Cruise passengers' behavior at the destination: Investigation using GPS technology

This paper aims at segmenting cruise passengers in order to identify passengers' profiles according to their behavior at destination. Through an integrated use of traditional survey instruments and of GPS technologies, a set of indicators for the analysis of passengers' mobility at destination is proposed. Data collected in the port of Palermo are used in order to investigate space-time activities of cruise passengers at the destination. Monothetic Analysis is used in order to segment passengers according to their behavior at destination, and groups are then compared in terms of socio-demographic characteristics and other variables collected through questionnaire-based survey. Results identify seven different broad patterns of activity, and indicate that several socio-demographic characteristics and other features of passengers seem to be associated with movement patterns at destination. A better knowledge of cruise passengers' behavior at destination is a fundamental pre-requisite in order to better serve visitors' needs and meet their expectations.     

Word-of-mouth,buying, and sacrifice intentions for eco-cruises: Exploring the function of norm activation and value-attitude-behavior

Our theoretical framework was designed to explain passengers' decision-making process for environmentally responsible cruise products. Specifically, the goals of this study were to investigate passengers' decision formation by employing the Norm Activation Model (NAM), to extend it by integrating the value-attitude-behavior cognitive hierarchy, emotional process, and normative procedure, and to test the moderating impact of non-green alternatives' attractiveness in a cruise context. The measurement quality was found to be adequate. The prediction power of the proposed framework was superior to the original NAM. Findings from the structural model revealed that the hypothesized associations relating study variables within our proposed theoretical framework were generally supported; personal norm acted as significant mediators; and the role of personal norm and social norm in building intentions was salient. Additionally, the hypothesized moderating impact of alternatives' attractiveness in determining intentions was supported.     

Impact of incentives on tourist activity in space-time

No tourism study to date, has examined the ability of incentives to shape the spatio-temporal behaviour of tourists. Data collected from the port of Palermo in Sicily (Italy), using traditional survey instruments as well as GPS technology, was employed to investigate the effect of incentives on cruise passengers' space-time activities. The results show the incentives' clear and significant impact in influencing the space-time activities of cruise passengers' while visiting the city. Understanding the movement patterns of visitors at destinations can give destination managers information that can assist in dealing with the negative effects of overtourism that are caused due to high concentrations of visitors in both space and time in relatively small and well-defined sites and areas.     

The effect of physical environment on passenger delight and satisfaction: Moderating effect of national identity

This study aims to examine the influence of an international airport's physical environment on passengers' delight and satisfaction. This study also aims to assess the moderating role of national identity on the relationship between physical environment and passengers' delight and satisfaction. A convenient sampling technique was used to select the sample. A total of 271 questionnaires distributed at Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Malaysia were used for data analysis. The result from the structural analysis suggests that physical environment in an international airport influences passengers' delight and satisfaction. Moreover, national identity portrayed in airport moderates the relationships between physical environment, passengers' delight and satisfaction. Overall, findings of this study extends the understanding of physical environment, passengers' delight and satisfaction and national identity in the context of an international airport and offer implications for international airport authorities. Discussions and implications for airport practitioners, limitations, and suggestions for future research are also provided.     

Identifying antecedents and consequences of well-being: The case of cruise passengers

Although recent studies have focused on the role of well-being in tourism, there is limited knowledge about its specific contribution for marketing practitioners. This study focuses on how cruise companies can develop a solid relationship with their passengers by examining four dimensions of experiential value and their impact on well-being and passengers' value co-creation behavior. Experiential value consists of four dimensions: playfulness, aesthetics, consumer return on investment, and service excellence. A structural equation model delineating relationships among experiential value, well-being, and value co-creation was developed and tested with 292 luxury cruise passengers. Well-being was found to play a significant role in linking the theoretical concepts of experiential value and value co-creation, with brand prestige playing a moderating role.     

