Tourism and Travel Commons^™

A Qualitative Assessment Of Airline Passenger Satisfaction, Kaetlyn Blocker, Brent D. Bowen, Erin Bowen, Andrea Irish

Student Works

Each year, airline passengers respond to the Airline Passenger Survey providing feedback of their experiences with major domestic (U.S.) airlines. The Airline Passenger Survey analyzes responses to a varied set of questions. This specific study is limited to the single open-ended question within the survey. This question is optional, but allows an opportunity to share any issues, concerns, and/or complaints regarding their own air travel experiences. There is no limitation on the number of words submitted. Through the application of a thematic coding scheme, results show what the highest concerns of airline passengers have been the last two years.

A Research Note On Gender And Taboo Advertisements: The Case Of Spirit Airlines, Blaise P. Waguespack

Atlantic Marketing Association Proceedings

No abstract provided.

Bonaire: The First Blue Destination In The Caribbean, Robertico Croes, Manuel Rivera, Kelly Semrad, Valeriya Shapoval, Mathilda Van Niekerk

Rosen Research Review

In December 2016, the Tourism Corporation Bonaire (TCB) commissioned the Dick Pope Sr. Institute for Tourism Studies at UCF Rosen College to develop a Strategic Tourism Master Plan 2017-2027. At that time, the TCB felt the destination was at a critical crossroads. The central questions were how to make the tourism industry sustainable now and for the future, and how to optimize the participation of residents in the benefits that sustainable tourism could afford to them.

Improving Country And Destination Image Can Bring More American Tourists To Cuba, Suja Chaulagain, Jessica Wiitala, Xiaoxiao Fu

Rosen Research Review

Country image, how an entire country is perceived by potential tourists, and the more specific destination image are important concepts in tourism marketing. They have a profound impact on a person's intent to travel to a particular destination. Suja Chaulagain, Jessica Wiitala and Xiaoxiao Fu of Rosen College of Hospitality Management have used the example of Cuba to examine the impact of country image and destination image on U.S. tourists' travel intentions. Their work provides guidance for Cuba's tourist marketing industry for attracting more tourists from the United States.

Tourist's Delight: How Theme Parks Can Improve Tourism Experience, Edwin Torres, Ady Milman

Rosen Research Review

Understanding what drives customers to write delighted or outraged reviews on platforms such as TripAdvisor following their visits to theme parks would be highly valuable information for park developers and managers. Researchers Dr. Edwin Torres and Dr. Ady Milman from Rosen College of Hospitality Management use data extracted from the review platform to dissect tourism experience, delight and outrage in the previously overlooked theme park sector.

Increasing Health Tourism Spending In The United States, Jorge Ridderstaat, Dipendra Singh

Rosen Research Review

An increasing number of people are taking advantage of health tourism to access medical services abroad. For the U.S. to be competitive in the lucrative health tourism environment, it is essential to target the right markets. Until now the information available to do this has been limited. This knowledge gap is being addressed by Dr. Jorge Ridderstaat and Dr. Dipendra Singh from Rosen College of Hospitality Management and colleagues. These researchers have developed a microeconomic elasticity approach that offers an understanding of the effects of individual tourism markets on the total health tourism spending in the U.S.

Romantic Brand Love In The Luxury Hotel Sector, Juhee Kang

Rosen Research Review

When I fall in love…. it will be forever.' It's one of the best-known lines in the Great American Song Book, but romantic love is now an increasingly familiar concept in marketing. It's said that people can form a deep and meaningful emotional connection with their favorite brands, just as they can with a life partner. New research from Rosen College of Hospitality Management's Dr. Juhee Kang looks at what this means for luxury hotels and what they can do to stay in tune with modern consumers.

