Business Commons^™

International Tourists' Perceptions Towards Destination Brand Image: A Case Study Of Socotra Island, Yemen, Ahmed Abdullah Omer, Madhuri Sawant, Rajesh Ragde

Journal of Tourism Insights

The influence of brand image on consumer behavior is widely recognized. It affects how tourists make pre-purchase decisions, making destinations with more substantial images more likely to be chosen. Additionally, the destination needs a strong brand image to maintain its position in the competitive business world. Product differentiation is crucial because Socotra Island, the research area, has a unique landscape, botanical, marine, and bird biodiversity, and cultural and heritage features and offers tremendously attractive destinations. Purposive random sampling was used to gather data from 410 international tourists at the sample locations for this study, which intends to examine how tourists …

Identifying The Determinants Of Ecotourism Potential: An Investigation Of Reiek In Mizoram, Rajdeep Deb, Himanshu Bhusan Rout

Journal of Tourism Insights

The current study aims to identify and evaluate the determinants of ecotourism potential in Reiek, located in Mizoram. The study is based on Boyd and Butler (1996) model for identifying the determinants and evaluating the ecotourism potential. A sample of 201 respondents were surveyed using structured questionnaire, and subsequently were analysed with the help of statistical tools. After analysis, it was found that six factors: accessibility, relationship of ecotourism to other resources, regional attractions, availability of tourism infrastructure, degree of social interaction, and type of management developed for long term protection of the area vastly determine the ecotourism potential of …

Social Tourism Entrepreneurship As Tool For Development Of Rural Areas: A Case Study Of Himalayan Region Of Jammu & Kashmir, India, Basith Nabi Wani Reseach Scholar, Danish Iqbal Rania Dr

Journal of Tourism Insights

The promotion of rural tourism has been suggested as a way to promote local economic, social, and cultural renewal. The importance of entrepreneurship in the tourism sector is growing. Since entrepreneurs may be vital in the growth of rural communities, especially those in less industrialized regions, they are frequently confronted with a variety of social issues. Finding new sources of revenue and employment possibilities for them is essential. There is no doubt that entrepreneurial businesses help the host community and the nation's economy. Kashmir's rural areas have certain unique characteristics that can be turned into enticing tourist destinations. This study …

Role Of Young Adults In Family Vacation Decision Making: A Study Across Gender, Shayan Basharat Fazili, Anisa Jan

Journal of Tourism Insights

In recent years, family vacation decision-making has grown in importance as a subject of research for tourism academics since it helps practitioners develop specialized marketing strategies for their target market. However, there hasn't been much focus on how different family members perform during the many stages of deciding on a family vacation. This study examines the three primary stages of choosing a family vacation and the part that young adults play in each stage of this process. The purpose of this study is to understand how young adults engage in choosing family trips. Additionally, this study attempts to examine how …

Virtual Reality And Blogging In Tourism: Approached Towards Creating Better Tourist Experience, Anukrati Sharma, Shruti Arora

Journal of Tourism Insights

Virtual reality in tourism (virtual tourism) and blogging are highly valuable for visitors and travellers since they allow them to undertake a scouting trip before embarking on their adventure, avoid being hassled and avoid crowds while learning more about the location they are visiting or have already been. This paper provides an overview and analysis of the relationship between virtual tourism, blogging, and making the image of tourist destinations through promotion virtually and via blogs. According to the study's findings, virtual tourism cannot replace the actual experience, but it can assist in recreating it if the user has previously visited …

Impact Assessment Of Covid-19 Pandemic On Perception And Travel Behavior Of Tourists With Strategies For Resilient Recovery Of Jammu And Kashmir, India, Danish Iqbal Raina, Tanveer Nasir, Taniya Qazi

Journal of Tourism Insights

The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of the Covid-19 pandemic on changes in tourist perceptions and travel behaviour when visiting Jammu and Kashmir during the unlocked phase of Covid-19. This study is intended to be nice. This pilot study included 208 travellers who were chosen on a non-probabilistic basis. A Chi-square test of goodness of fit, as well as content analysis, were performed on the collected data. According to the findings, the current COVID-19 epidemic will have an impact on travelers' perceptions and behaviour intentions in terms of economic expenditure, health and hygiene, modes of buying, …