Job demands–job resources (JD-R) model,work engagement,and well-being of cruise ship employees

This research aims to shed new light on peculiar on-board working conditions by adopting the widely recognized and well-established job demands–job resources theory and extending its model to the work engagement and well-being of cruise ship employees. Cross-sectional survey and partial least squares path modeling tool are used. Results confirm that job demands negatively affect cruise ship employees’ well-being. This finding is important because it demonstrates how the negative effect of job demands on work engagement is buffered by cruise ship employees’ individual strategies such as coping, recovery from work-related effort, and optimization and compensation. By contrast, job resources positively affect work engagement and well-being, and work engagement exerts a positive effect on well-being. This study successfully consolidates the literature on job demands, job resources, work engagement, and well-being to determine the complex essence of the work engagement and well-being of cruise ship employees.     

Estimating cruise passenger's expenditure: A censored system approach

Cruise ship passenger spending patterns are analyzed for the archipelago of the Canary Islands, as such patterns represent a key element in the evaluation of the economic impact of cruise ships on residents and local stakeholders. Over six cruise seasons, data regarding cruise passenger expenditures were collected via survey responses at each stopover. Since the five categories of expenditure analyzed are censored and possibly correlated, we have estimated a multivariate tobit system. This approach offers more efficient estimates of the determinants of cruise passengers' onshore spending, which can be useful in designing economic policies. Our results show that gender, age and socioeconomic status affect cruise passenger spending patterns significantly and, more importantly, in different ways depending on the expenditure category. Therefore, it seems that more personalized marketing strategies (i.e., gender/age/nationality-oriented) classified by expenditure category should be more efficient and, therefore, implemented to achieve greater local economic impact.     

Complaint Behavior as a Factor in Cruise Line Losses

Abstract

This paper examines the complaint behavior and financial loss to a cruise line that result from brand switching by their most loyal customers. These effects are based on the fact that passengers can be classified by their type of brand loyalty. Based upon the previously published works of Jones and Sasser (1995) and validated by Cartwright and Baird (1999), the following classification is used in this paper. “Apostles” are the most brand loyal customers who also bring in additional cruise passengers. “Loyalists” are considered highly satisfied customers. They are also repeat passengers, but do not bring in as many additional cruise customers as Apostles. “Mercenaries” are driven by price. This group is only loyal so long as that cruise line maintains the cheapest price. The fourth group, “Hostages,” is loyal to the cruise line because there is no viable alternative. The final group in this classification is “Guerrillas” who are Apostles who have been scorned. An Apostle becomes a Guerrilla because of an inappropriate response by the cruise line to complaint behavior.

Classifications of brand loyalty will be discussed leading to the development of the five types of cruise passengers. This paper will show that inappropriate responses to complaint behavior can result in the loss of over $1,775,000 to the cruise line.     

Impacts of cruise service quality and price on vacationers’ cruise experience: Moderating role of price sensitivity

In view of the increased interest in cruise vacations and limited study on cruises, the purpose of this study was to shed light on an understanding of cruise vacationers’ evaluations of onboard experiences with cruise lines in North America and their loyalty-formation process. The empirical results revealed that interactional quality and outcome quality were significantly and positively associated with novelty and perceived value which in turn, affected satisfaction and loyalty. In addition, perceived price was a significant and negative predictor of perceived value. The moderating function of price sensitivity showed that novelty was more effective in inducing satisfaction in the low price sensitivity group and it was more effective in enhancing perceived value in the high price sensitivity group. Overall, these results help cruise line operators who observe that cruise vacationers have become more demanding on service quality, price, and value. Practical and theoretical contributions are discussed.     

Exploring airline Companies' engagement with their passengers through social network: An investigation from their Facebook pages

Social media is an effective way to engage with an airline, and many carriers include Facebook, Youtube, Twitter and Instagram as vital parts of their customer engagement strategies. The Facebook pages of four top airline companies that won the 2017 World Airline Awards have been used as the source of this study. The Stimulus–Organism–Response (S–O–R) model has been adopted. 281 posts were collected and analyzed by employing the thematic analysis method. The findings reveal that three out of four airline companies, especially those with more company-oriented, tend to stir complaining customers' cognitive and emotions regarding their flight experiences. The findings and recommendations offer airline companies a clearer picture about the airline passengers' concerns and behavior in responding to the Facebook contents posted. Furthermore, this study fills the gap in the existing studies, which lack a framework to investigate how airline companies engage with airline passengers via Facebook posts.     

