiment 2 found a significant interaction between consumer-written and system-aggregated UGC valences. When consumer-written UGC was negative, consumers demonstrated more negative product evaluation and lower buying intention, regardless of system-aggregated UGC valence. When consumer-written and system-aggregated UGC valences matched, consumers indicated greater perceived information value, satisfaction, and future behavioral intention. Trustworthiness partially mediated the effect of the fit between consumer-written and system-aggregated UGC on consumer satisfaction.     

The Influence of Service Quality on the Positioning of Five Star Hotels—The Case of the Lisbon Area

Abstract

Tourism in Portugal has expanded very rapidly over the last decades. At present, it accounts for about 8% of the GDP and directly employs more than 300,000 people. The growing numbers of arrivals in Portugal have also led to a rapid expansion of the hotel industry. However, this expansion has been followed by some worrying drops in the occupancy rates of five star hotels. Fierce competition has then become one of the cornerstones of the Portuguese hotel industry. Research conducted in the field of market positioning has highlighted the importance of understanding the preferences attributed by consumers to a given product (“perception”) and how and why products and services are evaluated and purchased. Based on research conducted recently among tour operators and business companies, this paper will look at the way in which service quality influences the positioning of five star hotels. The analysis and conclusions presented in the paper offer grounds for discussion about the way in which five star hotels located in the Portuguese capital and in the surrounding area may improve their image, attract larger numbers of tourists and, as a result of this, prepare themselves for growing competition that has developed in Lisbon and its outskirts. Some of the findings are applicable to other European capitals.     

Which Journal Articles are Uncited? The Case of the Asia Pacific Journal of Tourism Research and the Journal of Travel and Tourism Marketing

Two main streams of research performance evaluation rely on quantitative measurement of research output and citation count. Although research output counting has achieved a certain degree of success, such an approach cannot assess the impact of a publication on knowledge development. A citation count, in contrast, measures the influence of a publication on subsequent research efforts. Citation count has thus become an important way to represent research performance. This study analyzes the uncited articles published in the Asia Pacific Journal of Tourism Research and the Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing in the period 1996–2005. Findings would be of use to academic researchers in planning for the type of article to write.     

An Exploratory Study of Movie‐Induced Tourism: A Case of the Movie The Sound of Music and Its Locations in Salzburg,Austria

Although it has been acknowledged that movies can induce people to travel to the sites where the movies were filmed, there is still little research related to behavioral characteristics of tourists who actually visit different movie sites. The purpose of this study was to explore a relationship between a movie and its effect on the local tourism where the movie was filmed. In this study, specifically, the movie The Sound of Music was chosen to examine the role that the movie played in attracting people to Salzburg, Austria that was used as a backdrop for the movie. The results of the survey have supported the phenomenon of movie‐induced tourism by showing that the movie The Sound of Music influenced visitors in selecting the film locations as their travel destination.     

The Impact of the Causality between Work–Family Conflict,Well–Being,and Leisure Coping Strategies on Tour Professionals

This study is to investigate the impact of the causality between work–family conflict (WFC), well-being, and leisure coping strategies on tour professionals, and to verify the regulating role played by leisure coping strategies. The results suggest that when a tour professional experiences a high degree of WFC, perceived well-being is reduced. Applying leisure coping strategies affects the well-being of tour professionals to a high degree, and significantly regulates the relationship between WFC and well-being. To emphasize the role of internal marketing, this study concludes that leisure coping strategies must incorporate measures that provide direct benefits to tour professionals.