Waste Management Practices Of Small Hotels In Dehradun, Arakhita Behera, Surendra Singh Jatav

Journal of Tourism Insights

Waste has emerged as a major issue in the modern society. Due to urbanization, the volume of waste is speedily rising. If the origin of waste creation makes no effort, then all wastes are either disposed of or burnt which results in waste of land, air, water, and energy as well as the growth of undesirable animals, plants and microorganism. Through the associate and involvement of the local population, waste may be managed locally in a sustainable manner. Waste management may be an expensive endeavor if not carried out appropriately. In most of the developing nations, 20-50 percent of urban …

Returning To Travel: Fear, Coping, And Resilience During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Wilson Xieu, Jungyun "Christine" Hur, Abhijeet Shirsat

Journal of Tourism Insights

The COVID-19 pandemic has greatly affected the tourism industry, resulting in consequences such as travel fear and a decline in travel and tourism. Recognizing the needs of study in pandemic travel, this study explored individuals’ pandemic travel decision-making mechanism by investigating relationships between pandemic travel fear, coping strategies, resilience against travel fear, and pandemic travel intentions. Further, this study investigated the moderating role of risk tolerance in those relationships. The findings of this study suggest that people responded to pandemic travel fear by engaging in different types of coping strategies (e.g., task-oriented, emotion-oriented, and avoidance oriented), and through the coping …

Analysis Of Trend And Pattern Of Tourists’ Arrival: A Case Study Of Desert Tourist Circuit, Rajasthan, Sunil Manglaw, Prof. S.P. Kaushik, Manoj Khayalia

Journal of Tourism Insights

Tourism is one of the fastest-growing industries in the world economy particularly in developing countries. It is an important tool for the development of destinations’ economies and provides various socio-cultural and economic benefits such as employment generation, foreign capital exchange, infrastructure development, investment of capital, preservation of heritage sites, etc. Rajasthan is one of the most popular tourist destinations on the world’s map due to its diverse socio-cultural landscape. The desert tourist circuit has immense potential for attracting a large number of domestic as well as foreign tourists. The main aim of this study is to examine the trend and …

Do Consumers Raise Their Voices Or Leave After Service Failures? Examining Angry Rumination, Distraction, And Brand Loyalty, Jungyun "Christine" Hur, Soocheong "Shawn" Jang

Journal of Tourism Insights

This study aims to investigate the influence of rumination and distraction on consumer complaining behaviors (e.g., voice, negative word of mouth, and exiting) in a service failure encounter, and further examine the role of brand loyalty in consumer complaining behaviors. The findings of this study suggest that consumers use rumination and distraction to cope with service failures, which has different influences on consumer complaining behavior. Angry rumination increases all three types of consumer complaining behaviors, whereas distraction reduces negative word-of-mouth only. In addition, these relationships vary across the level of brand loyalty. Loyal consumers are more likely to voice their …

Stakeholder Perceptions Of Da Nang, Vietnam As A Tourism Gateway City, Patrick J. Holladay, Anthony W. Dixon, Minh C. Nguyen, Bao L. Nguyen, Shuangyu Xu, Kate Price-Howard

Journal of Tourism Insights

Da Nang, Vietnam is referred to as a gateway city because of its use as a regional entry point to multiple UNESCO World Heritage Sites and other extra-regional interests proximate to the city. This research addresses Da Nang tourism stakeholders’ interest in the capitalization of Da Nang’s current position as a tourism gateway city. Interviews were conducted with government officials, resort general managers, travel agency personnel, museum directors and members of academia who were all from Da Nang and knowledgeable of the industry. This study concludes that embracing and developing Da Nang’s position as a gateway and hub is important …

Frequency And Use Of Online Travel Sites When Planning A Leisure Vacation, John Salazar, Nancy M. Hritz, Catherine Moorman, Kelli Brunson, Anton Abraham

