Article

Meaningful travel: Women, independent travel and the search for self and meaning

January 2006

Authors:

Erica Wilson

Southern Cross University

Candice Harris

Auckland University of Technology

It is increasingly recognised by researchers that tourism experiences incorporate more than just physical travel to a place, as they can also involve spiritual elements, psychological and physical benefits, altruism, self-development, and life-change. Building on this recognition, this paper puts forward the idea that independent travel plays an important and meaningful part in the course of people's lives. The concept of ‘meaningful travel’ is defined and explored, using women's experiences of independent leisure and business travel as a context. Conceptualising travel as meaningful and relevant to everyday life reveals the complex, fluid and dynamic nature of the tourist experience, and calls for an effort to transgress simplistic and uni-dimensional interpretations of tourism, business travel and holiday-taking. Analysis of the women's stories and words revealed that ‘meaningful travel’ centred around three key themes: a search for self and identity; self-empowerment; and connectedness with others/ ‘global citizenship’. Essentially, what the findings demonstrate is that meaningful travel is not about a mere search for authenticity and a collection of ‘cultural capital’. Rather, meaningful travel involves women searching for an increased sense of self and reconsidering their perspectives of life, society and their relationships with others. Furthermore, the results also demonstrate how women are able to transfer the meaning and benefits from their travel experiences upon their return home, within their everyday lives and contexts.

Divers or Divas? A Market Analysis of the Mature Aged Female Diver: An Australian Perspective

Article

Jul 2019
Tourism Mar Environ

If you ask the average person to describe a scuba diver, you would probably receive comments such as strong, young, athletic, male and a bit of a daredevil. However, recent research into the highest growth sector of diver training, reveals women over 40 are signing on for dive training in unprecedented numbers. Dive service providers and tourist destination promoters may be missing opportunities to market effectively to attract this dynamic group, using a ‘one size fits all’ approach and potentially losing sales opportunities for equipment, courses, dive travel and more. This study examines the Mature Aged Female diver, revealing new demographic data, information about their dive travel preferences, how much they spend on diving holidays and other information useful to dive and tourism industry stakeholders. A web-based survey was used to study 111 female divers over 40. The average age of participants was 51 to 55, and most had logged over 100 dives. The results depicted participants as a vibrant part of the diving community, with money to spend and the desire to travel. Safety in dive operations was identified as a priority as was small-group travel. Spending over $500 a day on international diving trips, they represent an untapped and lucrative market segment. This study aims to contribute new insight into this dynamic and motivated market segment. Findings will assist dive tourism service providers and destination marketers to better understand this segment, to create attractive products and services to tap into this lucrative market.

The exploration of Iranian solo female travellers' experiences

Article

Full-text available

Oct 2021

For various reasons, some women experience solo travel in different parts of the world. However, as with many leisure activities, access to travel and tourism does not have the same distribution between different social groups, including other classes and genders (men and women). While there is a growing body of research on solo female travellers, few studies have included women from Middle Eastern or Muslim‐majority countries. Drawing upon a series of in‐depth interviews, this paper examines the travel experiences of Iranian solo female travellers, which have been mainly overlooked in prior studies on the topic. The study's findings indicate that solo travel motivations can be categorized into personal factors: freedom and flexibility, self‐empowerment, independence, and exploration. Also, the absence of family responsibilities, routines, and gender constraints, as well as the promotion of their social and personal selves, contributed to their well‐being. The results also indicate that, despite the restrictions imposed by Iran's religious‐patriarchal society, tourism has made women more visible in the public sphere. Overall, this study fills a significant gap in tourism research by highlighting the experience, limitations, and motivation of solo female travellers, which heralds social change.

What motivates and hinders people from travelling alone? A study of solo and non-solo travellers

Article

Full-text available

Oct 2020
Curr Issues Tourism

Elaine Chiao Ling Yang

Contemporary lifestyles and social changes have precipitated the popularity of solo travel. Despite the growing prominence of the solo travel market, it remains an under researched area. This study explores the definitions, motivations, and constraints of solo travel, taking into consideration both existing and potential solo travellers, and provides a gender-balanced investigation and subsequent in-depth understanding of the underlying factors that drive solo travel motivations and constraints. Interviews were conducted with 14 solo travellers and 14 non-solo travellers. The findings suggest that solo travel as an evolving and fluid concept, varies according to individual travel experiences and personal circumstances. Solo travel motivations can be broadly categorized into ‘solo by circumstances’ and ‘solo by choice’. Transformative experience, freedom, and flexibility are key motivators for solo travellers, while anticipated self-discovery and freedom inspire the potential solo travellers. Safety, cost, and social constraints emerged as the top three inhibitors impeding or constricting solo travel participation and experience. The findings reveal the institutionalization of solo travel and proclivity to join tours as strategies to build confidence and overcome safety and social constraints. Recommendations for the travel industry to cater to the solo travel market were also examined from the travellers’ perspectives.

The quest for authenticity and peer-to-peer tourism experiences

Article

Jun 2021
J Hospit Tourism Manag

This article explores the role of peer-to-peer tourism experiences in the tourism quest for authenticity. Specifically, it analyses the influence of the consumers’ perception of the benefits derived from such typology of experiences, their traits, and attitudes on their perception of a superior authenticity. This research, piloted in Mallorca (Spain), shows that the perception of peer-to-peer experiences providing non-economic benefits, together with a positive attitude towards the sharing economy are the most influencing factors. Findings suggest that destinations may enhance their competitiveness by rethinking their product portfolio and deploying specific value-based segmentation and targeting approaches.

A return to innocence: Guimi tourism and women empowerment

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2021

Influenced by the Confucian culture, clan‐family structure, and communist ideology, gender inequality still widely exists in modern China. On reflection of the socio‐cultural framework that shaped the Chinese gender lens, this study took a “power to” perspective on women empowerment by investigating 28 Guimi‐tourists' embodied experience. Upon identifying the core experience of “Return to Innocence,” a resources‐agency‐achievements framework was constructed to depict the underlying mechanism through which Guimi tourism empowered women to counteract sociocultural constraints. The study offered a context‐specific understanding of Guimi tourism and theoretically contributed to women empowerment and tourism, as well as Chinese cultural studies.

Solo Travel and Well-Being Amongst Women: An Exploratory Study

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2021

Solo travel is no longer a niche market. It alone contributes a massive amount of the total travel market and has shown an enormous growth in recent years. But the existing body of literature on solo women travelling and its outcomes is quite negligible. Consequent upon the fact, this study significantly contributes in the increment of existing literature. A conceptual model is proposed based on the secondary data sources and presents a discussion on the impact of solo travel experiences on women‘s well-being. For this purpose, a range of research papers, articles, blogs and other relevant social media contents have been reviewed to draw conclusive results for the study. In the findings, self-transformation and positive changes in well-being came out as resultant factors of solo travelling in many cases. Major reasons for solo travelling found during the study were—to overcome stress and depression, to bring positive change in present state of life, escape, happiness, empowerment, self-growth and self-realisation. This paper significantly adds to further researches on women solo travelling trends by providing insights into independent form of travel and draws attention towards its importance for women‘s health. Keywords: Solo Travelling; Women's Health; Hedonic & Eudaimonic well-Being; Vacation

Antecedents of tourists' solo travel intentions

Article

Full-text available

Aug 2021
Tourism Rev

Constanza Bianchi

Purpose This study aims to empirically investigate the antecedents of tourists’ intentions to continue solo traveling. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on the theory of planned behavior (TPB), an extended model on solo travel intentions is developed that incorporates variables related to past solo travel experiences, namely, tourist satisfaction, pleasure and self-development. An online survey was applied to 187 solo tourists from different countries. Hypotheses were tested with structural equation modeling. Findings All the variables, except for subjective norms, are significant predictors of tourists’ intentions to continue solo traveling. Results confirm a good explanatory power of the extended TPB model. Research limitations/implications Caution must be exercised with the results as tourists’ actual solo travel behavior may differ from their intentions. Future research may investigate tourists’ actual behavior by using longitudinal methods and include additional demographic variables as antecedents. Originality/value This study empirically investigated the antecedents of tourists’ intentions to continue solo traveling – an under-researched topic. Previous research is mostly exploratory and largely focuses on female solo travelers.