Do Loyalty Schemes Benefit Hotel Preferences?, Nan Hua, Wei Wei

Rosen Research Review

Loyalty schemes have been a significant development in many industries, including the highly competitive hotel industry. But do those schemes contribute real value by improving hotel performance, or are they just an expensive but outdated marketing tool? Dr. Nan Hua and Dr. Wei Wei from the Rosen College of Hospitality Management, University of Central Florida, seek to better understand this relationship.

Lgbt Events: Sense Of Belonging For Lgbt Travelers, Jeeyeon (Jeannie) Hahm, Heejung Ro

Rosen Research Review

A successful event or festival can be a huge draw to a tourist destination. As lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) travelers are increasingly recognized as a growing market for tourism, events aimed at this demographic are expanding in number and scale. It is therefore useful to understand what factors influence attendance. In a study designed to do just this, Dr. Jeeyeon Hahm and Dr. Heejung Ro from the Rosen College of Hospitality Management looked at psychological variables related to social identity to examine what influences satisfaction and repeat attendance at LGBT events.

Florida's Food Truck Industry: Tackling The Food Safety Challenges And Health Risks, Bendegul Okumus, Sevil Sonmez

Rosen Research Review

Street food is a popular part of daily life, with a vast variety of vendors and food trucks around the world. It is easily available and well-known foods contribute to the local economy. Despite these strengths, many cultures don't highly regard street food. In particular, it's often perceived as unhygienic compared to restaurant food. These concerns around standards are indeed upheld by research in some countries. Researchers Dr. Bendegul Okumus and UCF Rosen College of Hospitality Management and Dr. Sevil Sonmez at UCF College of Business analyze the inspection challenges street food faces and review the gaps between food safety …

What Makes Them Share: Generation Y, Electronic World Of Mouth And Brand Success, Tingting Zhang, Behzad Abounia Omran, Cihan Cobanoglu

Rosen Research Review

Generation Y has redefined the way customers seek, share and consider information about products and services before purchasing. Proficient users of digital technologies and social media, members of Generation Y are quick to share their experiences with brands and companies and their opinions have a significant influence on brand revenue and reputation. Dr. Tingting (Christina) Zhang from Rosen College of Hospitality Management and collaborators Dr. Behzad Abounia Omran (Ohio State University) and Dr. Cihan Cobanoglu (University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee) examined what influences Gen Y's decision to participate in electronic work of mouth (eWOM).

Sweet Home Alabama: A Great Place To Visit?, Jeeyeon (Jeannie) Hahm, Kimberly Severt

Rosen Research Review

How we choose our leisure destinations is a critical insight required by cities and regions that rely on tourism to find their economy. In this study of Alabama as a destination, Dr. Jeeyeon (Jeannie) Hahm of Rosen College of Hospitality Management, University of Central Florida, and Dr. Kimberly Severt of Department of Human Nutrition and Hospitality Management, The University of Alabama, consider how destination marketing must focus on factors important to tourists to encourage them to visit, and then ensure they are not disappointed.

How Effective Are Virtual Reality Experiences As Destination Marketing Tools?, Alessandra Marasco, Piera Buonincontri, Mathilda Van Niekerk, Marissa Orlowski, Fevzi Okumus

Rosen Research Review

How did you decide where to go on your last holiday? Did you see a picture-perfect paradise promoted on your social media feed? Once upon a time, planning your perfect holiday was organized with a trip to the local travel agency. In recent years you are more likely to pick your destination based on the most attractive advertisements at the top of an online travel agency website. Dr. Mathilda van Niekerk, Dr. Marissa Orlowski and Dr. Fevzi Okumus from Rosen College of Hospitality Management, along with Allessandra Marasco and Dr. Piera Buonincontri from the National Research Council's Institute for research …

Holiday Research: How Academia Is Informing A Destination Marketing Organization, Misty Johantgen

Rosen Research Review

Destination marketing is a changing industry; the advent of the internet and smartphones has led to an explosion in the number of destination marketing companies looking to be the reason you visit somewhere. So how does one destination marketing organization (DMO) stand out from another? How much has the role of DMOs altered in recent years? Misty Johantgen, Chief Operating Officer of Experience Kissimmee, one of the largest DMOs in Florida, is here to tell us more.