Journal of Tourism Insights

The growth of online travel agencies has modified how consumers explore possible vacation choices by allowing greater access to the travel and tourism supply chain. This growth also empowers potential travelers to be more discerning when purchasing travel products and services by giving them the opportunity to align their preferences (i.e., price, value, amenity, etc.) with the multiple product offerings available to them via online travel retail sites. This research explores a visitor’s frequency of using online travel sites when planning a leisure vacation and if similarities exist in how frequently these sites are used in the planning process. It …

Understanding Contraflow Pop-Culture Tourism: The Case Of Transnational Fandom Of South Korean Pop-Culture And The “Hallyu” Tourism, Jungyun "Christine" Hur, Tony Kim

Journal of Tourism Insights

Pop-culture tourism has continuously grown its market among those who are fanatic of pop-culture, and destination marketers have noticed pop-culture as an effective marketing tool to attract more visitors. Pop-culture has been dominant by the US, but interestingly, a recent phenomenon sees a contra-cultural flow. This paper explores contraflow pop-culture tourism and guides the reader to how to understand this new tourism niche. Reviewing the case of transnational fandom of South Korean pop-culture, so called “Korean Wave” or “Hallyu” and its impact on inbound tourism, this paper suggests digital mediation as a key driver of contraflow pop-culture and transnational fandom, …

Travel Motives And Golf Tourists: An Exploratory Study, Chris Brown, Yuri Feito

Journal of Tourism Insights

Over the past 25 years the concept of sport tourism has taken on numerous forms and broadened tourism and sport research tremendously. Hui, Wan, and Ho (2007) indicated that the global tourism industry has become increasingly competitive, and golf tourism, as a subcategory of sport tourism, has received more recent attention within the tourism industry. Thus, it is becoming more important for golf courses and golf destinations to identify the variables which attract and retain their golfing clientele. The identification of common characteristics and travel motivations among golf tourists could provide useful information to golf destination marketers in targeting their …

The Information Search Behavior Of International Students When Travelling Within The Countries Of Study In Relation To The Effectiveness Of Dmo Websites, Daegeun (Dan) Kim, Sheila Scott-Halsell

Journal of Tourism Insights

International student travel, within the countries of study, has increased over time. Through qualitative analysis, this study found that when these students travel, they generally search for information prior to travel. Regardless of prior knowledge about the location, information internet searches were the primary source. However, use of destination marketing organization (DMO) websites was not a primary source of information. The overwhelming purpose of travel, within the country of study, was for cultural experiences while budget was the main factor in decision making. The findings indicate that DMOs, whose information of destination is often cultural in nature, should work to …

Savannah Hockey Classic Attendance Motivation, Chris Hanna, Chris R. Barnhill, Gregg Rich, Amy Rundio, Christina Gipson

Journal of Tourism Insights

The Savannah Hockey Classic has become a very successful annual university club hockey team tournament. The 21^st edition of the tournament was held in January 2020 in Savannah, Ga. featuring the Georgia Institute of Technology, University of Florida, Florida State University, and University of Georgia club hockey teams—the same teams that have comprised the tournament for many years. This study utilized Personal Investment Theory (Braskamp, 1986) and the SPEED scale (Funk, Filo, Beaton, & Pritchard, 2009) for attendance motivation assessment. Social interaction motivations were significantly higher for county residents, spectators attending with friends, spectators attending with family, and past …

A Longitudinal Analysis Of Music Tourism Impacts, Kate Price-Howard, John C. Crossley, Andrew Holdnak Dr.

Journal of Tourism Insights

Music tourism has boomed in recent decades and has been part of the rise in cultural tourism. In recent years, several communities have implemented a concert series to help promote tourism during the shoulder season, or slower months during the off-season. In this study, a longitudinal examination of several concerts of various sizes and genres spanning about three years looks at the economic impacts for the tourist destination of Panama City Beach, FL. This paper will conduct an analysis comparing the tourism development tax, hotel/motel data provided by the industry leading data resource, Smith Travel Research (STR), in order to …

Temple Stay As Transformative Travel: An Experience Of The Buddhist Temple Stay Program In Korea, Susan L. Ross, Jungyun (Christine) Hur, Jamie Hoffman