The pilgrim goes to the festival: changes in daily life caused by the pilgrimage to the shrine of Our Lady of the Abadia in Romaria, Brazil.

Chapter

Full-text available

Jan 2019

This book provides insights into the development and management of sacred journeys, and the varying motivations for undertaking such journeys. The book is divided into three distinct parts. Part 1 aims to contribute towards the development of theoretical perspectives in the field. Part 2 undertakes studies of the processes and impacts of managing motivational elements of spiritual journeys, and Part 3 contains international case studies. The book has 17 chapters and a subject index.

Negotiation Strategies and Constraints For Solo Female Travelers in Africa

Article

Full-text available

Mar 2020
Tourism Cult Comm

This article presents constraints of solo female travelers to Africa based on their blogs reflecting their pretravel and during-travel constraints and the negotiations they adopted to energize their desire to travel to and within African countries. The study employs netnographic research methodology to understand complex social phenomena and assist researchers in developing themes from female travel bloggers' experiences of solo travels to Africa. Using content analysis, the findings show that the constraints were mainly interpersonal, external, as well as intrapersonal. Family, friends, and the media presented solo women travelers with these constraints about Africa, which is perceived as a socially constructed "men's space." The study finds that despite these constraints, the bloggers felt adventurous and were satisfied with their African experience.

Foundations and Trends in Management Research on Spirituality and Culture

Article

Jul 2022

Culture and spirituality are relevant in society and organizations. Research concerning these areas thrived in the past decades. Accordingly, we map the research that simultaneously addresses spirituality and culture due to the longing to understand how this research domain has been established. To explore this issue further, we conducted a systematic literature review using Scopus to collect data – 1,449 authors published 676 papers in 288 journals. Afterward, using the Bibliometrix package of R Studio, we performed a bibliometric analysis and a content analysis of the conceptual and social structures of the metadata to reveal collaborations, networks, and research evolution from 1977 to 2021. It tracked the literature over the past thirty-five years, contributing to the awareness of state of the art and offering key themes and trends. Therefore, this paper provides outputs regarding journals, papers, authors, institutions, countries, and themes. Additionally, we categorized these results into four major thematic clusters – (i) pilgrimage, tourism, and leisure, (ii) leadership, (iii) spirituality and religion in business, and (iv) national and organizational culture – identifying their contributions and research agenda. Finally, we offer implications for future theory, research, and practice on spirituality and culture.

Conceptualizing the Changing Faces of Pilgrimage Through Contemporary Tourism

Article

Full-text available

Jun 2022

This paper aims to conceptualize the pilgrimage and tourism relationship in the contemporary world. As the boundaries between pilgrimage and tourism have become blurred, there is a need to find a more holistic way to understand the nuances of the pilgrimage-tourism relationship. This conceptual paper argues that pilgrimage offers a stage for rejuvenation in the contemporary era. In the 21st Century, the concept of pilgrimage travel has re-emerged in tourism with a new identity that goes beyond the idea of pilgrimage as a journey to a sacred place. Building on this recognition, this paper provides a conceptual framework that emphasizes the linkages between pilgrimage and contemporary tourism using three core elements: meaning, ritual, and transformation. This framework allows broader interpretations of pilgrimage travel in different phenomena of tourism in the contemporary era.

The influence of memorable tourism experience to revisit intention of domestic tourists: A case study for Danang City, Vietnam

Article

Feb 2022

The present study examines the effects of dimensions of Memorable Tourism Experience (MTE) scale on domestic tourists’ revisit intention to Danang tourist destination. An online survey of 309 tourists who has visited Danang for data analysis. The structural equation model is applied to investigate the relationships between MTE’s dimensions and tourist’s revisit intention. The results show that four dimensions of MTE (Novelty, Involvement, Hedonism, and Local Culture) have significant positive relationships with domestic tourists’ revisit intention. In contrast, Knowledge is found to affect tourists’ revisit intention negatively. Overall, the study contributes to the literature on memorable tourism experiences by offering theoretical and empirical evidence about interrelationships between the dimensions of memorable tourism experiences and tourists’ revisit intention. The results from this paper provide suggestions for enhancing memorable tourism experiences and encouraging tourists to return to Danang. Future studies should replicate the study in diverse samples such as geographic regions participants with different travel motives. Besides, future research should include destination attributes since tourists’ perceptions of the destination after the trip are based on on-site experiences and determine memorable tourism experiences.

The Mediating Role of Meaning in Life in The Relationship Between Memorable Tourism Experiences and Subjective Well-Being

Article

Full-text available

Nov 2020

Due to varying tourist motivations and needs, involvement in new experiences has different individual consequences. This paper examines the predictive relationship between memorable tourism experience (MTE), meaning in life (MIL) and subjective well-being (SWB). It further investigates whether meaning in life mediates memorable tourism experience’s influence on subjective well-being. The study design was cross-sectional, with data collected from 283 tourists visiting Cappadocia, Turkey. Although all variables were positively correlated, SEM analyses revealed that meaning in life mediated the association of memorable tourism experience with life satisfaction but not positive affect. These findings are discussed considering the role of meaning in life in the link between dimensions of MTE and SWB.

"Tourism experiences, memorability and behavioural intentions: A study of tourists in Sardinia, Italy" (accepted on 31.08.2019)DOI (10.1108/TR-03-2019-0102)

Article

Aug 2019
Tourism Rev

The travel motivations and experiences of female Vietnamese solo travellers

Article

Full-text available

Sep 2019

Solo travel is a growing trend, a significant proportion made up of international students who take solo trips during their study abroad. However there is limited empirical research on the Asian proportion of this growing market. This study explores the main motivations and constraints of 10 female Vietnamese students’ solo travellers through in-depth interviews. The findings indicate that travel motivations can be categorised into personal factors, such as freedom and flexibility, self-empowerment, independence and exploration, and social interaction factors including a lack of companions and meeting new people. Travel constraints relate to being female and alone and being of Asian descent. This research extends understanding of this important market segment. As a result, tourism providers and destination marketing organisation (DMOs) can capitalise by developing their products and marketing.