Climate Change And Tourist Destinations: Florida's Case, Alan Fyall, Dr. Asli Tasci, Jill Fjelstul, Roberta Atzori

Rosen Research Review

Aside from the physical impacts of climate change, society's perception of climate change, and the response to it at different decision-making levels, are now critical issues. As public awareness of the consequences of climate change increases, it becomes a consideration in everyday decision-making, including tourism. The research of three colleagues at Rosen college o Hospitality Managment, Dr. Alan Fyall, Dr. Asli D. A. Tasci, and Dr. Jill Fjelstul, along with Dr. Roberta Atzori from California State University, Monterey Bay, examines how social representations of climate change may affect a choice of holiday destination. In particular, they examine how they might …

The Wine Tourist: Motivations, Satisfaction And Behavioral Outcomes, Robin M. Back, Diego Bufquin, Jeong-Yeol Park

Rosen Research Review

What inspires someone to visit a winery? And why do they go back? Three professors from the Rosen College of Hospitality Management have been considering these questions with a particular focus on the world-renowned winery, Marques de Riscal, in Spain. Dr. Robin Beck, Dr. Diego Bufquin, and Dr. Jeon-Yeol Park examined customer revisit intentions, previous visits, motivation to visit, customer satisfaction levels, and the geographic proximity of a destination to their home.

Tourism's Potential To Benefit Ecuador's Poor, Robertico Croes, Manuel A. Rivera

Rosen Research Review

Tourism development has long been discussed as having potential to promote economic growth and alleviate poverty in developing countries. In an award-winning paper, Rosen College researchers Dr. Robertico Croes and Dr. Manuel Rivera use a new model - the Social Accounting Matrix (SAM), to assess the impact of tourism development using Ecuador as an example. Their focus? To examine whether the poor, in particular, benefit from increased levels of tourism.

Peregrinatio: Anever-Ending Pilgrimage To An Unspecified End, Bernice Lamb-Senechal

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

To most modern-day thinkers a pilgrimage entails a journey to a sacred place. Thus, the primary purpose of the voyage is to reach a locale that holds special meaning for the pilgrim. Typically, the end destination is a place where a significant familial, historical or religious event has occurred. In contrast to this contemporary understanding of pilgrimage, some Irish Christian monks of late antiquity undertook sacred journeys of an indefinite duration with no express terminus in mind. Furthermore, these monastic sojourners exiled themselves from their homeland vowing never to return to kith and kin. This working paper explores the practice …

Resurrection Of A Heretic Religion Through Pilgrimage: The Cathar Case Study, Pierre Fournie

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

Six hundred ninety-eight years have passed since Guilhem Bélibaste, the last known Perfect or Albigensian was burned at stake in Villerouge-Termenès. His execution, in 1321, ended the official presence of the Cathars – who preferred to call themselves Good-Men and Good-Women- in the South of France. The Catholic Church, feeling that the influence of this alleged heretic movement threatened its power, started procedures around 1147 to at first control the Cathars peacefully, but failing to do so, later felt it had to destroy them, by means of crusades and the Inquisition.

For many people, the intangible and tangible remains of …

Pilgrimaging Through Time: The Theoretical Implications Of Continuing Journeys On The Shikoku Henro, John Shultz

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

Fantastic growth in the field of pilgrimage studies raises real questions about whether our theories and methods are up to the task of describing increasingly diverse phenomena. Herein, I maintain that the future of the field lies not with articulating some vague generalisations in an attempt to somehow maintain universals, but to consciously ponder the variability found with respect to pilgrimage. I argue that pilgrimage analysis needs to be more ground-up with a methodological focus on how key variables shape the fundamental meaning of pilgrimage. I demonstrate such methods by looking at the relativity of time in the context of …