Restaurant revenue management: Do perceived capacity scarcity and price differences matter?

Revenue management (RM) has become an indispensable strategic tool in capacity-constrained service industries whose total revenue often depends on the abilities of firms to use capacity efficiently. The restaurant business is similar enough to traditional RM industries such as hotels and airlines, but restaurants also have unique characteristics that pose special challenges to restaurant operators. Among the unique characteristics of restaurants are the relative flexibility of service capacity and the flexible duration of a meal, which are important subjects to be considered in the implementation of RM practices. In addition, when a restaurant operator practices a demand-based variable pricing policy to adjust demand, the magnitude of the price differences may influence fairness perceptions of the policy. Based on the commodity theory and the equity theory, this study hypothesizes that two main effects, namely, perceived scarcity of capacity in a restaurant and price differences, influence the perceived value of a restaurant's offerings and the fairness perceptions of a restaurant's RM practices. As hypothesized, the negative effects of price difference on fairness perceptions are supported by the results. However, findings suggest that perceived scarcity of capacity influences neither the perceived value of a restaurant's expected offering nor the fairness perceptions for a restaurant's RM practices.     

An Analysis of Cruise Ship Meetings

Abstract

Cruise ships have become one of the many options for corporate meeting planners when faced with a decision regarding a destination for meetings and incentives (employee rewards). In the past five years, all major cruise lines have unveiled mega cruise ships to attract a piece of the more than $20 billion corporate meeting and incentives market (Buia, 2001). But how much interest really exists among the meeting planners in holding their meetings aboard cruise ships? Are cruise ship meetings really comparable to meetings planned in land based meeting facilities? This paper explores the meeting planners' perceptions and interests in cruise ship meetings.     

Potential Mainland Chinese Cruise Travelers’ Expectations,Motivations, and Intentions

The global cruise industry is the fastest growing sector in the entire leisure market. Due to the limited development of the Chinese cruise sector and government controls on outbound travel, the cruise, especially the outbound cruise, is a new concept in China. Few studies have addressed Chinese consumers’ perceptions of cruises. This study aimed to explore the preferences of potential Chinese cruisers and their expectations, motivations, and intentions in relation to taking an outbound cruise. This study also proposed and tested a conceptual framework: the Expectation, Motivation, and Intention (EMI) Model. Data were collected in Beijing and Shanghai; 242 valid responses were received. The results partially supported the proposed model. The theoretical and practical contributions of the study are discussed.     

ENGAGING TIMESHARE OWNERS IN TOURISM DESTINATION MANAGEMENT: TOURISM PLANNING AND TOURISM MARKETING IMPLICATIONS

It is important to understand tourists' willingness to participate in tourism planning and the factors influencing their willingness because they are an integral part of the destination and ultimately one of the main buyers of the product. Timeshare owners are a special group of tourists who have additional connections with the tourism destination through their timeshare. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships among timeshare owners' perceptions of tourism planning, civic engagement, sense of place, and willingness to participate in tourism planning.

This study was based on a questionnaire survey of U.S. timeshare owners. The total sample size was 302. A two‐stage structural equation modeling approach was applied in data analysis. Results from the measurement model suggested that the model fit the data quite well. Results from the structural model suggested that timeshare owners' perceptions of tourism planning, their past history of civic participation, and their sense of place significantly impact their willingness to participate in tourism planning, while timeshare owners' past experience in political participation did not significantly affect their willingness to participate in tourism planning. Implications of the findings in tourism planning and tourism destination marketing are presented.     

Aesthetics of hotel photos and its impact on consumer engagement: A computer vision approach

Visual content has been an essential marketing approach to exerting enjoyable virtual experiences and inducing consumer engagement. However, despite the widespread acknowledgment of the importance of visual content, how would the exerted aesthetic perception affect consumer engagement is still unexplored. Adopting a deep convolutional neural network model, this study quantifies the aesthetics of thumbnail images and managerial photos of hotels and thereby explores the impact of hotel photo aesthetics on consumer engagement. Aesthetically enjoyable photos are shown effective not only to encourage more consumers to engage in word-of-mouth discussions but also to promote consumer ratings. Such impact is also significantly moderated by hotel price. This study illustrates a viable approach to probing the perceived aesthetics of visual content in the hospitality field, and the uncovered significant role of aesthetics highlights the necessity of further attention to the cognitive perceptions of visual marketing content in both theoretical research and practical management.     