Tourism experiences, memorability and behavioural intentions: a study of tourists in Sardinia, Italy

Article

Full-text available

Dec 2019
Tourism Rev

Purpose The purpose of this study is to test Kim et al. ’s (2012) seven-dimension memorable tourism experience (MTE) scale in a new context and with a new sample. In addition, the study aims to test for causes or relationships between satisfaction, MTE dimensions, co-creative tourism experiences and memorability, as well as the mediating effect of memorability on tourists’ behavioural intention. Design/methodology/approach This study uses a cross-sectional survey design using a questionnaire to collect data. Three trained interviewers questioned international travellers in the boarding area in Olbia-Costa Smeralda Airport while they were waiting to board their flights home. The interviewers also distributed and administered the questionnaires. The questionnaire was in English. Data collection was carried out from August to October 2017. Findings In terms of the theoretical implications of this study, its findings result in a different MTE construct than that of Kim et al. ’s (2012) study. Although they discuss seven important experiential tourism factors that are likely to affect the memorability of a person’s experience, what emerges from the present research is that satisfaction, novelty, refreshment, involvement and knowledge significantly influence the memorability of a tourist’s experience. Research limitations/implications This study has some limitations. First, it is highly site-specific and based on a convenience sample, rendering the findings non-generalizable to either the destination under investigation or any other tourism destination. Further studies should be conducted in other Mediterranean cities to generalise the significance of these findings. Although English can be considered the primary international language, the fact that the survey has been written only in English could have excluded non-English speakers from participating in the study. In addition, the study has not considered national domestic tourists. In the future, translating the survey into different languages and interviewing domestic tourists visiting the island might be useful. Practical implications Tourism service providers could gather feedback forms from tourists to measure and improve their satisfaction. Additionally, the multiplicity of actors involved in the tourism sector should coordinate and cooperate with one another to create tourism experiences that result in high overall visitor satisfaction. Tourism service providers could also offer new and diverse encounters, for example, the chance to attend local festivals to arouse curiosity, as studies suggest that such novel activities make the experiences particularly memorable. Public officials should also focus on site rejuvenation to appeal to novelty seekers who have visited previously. Originality/value Overall, the study highlights the discrepancies in the effects of satisfaction, MTE dimensions and co-creative tourism experience on the memorability of a trip experience in relation to previous studies. The results of the analysis refute the assumption that the seven MTE dimensions are representative across a variety of destination-specific tourist experiences. Besides the identified five dimensions, opening up the discussion on other factors that might influence the memorability of tourists’ experiences presents an updated agenda.

POSTMODERN TOURIST EXPERIENCE: AN EVALUATION ON WOMEN TRAVELERS WITH MOTORCYCLES

Article

Full-text available

Dec 2019

Navigating uncertainty: Tourists' perceptions of risk in ocean cruising

Thesis

Full-text available

Jun 2019

Jennifer Holland

Social understanding of risk has become increasingly prominent in the last two decades, reflecting a growing concern with societal and global uncertainty. Understanding how tourists feel about risk is crucial because the presence of risk, whether real or perceived, has the potential to change tourist decision-making. However, risk is not well understood in travel, and particularly limited in relation to cruise holidays. The aim of this thesis is to examine how the perception of risk is conceptualized in ocean cruising and how this may potentially influence tourist decision-making. Drawing on a constructivist ontology, the qualitative research employed focus groups and semi-structured interviews with cruisers and non-cruisers. Data was gathered using image elicitation, which illuminated thoughts and feelings about cruising and revealed how risk may be interpreted in the cruise context. This study recognizes the positionality of the researcher, and applying reflexivity, acknowledges the researcher’s own experience, sense of identity with cruises, and passion for the research topic. The complexities of positionality revealed specific methodological challenges and opportunities. Thematic analysis revealed tourists’ interpretation of risk in ocean cruising is complex, and current conceptualizations of risk are inadequate to explain risk perceptions in cruising. The findings revealed valuable insight into the way in which self-congruity potentially influences a cruise as a holiday choice for both cruisers and non-cruisers. While some cruisers perceive cruising as an opportunity for self-expression and to mitigate time and financial risk, this study illuminates how some non-cruisers perceive the familiarity of a cruise as a risk to their self-concept. Findings highlight the significance of trust and familiarity in understanding and interpreting perceptions of risk in ocean cruising. This exploratory study contributes knowledge in three areas by reconceptualizing how risk is understood in relation to cruise holidays. Firstly, this thesis has deconstructed the concept of risk, and in doing so has highlighted the role and significance of risk in ocean cruise decision-making. The qualitative nature of the study has added depth to an existing, largely quantitative understanding of risk in ocean cruise decisions. Secondly, this thesis specifically illuminates how social and psychological anxieties influence perceptions of risk in ocean cruise decisions. Thirdly, the study amplifies the relationship between trust, familiarity and risk in cruise decision-making. These contributions have implications for future research into cruise decision-making and also for how risk may be conceptualized further in tourism.

Make It Memorable: Tourism Experience, Fun, Recommendation and Revisit Intentions of Chinese Outbound Tourists

Article

Full-text available

Mar 2020

Due to the fact that Chinese tourists are becoming the main players in the international tourism market, with large growth potential, this research empirically identifies the psychological factors that affect Chinese outbound tourists’ memorable tourism experiences (MTEs), and investigates the relationships among MTEs, the “fun” emotion, and their recommendation and revisit intentions based on the stimulus–organism–response (S-O-R) model. In addition, the moderating role of perceived risk between the causal relationships among the “fun” emotion and recommendation and revisit intentions is identified. A total of 560 survey participants who had experienced overseas tourism in the last two years were selected as the target population, and the data from 413 valid surveys were empirically analyzed via structural equation modeling (SEM). Chinese outbound tourists’ MTEs, such as hedonism, novelty, meaningfulness, and social interaction, are found to positively influence their experience of the “fun” emotion, such as emotional spark and flow. Additionally, it is found that when Chinese outbound tourists have achieved a high level of the “fun” emotion, their intentions to recommend and revisit their destination will be stronger. In addition, perceived risk is found to have a negative moderating role in the causal relationships among emotional spark and recommendation and revisit intentions, and also has negative moderating effects on the causal relationship between flow and recommendation intentions. This study provides important practical insights for how international tourist destination marketers and managers provide Chinese tourists with MTEs, and how to elicit the “fun” emotion and loyalty behaviors from Chinese tourists via the investigation of the mechanism of MTEs, fun, and recommendation and revisit intentions. It is also found that it is beneficial for international tourist destination managers to lower the level of tourists’ perceived risk to improve tourists’ recommendation and revisit intentions. These findings can aid in the development of more effective strategies to increase the market share and the international competitiveness of destinations.

The Guimi Holidays of Young Chinese Women: Evidence from Cyber Communities

Article

May 2020
J China Tourism Res

The phrase ‘guimi holiday’ usually refers to shared travel among female best friends. This study provides insight into guimi holiday (闺蜜游) experiences among young Chinese women. These women were mainly born in China between the 1980s and 2000s, reared under the one-child policy. Aided partly by the diffusion of the internet and guimi-related TV shows and movies, the guimi holiday has flourished in China. For this study, a qualitative methodology was employed to analyze travel blogs of guimi holidays from popular Chinese online travel communities, which revealed several elements of this holiday experience: the guimi style of bonding, pursuing ‘me and my’ authentic time, and social support. This paper concludes with some implications and recommendations for the marketing of the guimi holiday experience in the tourism industry.

Asian solo male travelling mobilities – an autoethnography

Article

Jun 2020
Int J Cult Tourism Hospit Res

Aaron Tham Min-En

Purpose This study aims to unpack the notion of travelling mobilities from the perspectives of an Asian solo traveller using the context of the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan. Design/methodology/approach An autoethnography was used for this research, analysing reflective notes drafted on hand-written journals over the duration of six days over three host cities of the sporting event. Findings Asian solo men appear to be treated very differently from their Western counterparts and solo female tourists. In addition, engaging with a sport that is highly Western-centric exposes the liminal spaces of in-between. Being of Asian appearance and conversant in Japanese further blurred the travelling mobilities of being an unlikely sports fan, an impromptu translator, a presumed local resident and an unconventional wanderer. Originality/value These limitations notwithstanding, the research has contributed to the paucity of knowledge surrounding Asian solo male tourists and some aspects of their corresponding travelling mobilities. Such nuanced understanding then inform tourism and hospitality knowledge and practice of offering relevant experiences to such a market.

Memorable tourist experiences versus ordinary tourist experiences analysed through user-generated content

Article

Sep 2020
J Hospit Tourism Manag

This study aims to test some previously proposed MTE (memorable tourist experience) scales by using UGC (user-generated content) posted in social media sites, through script theory and thematic analysis. In addition, MTEs and OTEs (ordinary tourist experiences) are compared to identify any significant differences between their dimensions. The results suggest that some dimensions of the MTE scale (hedonism, novelty, meaningfulness, involvement, knowledge and serendipity) are significantly more frequently reported in MTEs than in OTEs, but are not exclusive to MTEs. Despite this, the MTE scale dimensions are able with some accuracy to classify tourist experiences as MTEs or OTEs. Thus, national park managers can use MTE scale dimensions to understand tourist evaluations of destinations and should focus their efforts on these dimensions when developing tourism plans.

Unutulmaz Turizm Deneyiminin Hikaye Anlatıcılığına Etkisi - The Influence of Memorable Tourism Experiences on Storytelling

Thesis

Full-text available

Jan 2020

Büşra Kaya

Hikaye anlatıcılığı, yüzyıllardır süregelen öneminin dışında son yıllarda yönetim-organizasyon, pazarlama, iletişim gibi iş dünyasının önemsediği alanlarda popüler olmaya başlamıştır. İnsanlığın temelinde yatan bu kavram, günümüzde çok daha farklı amaçlar ile kullanılmaktadır. Bu nedenle, iş dünyası tarafından benimsenen bu kavramın akademik açıdan da önemi artmıştır. Literatürde gittikçe popüler bir duruma gelmiş olan hikaye anlatıcılığı, turizm özelinde de araştırmalara konu olmaktadır. Unutulmaz turizm deneyimi ise, son yıllarda değişen turist algıları ve beklentileri sonucu ortaya çıkan deneyimlerdir. Turist için, unutulmaz turizm deneyimi duygusal ve zihinsel olarak uç noktaya ulaşmaktır. Hikaye anlatıcılığı sürecinde, başlangıç ve son arasında anlatıma değer bir zirve noktası bulunmalıdır. Bu düşünce temelinde, turistlerin hikaye anlatıcılığı sürecinde, unutulmaz turizm deneyimlerinin anlatıma değer bir zirve nokta olup olmadığı sınamak amaçlanmıştır. Bu araştırmanın çalışma evrenini, Türkiye'de yaşayan ve paket tur programlarına katılım sağlamış yerli turistler oluşturmaktadır. Katılımcılardan, toplamda 250 adet geçerli anket elde edilmiştir. Elde edilen bu veriler; faktör analizi (AFA ve DFA), güvenirlik, regresyon ve aracılık etkisi analizleri yapılarak değerlendirilmiştir. Yapılan analizler sonucunda, anlatıya ulaşımın hikaye anlatıcılığı üzerindeki etkisinde, unutulmaz turizm deneyiminin aracı etki gösterdiği görülmüştür. Anahtar Kelimeler: Anlatıya Ulaşım, Hikaye Anlatıcılığı, Turist, Unutulmaz Turizm Deneyimi

The Contribution of Event Quality Factors on the Development of Memorable Tourism Experiences: Evidence from the 2018 FIFA World Cup

Article

Jan 2022
Event Manag

The aim of this study is to test the applicability of the construct of memorable tourism experience in the context of a mega-sport event, and to investigate the contribution of event quality factors on the development of memorable tourism experiences. For the accomplishment of this aim, thestudy investigated the experiences of a sample of international spectators who attended the 2018 FIFA World Cup matches hosted in St. Petersburg, Russia. Data collection took place on-site during the group stage matches hosted at the stadium and was conducted with a self-completion questionnaire using two scales, one for memorable tourism experience and one for event quality factors. The results of exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses provided support for the psychometric properties of revised versions of the two scales. Multiple regression analysis showed that memorable tourism experiences were significantly predicted by the event quality factors, with the authenticity, entertainment, venue quality, and event competition dimensions having the most significant contributions. Theoretical and management implications are discussed.

Transformational tourism -A systematic literature review and research agenda

Article

Full-text available

Jun 2022

Purpose – This article examines critically the literature on transformational tourism and explores a research agenda for a post-COVID future. Design/methodology/approach – A systematic review of the transformational tourism literature is performed over a 42-year period from 1978 to 2020. Findings – Further research is required in terms of how transformative experiences should be calibrated and measured both in qualitative and quantitative terms, particularly from the perspective of how tourists are transformed by their experiences. Similarly, the nature and depth of these transformative processes remain poorly understood, particularly given the many different types of tourism associated with transformative experiences, which range from religious pilgrimages to backpacking and include several forms of ecotourism. Practical implications – Future research directions for transformational tourism are discussed with regards to how COVID-19 will transform the dynamics of tourism and travel, including the role of new smart technologies in the creation of enhanced transformational experiences, and the changing expectations and perceptions of transformative travel in the post-COVID era. In addition, we call for future studies on transformational tourism to explore the role of host communities in the delivery of meaningful visitor experiences. Originality/value – Transformational tourism is an emerging body of research, which has attracted a growing level of interest among tourism scholars in recent years. However, to this date, a systematic review of published literature in this field has not been conducted yet in a holistic sense. This article offers a framework for future research in this field.

Marketing Ulaanbaatar as a dynamic city with a nomadic soul

Chapter

Full-text available

Nov 2020

Midlife Single Men and the Solo Holiday

Chapter

Sep 2017

Bente Heimtun

Solo female travellers’ memorable experiences: positive encounters with male strangers

Article

Feb 2021

Solo female travel has been on the rise globally, which has drawn attention from the academics. However, no research has specifically centred on the social world of solo female travellers in either Western or Asian inquiries. The study is set on Asian solo female travel, in this case the Taiwanese women, with a view to unveiling their memorable experiences with male strangers on the cross-cultural adventures. A total of 19 Taiwanese participants were enlisted, and the qualitative study results present their positive encounters with male strangers on a continuum. Four types of situations denoting their relationships were further discussed: Tidbits of Travel, Acts of Kindness, Company and Friendship, and Affective Relationships. The research contributes to tourism scholarship by demonstrating the pluralities of their gender relationships with stranger males, which is in due response to the dearth of research in this area.

The effect of self-expression on the empowerment of Iranian women adventure travellers

Article

Jun 2022

The participation of women in adventure tourism in recent decades is remarkable, and this challenges gender stereotypes, traditional norms, and discrimination against women in some societies. Given their unique and attractive nature, leisure activities, including adventure tourism, can be considered to improve women’s living conditions and to empower them. This study examined the effect of self-expression on Iranian women’s empowerment in adventure trips. For the purpose of this study, 223 adventure tourists were selected as the sample and structural equation modelling was used to analyse the data. The findings acknowledged that participation in leisure activities such as adventure tourism can lead to women’s self-expression, which directly affects their empowerment in various dimensions and can improve their social, economic, physical, and political status.

Breaking barriers for Bangladeshi female solo travelers

Article

Jan 2022

Asian Muslim women's travel habits are sorely under-researched. In response to various calls for research in this area, this study utilizes Hofstede's five cultural dimensions to determine how Bangladeshi cultural values inhibit and/or enhance travel constraints for solo Muslim female travelers and the subsequent effects on solo travel behavior. We propose solo travel as a strategic tourism development tool to achieve mobility rights and gender equality particularly for destinations that are highly populated with more women than men. Introducing an interpretivist qualitative approach, the study extracted both survey and open-ended responses from 307 frequent Bangladeshi solo travelers that were recruited from a women-only English-speaking Facebook Bangladeshi travel group. The findings reveal that this group is constrained by a unique combination of intrapersonal, interpersonal, and structural factors. Power-distance, masculinity, and uncertainty-avoidance also play key roles. Sustainable and practical applications are outlined for destination management organizations, travel planners, policy makers, non-governmental organizations, and for-profit tour companies that benefit both Bangladeshi solo female travelers and those with whom they interact.