Physical attractiveness of service employees and customer engagement in tourism industry

As the importance of customer engagement gains more and more recognition, it is critical to study customer engagement strategy in the intensely competitive tourism industry. Answering the call for research on antecedents of tourists' customer engagement in the tourism industry, we consider the role of employees' physical attractiveness. We adopt a mixed-methods approach; using interviews and three scenario-based experiments, we explore, hypothesize, and test the relationship between employees' physical attractiveness and customer engagement of tourists. The results show that (1) physical attractiveness of employees affects tourists' customer engagement, that (2) the main effect of physical attractiveness is mediated by the desire for social interaction, and that (3) the main effect is moderated by tourism service characteristics (i.e., tourism service expertise).     

Exploring effective price presentation format to reduce decision difficulty and increase decision satisfaction

Variable pricing is frequently employed by service firms that adopt revenue management practices. This strategy is effective in stimulating and increasing revenue by appealing to customers with different levels of price sensitivity. However, by providing excessive price options, a company may cause choice overload for customers. Within the framework of behavioral economics, this study explores an effective price presentation strategy to mitigate choice overload due to a large assortment size of price options in the context of hotels. The findings of the experimental design study suggest that the number of categories that distinguish and organize price options positively affects consumers' perceived decision difficulty and consequent decision satisfaction when a large assortment size of price options is provided. This research extends the understanding of the effect of variable pricing on consumers' responses and provides marketers with guidance on how to manage variable pricing and its price presentation format.     

Role of Perceived Fit With Hotels’ Green Practices in the Formation of Customer Loyalty: Impact of Environmental Concerns

With the increasing concern for ecological issues among hotel customers, this study pursues an investigation of customers' perceptions of hotels' core business in association with green practices and the resulting purchase-related loyalty (i.e. intentions to visit, accept price premiums, and recommend). In addition, the study examines the moderating role of environmental concerns in the relationships among perceptions of hotels' green practices and loyalty components. A survey of tourists using hotels showed that customers related hotels' core businesses and green practices positively, which consequently affected customers' purchase intentions toward the hotels. This study is unique in academia in that it investigates the fit theory for the hospitality industry by considering the impact of environmental concerns, while employing environmental practices as an emerging social cause, which is, increasingly, important for the society. This study is beneficial by providing hotel managers with insight into hotel customers' decision-making processes regarding green practices.     

#CoronavirusCruise: Impact and implications of the COVID-19 outbreaks on the perception of cruise tourism

Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, the Diamond Princess became the center of the largest outbreak outside the original epicenter in China. This outbreak which left 712 passengers infected and 14 dead, followed by subsequent outbreaks affecting over one-third of the active ships in the cruise industry's global fleet, quickly became a crisis that captured public attention and dominated mainstream news and social media. This study investigates the perception of cruising during these outbreaks by analyzing the tweets on cruising using Natural Language Processing (NLP). The findings show a prevalent negative sentiment in most of the analyzed tweets, while the criticisms directed at the cruise industry were based on perceptions and stereotypes of the industry before the pandemic. The study provides insight into the concerns raised in these conversations and highlights the need for new business models outside the pre-pandemic mass-market model and to genuinely make cruising more environmentally friendly.     

Perceptions of cruise travel during the COVID-19 pandemic: Market recovery strategies for cruise businesses in North America

The study aims to identify consumer perceptions of the cruise industry amid the COVID-19 pandemic and seeks to provide market recovery strategies for cruise businesses. The relationship between perceptions among cruise experience and COVID-19 financial status groups were explored. The results of analyses of data from 759 respondents indicated that travel constraints negatively influence behavioral intention through negativity bias. Further, perceived crisis management positively affects behavioral intention through attitude-trust. New consumers’ behavioral intention is significantly affected by the negativity bias, and the perceived crisis management manipulates the trust of financial-affected consumers.