Uncovering Spatio-temporal Air Pollution Exposure Patterns During Commutes to Create an Open-Data Endpoint for Routing Purposes

Chapter

Oct 2021

Air pollution is difficult to detect with human senses. It is to a large extent out of sight and out of sense, while causing a burden on our economy, our health and our environment. A relevant illustration of this is the exposure to air pollution during commutes. The air pollution commuters are exposed to remains to a considerable extent a hidden geography, with, for example, a lack of available reliable information regarding the on-the-road concentrations of several air pollutants. This research aims to unravel, to the best possible extent, spatio-temporal air pollution patterns (active) commuters are exposed to. Cyclists and pedestrians can be unaware that they commute in polluted air. They often travel close to motorised traffic, resulting in high exposure to several air pollutants, which have elevated levels on the road due to vehicular emissions. Significantly higher concentrations of particulate matter (<2.5 µm), black carbon and nitrogen dioxide were found on roads with high-traffic intensities than on roads with less traffic, cycling highways or separated cycle lanes. The amplitude of the concentration differences between routes depends on both temporal factors, such as the season, the day of the week, or the time of day, and spatial factors, such as the traffic’s density, the footpath or cycle lane’s location, the architectural makeup (e.g. street canyons) and the meteorological conditions. Using high-resolution air pollution models, it is possible to distinguish between routes of higher and lower air pollution concentrations, allowing active road users to choose an alternative route to lower their air pollution exposure. However, on-the-road concentrations displayed by the Belgian ATMO-Street model are often considerably underestimated, especially for routes with high levels of motorised traffic. In general, for air pollution models to distinguish between routes, a minimum spatial-model resolution of 10 m² including street configuration effects (e.g. street canyons) is desired. For temporal resolution, static seasonal-hourly raster model data, calculated from a previous year’s hourly data, are sufficient to make a scientifically sound distinction between alternative routes regarding exposure to air pollution. Those tools are a great help in uncovering the spatio-temporal pollution patterns (active) commuters are exposed to and also provide relevant insights to reduce the health and economic burden of air pollution, which is unseen to a large extent and of which most people are not aware. Additional research using microscale measurement setups to further unravel gradients in air pollutant concentrations and further reveal reliable estimates of on-the-road concentrations of those pollutants is recommended.

Solo Female Travellers: The Underlying Motivation

Chapter

Sep 2021

Ilinka Terziyska

Design for Technology- Mediated Memorable and Meaningful Tourism Experiences: A Strengths-Based Approach

Thesis

Full-text available

May 2021

Bruce Wan

This study investigates a technology-mediated experience design that fosters memorable and meaningful tourism experiences (MMEs). Technology has been playing an integral role in facilitating people to make personal choices on their tourism activities, from itinerary planning, online bookings, and way findings, to social sharing of people’s journeys. This study shows how technology may offer the potential to transcend personalized experiences into memorable and meaningful experiences. A review of literature in positive psychology provided three insights on MMEs. First, a holistic understanding of MMEs from one’s explicit experiential dimension to implicit experiential dimension, which includes what people do, feel, think, and value. Second, MMEs also result from pursuing growth goals derived from their past, present, and future aspirations. Lastly, character strengths, which represent positive traits of individuals, can be the pivotal component in MMEs because they are the bridge between the implicit and the explicit dimensions of experience. Experience of meaning can emerge by making the implicit explicit, thereby fostering self-awareness, a sense of purpose, and self-development towards flourishing. Therefore, this study seeks to incorporate character strengths into an informatics system so that users can cultivate their character strengths and facilitate users in the appreciation of their MMEs by connecting what they do, feel, think and value. This thesis is composed of interrelated three studies that progress through a design process. The first study explored how technology can support people to cultivate their character strengths for the creation of memorable and meaningful experiences. It resulted in a tripartite strengths-based HCI framework that encapsulates three aspects of strengths used namely, strengths well spent, reflection and introspection, and anticipation of future self. The second study focused on the stage of reflection and introspection by investigating people’s proficiencies in creating visual diary with photos generated on their memorable and meaningful journeys because comprehensive visual storytelling is the prerequisite for people to connect the experience to the associated implicit psychological motives and needs. The result informed the development of a proof-of-concept strengths-based journaling platform. The third study involved the evaluation of the platform from three perspectives. First, on the features that facilitate users to create meaning by making the implicit psychological dimensions of MMEs (e.g., character strengths, motives, and values) explicit. Second, participants’ strengths that had drawn upon on their MMEs. Third, their intentions on cultivating their characters strengths, and pursuing values gained in their future journeys. The result showed that people deepened their self-awareness by using the platform. Also, MMEs more often involved people’s moderate character strengths rather than signature strengths. Participants were more willing to pursue the value gained and develop the character strengths used in their future journeys rather than revisit the places. By making the implicit psychological dimensions explicit, this study showed that technology facilitates people to deepen their self-awareness through recognizing deep-rooted values and appreciate character strengths from their MMEs. The result of this study has multiple implications and contributions to the field of technology-mediated experience design and smart tourism innovation at the levels of empirical research, theory, and artifacts.

Musikerne og klimakrisen

Chapter

Full-text available

Jan 2022

A successful musician’s career has long been associated with extensive touring and travel. International activities have been a marker of success. Due to the growing focus on climate change, extensive travel has come under a new light. Drawing upon qualitative interviews with professional musicians, we investigate the way they think about how and to what extent climate issues affect their work. The informants recognize climate change as an urgent problem, and the majority express willingness to change behavior to contribute to a more sustainable profession. At the same time, this willingness is weighed against possible negative consequences such behavioral changes have on their own professional careers. In this chapter, we explore these conflicting impulses through the concept cultural dissonance. We conclude with a discussion of the extent to which and the ways in which climate values impact the music profession and what opportunities the concept of cultural dissonance offers to analyze this.

The Dark Side of Solo Female Travel: Negative Encounters with Male Strangers

Article

Jul 2020

Research on solo female travel indicates that women traveling alone in foreign countries are subject to different sociocultural and gender norms, and may bear more fear and constraints both temporally and spatially. Harassment from male strangers exerts considerable influence on women’s perception of safety. However, issues of how solo female travelers confront stranger harassment remain untouched in tourism or leisure studies. Based on the perspectives of stranger harassment and cultural encounters, this article explores the experiences and interactions of 17 Taiwanese solo females with male strangers. Results revealed when facing harassment, they opted to neglect, forbear, or blame themselves; hardly had they actively fought back. Adding ramifications to the existing knowledge, this article contributes to the understanding of the theoretical conceptualization of stranger harassment of solo female travelers, and is in due response to the dearth of research in this area.

Sustainable Development and Gender Equality: Empowerment Through Solo Female Travel Experiences

Chapter

Jan 2022

YARATICI TURİZM FAALİYETLERİNİN UNUTULMAZ TURİZM DENEYİMİ ÜZERİNDEKİ ETKİLERİ / EFFECTS OF CREATIVE TOURISM ACTIVITIES ON MEMORABLE TOURISM EXPERIENCE

Thesis

Full-text available

Jan 2022

Yaratıcı turizm, destinasyonların kültürel özelliklerine özgü faaliyetleri kullanarak turistlerin basit materyaller ile oluşturdukları öğrenme sürecini kapsamaktadır. Bu özelliği ile yaratıcı turizm, destinasyonların farklılaşmasını sağlayarak turistlere deneyim sunabilmektedir. Kültür turizminin kaynaklarını kullanan yaratıcı turizm, deneyim yaşamak isteyen turistlerin taleplerine uygun bir alternatif turizm çeşididir. Turistler destinasyon ziyaretlerinde deniz, kum, güneş üçlüsünün dışında alternatif deneyim arayışı içindedir. Kültürel özelliklere ilgi gösteren turistler, yerele özgü faaliyetleri ve kültürü tanıyarak daha fazla deneyim yaşama isteğindedir. Turistlerin gerçekleştirmek istedikleri bu deneyimlerin unutulmaz deneyimlere dönüşmesi destinasyonlar için önemli bir yere sahiptir. Yaratıcı turizm, destinasyonların kültürel öğelerinde farklılık sağlayarak unutulmaz deneyimler oluşturabilmesine yardımcı olabilir. Yapılan çalışmada, yaratıcı turizm faaliyetlerinin unutulmaz turizm deneyimi üzerinde etkisinin olup olmadığının tespit edilmesi amaçlanmıştır. Araştırmanın evrenini; çömlek yapımı, halı/kilim dokuma, mücevher yapımı, yöresel yemek pişirimi, porselen boyama, çini yapımı, şarap yapımı, zeytinyağı yapımı, seramik yapımı, ebru sanatı ve taş oymacılığı gibi benzer faaliyetlerin bulunduğu destinasyonları ziyaret eden turistler oluşturmaktadır. Evrene ulaşmak adına yargısal örneklem tekniği kullanarak yaratıcı turizm faaliyetlerine katılan turistlere ulaşılmaya çalışılmıştır. Yaratıcı turizm faaliyetine katılan 270 turiste anket tekniği uygulanarak veriler elde edilmiştir. Toplanan verilerin analiz edilmesinde SPSS 18 ve AMOS 26 istatistiki programlar kullanılmıştır. Elde edilen veriler güvenirlilik analizi, açıklayıcı faktör analizi ve frekans analizine tabi tutulmuştur. AMOS 26 programı ile araştırma modelinin test edilmesi amacıyla doğrulayıcı faktör analizi ve yapısal eşitlik modellemesi yapılmıştır. Analiz bulguları doğrultusunda yaratıcı turizm faaliyetlerinin unutulmaz turizm deneyimi üzerinde istatiksel olarak anlamlı bir etkisinin bulunmadığı saptanmıştır. Ancak yaratıcı turizm deneyimi alt boyutu olan benzersiz katılımının; hazcılık, yenilik, yerel kültür, anlamlılık ve bilgi üzerinde anlamlı bir etkisinin olduğu, iç huzurun yenilik boyutu üzerinde, öğrenmenin bilgi boyutu üzerinde anlamlı bir etkisinin olduğu tespit edilmiştir. Creative tourism, includes the learning process created by tourists with simple materials using activities specific to the cultural characteristics of destinations. With this feature, creative tourism can offer tourists an experience by enabling the differentiation of destinations. Creative tourism, which uses the resources of cultural tourism, is an alternative type of tourism that meets the demands of tourists who want to have an experience. Tourists are in search of alternative experience outside the sea, sand, sun trio. Tourists, who are interested in cultural features, want to experience more by getting to know local activities and culture. The transformation of these experiences that tourists want to realize into memorable experiences has an important place for destinations. Creative tourism can help create memorable experiences by providing differences in the cultural elements of destinations. In this study aimed to determine whether creative tourism activities have an effect on memorable tourism experiences or not. The population of the study; pottery, carpet/rug, weaving, jewelry making, local cooking, porcelain painting, tile making, winemaking, olive oil, pottery, stone carving, marbling art form destinations with similar activities. In order to reach the population, it has been tried to reach the tourists participating in creative tourism activities by using the judicial sampling technique. Data were obtained by applying the questionnaire technique to 270 tourists participating in the creative tourism activity. SPSS 18 and AMOS 26 statistical programs were used to analyze the collected data. The obtained data were subjected to reliability analysis, explanatory factor analysis, and frequency analysis. Confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling were performed to test the research model with the AMOS 26 program. In line with the analysis findings, it has been determined that creative tourism activities do not have a statistically significant effect on the memorable tourism experience. However, the unique involvement of the creative tourism experience sub-dimension; It has been determined that hedonism has a significant effect on novelty, local culture, meaningfulness and knowledge, peace of mind has a significant effect on the novelty dimension, and learning has a significant effect on the knowledge dimension.

YALNIZ SEYAHAT EDEN KADINLARIN MOTİVASYON VE DENEYİMLERİ: DİYARBAKIR ÜZERİNE BİR ARAŞTIRMA

Article

Jan 2021

Türkiye'den Turizm Amacıyla Yurtdışına Giden Kadınların Seyahat Motivasyonları

Conference Paper

Full-text available

Oct 2019

Cinsiyet temelli eşitsizlik giderek artan bir biçimde tartışma alanı bulmuş ve dünya nüfusunun yarısını oluşturan kadınlar bu alanda dezavantajlı konumda yer almıştır. Seyahatlere katılan ka-dın sayısının artmasına rağmen, boş zaman hareketliliğinde kadınların yaşadıkları kısıtlılıklar ve engeller devam etmektedir. Bu çalışma, Türkiye' den yurtdışına seyahat eden kadınların boş zaman seyahat motivasyonlarını ve seyahat kısıtlayıcılarının saptanması üzerine yapılan nitel bir araştırmadır. Çalışmanın amacı, Türkiye' den yurtdışına seyahat eden kadınların seyahat motivasyonlarını, seyahate ilişkin risk algılarını, mekânsal tercihlerini incelemek ve turizm araştırmalarında ihmal edilen; kadın çalışmaları, toplumsal cinsiyet ve feminist coğrafya gibi konularda farkındalık oluşturmak ve turizm çalışmaları literatürüne katkı yapmaktır. Bu amaçlar doğrultusunda çalışmada yarı yapılandırılmış gö-rüşme formu aracılığıyla 12 katılımcı ile derinlemesine görüşmeler yapılmıştır. Araştırma çerçevesinde herhangi bir lokasyon kısıtlamasına gidilmemesinin nedeni; herhangi bir bölgedeki ya da lokasyondaki bir durumun incelenmesi yerine kadınların seyahati olgusuna odaklanılmasıdır. Araştırma bulguları, kadınların neredeyse eşit oranda üç tip kısıtlayıcı (içsel, kişilerarası ve yapısal) tarafından da engellen-diğini göstermektedir. Sonuçlar, güvenliğin ve ekonomik faktörlerin kadınların seyahate yönelik algıları ve mekânsal tercihleri üzerinde etkin bir rol oynadığını göstermiştir. Kadınların en önemli motivasyon kaynaklarının; bakış açılarında değişme, seyahat konusundaki önyargıları kırma, yabancı dilini geliş-tirme, özgüven artışı ve yeni kültürler ve insanlar tanıma olduğunu ortaya çıkarmıştır. Yine sonuçlar, kadınların seyahat deneyimlerini diğer kadınlara da tavsiye etme eğiliminde olduklarını göstermiştir. Anahtar Kelimeler: Seyahat, Kadın, Turizm coğrafyaları. GİRİŞ Turizm, ekonomik ve sosyo-kültürel önemi giderek artan ve dünyada en hızlı büyüyen sektörlerin başında gelmektedir. Modernite ve küreselleşme ile birlikte kadınlar da turizm hareketliliğinin önemli bir aktörü haline gelmiştir. Bununla birlikte kadınlar, özellikle cinsiyet temelli bazı kısıtlayıcılara ve engellere maruz kalmakta, bu durum kadınların seyahate yönelik algılarını ve seyahat odaklı motivasyonlarını, mobilitele-rini ve mekânsal tercihlerini önemli ölçüde etkilemektedir. Bu çalışma, Türkiye' den yurtdışına seyahat eden kadınların, deneyimlerini 'boş zaman kısıtlamaları teorisi' perspektifiyle ele almıştır. Crawford ve Godbey (1987), kişilerin boş zaman aktivitelerine katılımını etkileyen kısıtlayıcıları 3 kategoride sınıflandırmaktadır. Bunlar; içsel kısıtlayıcılar (kişisel kısıtlayıcılar), ki-şilerarası kısıtlayıcılar ve yapısal kısıtlayıcılardır. Crawford ve Godbey içsel kısıtlayıcıları; özgüven eksikliği, endişe ve korku (cinsel saldırıya uğrama, şiddet korkusu vb.) gibi psikolojik faktörler olarak ifade etmiştir. Kişilerarası kısıtlayıcıları, bireyin diğer kişilerle olan (aile üyeleri, arkadaş gibi) etkileşiminden kaynaklana-bilecek kısıtlayıcılar olarak, yapısal kısıtlayıcıları da ekonomik engeller, boş zaman eksikliği, ulaşılabilirlik gibi kısıtlayıcılar olarak tanımlamıştır (Wilson ve Little, 2005, s. 158). Bu kısıtlayıcılar bireylerin boş zaman seyahatlerini etkileyebilmekte, bunlar aşılamadığı takdirde bireyler boş zaman aktivitelerine katılım göste-rememektedir. Bu çalışmanın temel araştırma problemi, özellikle cinsiyetin boş zaman seyahatleriyle ilgili karar ver-meyi etkileyip, etkilemediğidir. Diğer bir ifadeyle seyahatlerin cinsiyetçiliğinin söz konusu olup olmadığı,

TOURISTS' PERCEPTIONS OF MEMORABLE EXPERIENCES: TESTING THE MEMORABLE TOURISM EXPERIENCE SCALE (MTEs) AMONG TOURISTS TO ROVANIEMI, LAPLAND

Thesis

Full-text available

Jan 2013

Erose Sthapit

This study investigates the relationship between the eight dimensions of the Memorable Tourism Experience Scale (MTEs)-hedonism, novelty, local culture, refreshment, meaningfulness, involvement, knowledge and adverse feelings and visitor's behavioral intention. Adverse feeling is an addition to the scale. The sample population of this study consists of tourists who have visited Rovaniemi. The sampling frame was obtained by contacting the Rovaniemi Tourist Information Center and local and foreign travel agencies offering trips to Rovaniemi. Facebook was used to approach potential respondents. Primary data was collected using a web-based self-administered questionnaire. A sample of 100 tourists who have visited Rovaniemi completed the questionnaire. The results indicate that two factors of the Memorable Tourism Experience Scale, i.e. local culture and novelty, significantly influences tourists' behavioral intention to a destination. All the others were not statistically significant. The findings of this present study suggest that tourism activities and on-site experiences should be thoroughly evaluated whether they satisfy the identified memorable tourism experiential components, especially social interaction with local culture and novelty. After evaluating the tourism programs based on the identified memorable tourism experiential dimensions, tourism operators and travel planners in Rovaniemi can design, promote, market and deliver programs that are novel and involve social interaction with local culture, in order to enhance the probability of delivering memorable experiences.

Trajectories and trends in creative tourism: Where are we headed?

Chapter

Full-text available

Oct 2021

In this chapter, we briefly outline what we envision as 12 major trajectories in creative tourism, organized into four general categories: taking home creative skills as well as souvenirs, finding space for creativity, cultivating meaningful travel, and connecting with creative networks and hubs.

Perception, Motivation, and Satisfaction of Female Tourists with Their Visit to the City of Cordoba (Spain)

Article

Full-text available

Sep 2020

The cultural and historical heritage of a city is a major resource for attracting tourists. Therefore, determining how to perceive and identify the characteristics of persons visiting a locality attracted by its heritage is relevant for the purpose of better meeting their expectations and needs. This research focuses on understanding the perceptions, motivations, and satisfaction of women visiting Cordoba (Spain). Thus, on the basis of a questionnaire completed by women visiting Cordoba between the months of June and November 2019, statistical analysis was conducted. Using various multivalent case-grouping techniques, segments of tourists holding similar perceptions of cultural heritage were detected. Moreover, non-parametric statistical techniques highlighted significant differences between the valuations obtained in the various segments. This analysis exposed a segment of women who, known as absorptive tourists, are characterized by a high cultural motivation to visit the city of Cordoba linked to the heritage sites they have visited. The conclusions obtained herein should be useful for adjusting the city’s provision of tourism services to satisfy the demand of female tourists visiting the city.

Hiyerarşik Boş Zaman Kısıtları Teorisi Çerçevesinde Yalnız Seyahat Eden Kadın Seyyahları Anlamak (Understanding Female Travelers Who Travel Alone within The Hierarchical Theory of Leisure Constraints)

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2022

Gizem Özgürel

Çalışmada; Hiyerarşik Boş Zaman Kısıtlamaları Teorisi (HBZKT) çerçeve olarak kabul edilmiş, kadın seyyahların, turizm süreçleri ve davranışları teorik bir temel üzerinden açıklanarak, turizm literatüründeki boşluğu doldurmada yararlanılmasına çalışılmıştır. Araştırmada kullanılan Yalnız Başına Seyahat Kısıtlaması Ölçeğinin (YBSKÖ) güvenirlik ve geçerlik analizleri 862 (501 kadın ve 361 erkek) katılımcı üzerinden yapılmış ve ölçeğin genel güvenirliği cronbach alpha=0.902 olarak çok yüksek bulunmuştur. Araştırma bulguları kadın katılımcılarla sınırlandırılmıştır. Faktör analizi sonucunda değişkenler toplam açıklanan varyansı %60.928 olan 5 faktör (içsel kısıtlamalar, yurtiçi destinasyon nitelikleri, zaman ve maliyet, yurtdışı destinasyon nitelikleri ve kişilerarası kısıtlamalar) altında toplanmıştır. Araştırmadan elde edilen bulgulara göre katılımcıların “içsel kısıtlamalar”, “yurtiçi destinasyon nitelikleri”, “yurtdışı destinasyon nitelikleri”, ve “kişilerarası kısıtlamalar” ortalamalarının “zayıf”, “zaman ve maliyet” kısıtı ortalamasının “orta” düzeyde olduğu sonuçlarına ulaşılmıştır. Araştırmanın sonuçları genel olarak kadınların yalnız başına seyahatlere katılımları için güçlendirilmeye, desteklenmeye ve teşvik edilmeye ihtiyaç duyduklarını, karar vericilerin, uygulayıcıların ve akademisyenlerin üzerine farklı sorumluluklar yüklediğini göstermektedir.

Mapping the Foundation and Trends in Tourism Research: A Bibliometric Review of Literature in Tourism: An International Interdisciplinary Journal

Preprint

Full-text available

Jun 2022

Tourism: An International Interdisciplinary Journal is the second oldest journal in tourism, which has grown as one of the most reliable sources of tourism scholarship over the years. This study has adopted a bibliometric literature review approach based on the published articles to emphasize its contribution to tourism scholarship. The study has reviewed 529 publications published between 2002 and 2020 (indexed in Scopus). The study has employed the statistical tool-'bibliometrix' to conduct evaluative and relational analysis utilizing numerous indices highlighting the journal's growth and its conceptual and collaboration structure. The findings offered are beneficial for both the editors and the scholars in the tourism discipline. Additionally, the implications of the findings, future research gaps, and limitations are discussed.

The influence of happiness on memorable tourism experience and behavioural intentions: the case of St. Petersburg

Conference Paper

Apr 2020

The flag-bearers of change in a patriarchal Muslim society: Narratives of Iranian solo female travelers on Instagram

Article

Apr 2021

This paper examines the travel experiences of Iranian solo female travelers through an analysis of their Instagram posts. While there is a growing body of literature on solo female travelers, few studies involve women from Asian or Middle Eastern countries. In the case of the Iranian women who are the focus of this study, our analysis identified three main themes: meaning-making; power and empowerment; and facilitation of self-awareness and transformation. We argue that traveling solo is a form of active resistance against Iranian gender relations that creates opportunities for the women to overcome personal fears and logistical challenges. The act of writing up their experiences in their Instagram posts involves self-reflection and such critical analysis allows for greater levels of awareness of self that may then lead to self-transformation.

Travel after tragedy: A phenomenological study on what it takes for women to travel solo after tragedy

Article

Aug 2021
J LEISURE RES

Santoshi Sengupta

Tragedies are encountered and experienced by almost everyone. While many give in to the tragic times, there is a recent trend of women who choose to travel solo after encountering tragedies. Drawing on Horowitz’s stage model of reschematization, Tedeschi and Calhoun’s posttraumatic growth model, and Iso Ahola’s theory of travel motivation, this research explores what motivates women to travel after tragedy and how it helps them in coping with trauma. The phenomenological study based on interviews with twelve women travelers suggests four themes: family trust and support; fighting the fright; need for self-reflection, restoration, and growth; and financial independence. Implications and future research agenda are also discussed.

Taking a walk: The female tourist experience

Article

Full-text available

Jun 2020

This feminist, qualitative study explores the experiences of female tourists who like to walk during their holiday. The findings highlight that women’s full access to the benefits of walking while on holiday are constrained by their feelings of vulnerability and their perceptions of possible risk if walking alone, particularly at night and in isolated spaces. In order to cope with perceived risk, participants employed a number of safeguarding and self-surveillance strategies. This study, therefore, supports other research on female tourists that highlight the differences among male and female tourist experiences, and that point to the measures women take to keep themselves safe.

Chinese girlfriend getaway tourism in Buddhist destinations: Towards the construction of a gendered spirituality dimension

Article

Aug 2020

This study identifies the multidimensional scale of spiritual tourism among Chinese girlfriend getaway (GGA) tourists. The 379 questionnaires were distributed using convenience sampling at Wutai Mountain, one of the most important Buddhist sites in China. Through factor analysis and structural modeling, a six‐factor model that includes escapism, leisureliness, happiness, personal enrichment, nothingness, and sense of connection (27 items) is developed and validated. Using Buddhist destinations, the study discusses GGA tourism from the spiritual point of view and reveals the significance of this experience. Implications and limitations for theory and practice as well as directions for future research are discussed.

The subversion of women’s anger in travel guidebooks

Article

Full-text available

Jan 2021

Guidebooks have a privileged role in tourism as they direct bodily engagement with destinations, and yet few feminist leisure scholars have analysed guidebooks. This paper applies a feminist critical discourse analysis (FCDA) to explore Lonely Planet’s online travel advice for women. The results of the FCDA reveal that Lonely Planet advice acts to subvert women travellers’ anger, particularly when confronted with gender-based violence such as sexual harassment. The guidance offered to women travellers transmits the message that anger at gender-based violence is not legitimate and suggests that feeling anger when abroad is culturally inappropriate. This paper contributes to the literature by demonstrating that women’s anger is routinely subverted, particularly in contexts where freedom is ostensibly promised, such as leisure. The findings of this paper illustrate the value in applying FCDA to instances of otherwise hidden subversion and oppression and should inform future advice offered to women travellers.

Mixing methods: Putting the tourist at the forefront of tourism research

Article

Jan 1998
Tourism Anal

Alison J. McIntosh

Gender in tourism: Theoretical perspectives

Article

Jan 2001

Heather J Gibson

Travel, Young Women and ‘The Weekly’, 1959–1968

Article

Jan 2000

Penny Warner-Smith

In an attempt to understand the gendered nature of travel and the possibilities which travel has offered women to resist patriarchal dominance, this paper examines the phenomenon of the increase in young women’s travel during the 1960s. An analysis of the representations of women travellers in the Australian Women’s Weekly during that period was carried out, in order to explore images of travel and travellers which were available to young women at that time. Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics on short term departures by Australian residents were used to establish the context for the analysis. It is suggested that travel represented a resistance by young women to dominant patriarchal discourses on womanhood, and was a demonstration of agency rather than objectified commodification through travel advertising and other gendered media texts.

The right connections

Article

Mar 1988
TOURISM MANAGE

I.F. Clarke

Solitary Travellers in the Norwegian Lofoten Islands: Why Do People Travel On Their Own?

Article

May 2001

This study examines why people travel on their own. Based on a preliminary study of 7 solo travellers in the Norwegian Lofoten Islands, 13 socio-psychological justifications are empirically identified: ease, experience, flexibility, freedom, exploration, absence of a travel companion, prestige, sex, spontaneity, temporal considerations, guilt avoidance, solitude and selective contact. From these responses, a taxonomy of noninstitutionalized solitary travellers is inductively constructed. This taxonomy consists of two basic types: First, those who have to travel alone because they simply have no travel companion, referred to as "solitary travellers by default", and, second, those individuals who deliberately travel on their own, regarded as "solitary travellers by choice". The data further suggest that justifications for travel also relate to the specific travel style chosen. The articulation of these justifications provides insights for demand-based tourism research and has implications for the supply-driven tourism industry.

Women the taste-makers in tourism

Article

Jan 1980
ANN TOURISM RES

Valene L. Smith

Using data derived from a statistical sample as well as interviews, women are the taste-makers of American tourism because they dominate in the decision-making process. Culturally-specific motivations, generated within a narrowly-defined home community, prompt travel to “in” destinations and the traveler later gains social approval at home for having been to a currently-popular vacation center. The implications for market research suggest that to attract American tourism, the destination must be appealing to American women, and it must be marketed through, channels that American women see and/or read.RésuméSelon une enquête par sondange et par interview, les femmes sont les arbitres du goût dans le tourisme américain parce qu'elles dominent dans les décisions familiales. Des motivations qui sont déterminées par la culture de la communauté particulière poussent les gens à voyager à des destinations “dans le coup” et les voyageurs jouissent plus tard chez eux d'un meilleur standing pour avoir été à un lieu de vacances à la mode. Ce fait suggère pour l'étude du marche que les destinations doivent plaire à la population féminine des Etats-Unis afin d'attraire le tourisme américain, et que ces destinations doivent transmettre leur publicité par des voies de communication qui sont vues et lues par les femmes.

Dialectics of Authentication: Performing 'Exotic Otherness' in a Backpacker Enclave of Dali, China

Article

Jun 2005
J Tourism Cult Change

This paper explores dialectics of entrepreneurship and cultural consumption in the backpacker tourist enclave of 'Foreigner's Lane' in Dali, Yunnan Province, PR China, focusing on the role of ethnic identities and their representation. The discussion uses the performance metaphor to conceptualise tourism as a carefully staged act and illustrates the context of authentification. The paper focuses on the activities of local entrepreneurs and their construction of 'exotic Otherness' that reflects the preconceptions and demands of identity obsessed backpacker travellers. It is argued that the agency of local entrepreneurs undermine traditional notions of cultural producers as passive victims commodified by the globalised tourism complex.