Journal of Tourism Insights

The burgeoning tourism niche called temple stay, which originated in Korea, has been marketed to Koreans and internationals as a means for travelers to become immersed in cultural heritage, learn about Buddhism, and find one’s “true self” by spending a few days to a week as a guest in a living, operational Buddhist monastery. Although this tourism segment is gaining wide-spread appeal, the temple stay phenomenon has received relatively little scholarly attention outside of Korea. The handful of papers identified on the subject that are written in English, refer to this phenomenon as constituting various segments such as rural tourism, …

Effects Of Climate Change On Tourism In The Mid-Atlantic, Joshua Carroll Ph.D., Allison Brennan, Ashley Huff, Mary Kate Thornburg

Journal of Tourism Insights

Climate change is having significant impacts to many facets of everyday life, and the commercial recreation and tourism fields are many times at the forefront of these impacts as consumers are faced with making difficult decisions with discretionary income. Understanding how these impacts are changing the way people engage in recreation and tourism activities is essential to maintaining successful business and providing satisfying opportunities for consumers.

This paper will provide information from surveys with commercial recreation and tourism providers across the mid-Atlantic region. Summary information will describe their perceptions of how climate change is: affecting their business; having significant impacts; …

Motivations For Staying In Vacation Rentals And Evaluation Of Experience, Patrick Tierney

Journal of Tourism Insights

Persons attending the 2015 Outside Lands Music and Art Festival at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco had a range of lodging options. One of relatively new lodging options available was staying at non-commercial residences with a fee, also known as “vacation rentals.” Vacation rentals (VR), where a tourist rents a room or entire house from a private individual for a short term stay, are booming, especially at online booking sites, such as Air BNB. There are over a million rentals listed on Air BNB and its growth has been stunning (Weed 2015). Mayock (2015) found that vacation rentals are …

Creating Experiences For Study-Abroad Tourists, Gary D. Ellis, Patti Freeman, Jingxian Jiang

Journal of Tourism Insights

Effects of tourist activity type and locus of activity structure on subjective experiences of study-abroad tourists were examined. Subjective experiences measured included perceived value, delight, and prevalence of deep structured experience. These subjective experiences (n = 208) were measured immediately following participation in tourist activities at 13 attractions and settings. Each tourist activity was coded according to (a) experience type, and (b) locus of activity structure. Experience type categories included activities emphasizing narratives (engagement), activities emphasizing sensory stimulation (absorption), activities requiring skill performance (immersion), and familiar activities. Locus of activity structure referred to the source of the primary determinants …

Driving Rvpark/Campground Selection: A Grounded Theory Approach, Aj Templeton, Jill Fjelstul, Kimberly Severt, Yeon Ho Shin

Journal of Tourism Insights

The ability to “provide almost unrestricted land travel” (Prideaux & Carson, 2003, p. 307) has made drive tourism popular for tourists. A considerable sub-sector of the drive tourism industry is that of the multi-billion-dollar recreational vehicle industry (RV). Minimal academic research has been conducted on this important sub-sector of the drive tourism industry. This study builds upon previous research towards a further understanding of the RV consumer. A grounded theory approach was used to drive the direction of the research for this study. Given the scope of the data and studies that have been done regarding RV industry, this study …

The Laker Dream: A Short Guide For Grand Valley Students, Lucas Escalada

Honors Projects

No abstract provided.

The Economic Impact Of The Huron River, Grand Valley State University, Paul Isely, Christian Glupker, Erik E. Nordman, Julie M. Cowie, Hailey Lamay

Other Faculty Publications

The Huron River and Huron River Water Trail are estimated to have the following economic impact on the five-county region in which they are located:

• $53.5M in annual economic output, which is the sum of $29.9M in direct spending and $23.6M in indirect and induced spending
• 641 local jobs added to the region
• $628M in added property value
• $150M in annual environmental value
• 2.6M visitor days

The Economic Impact Of The Frederik Meijer Gardens And Sculpture Park, Grand Valley State University, Christian Glupker, Paul Isely

Other Faculty Publications

The Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park supports or contributes: • 804 jobs in Kent County annually

• A $75.2 million economic output annually
• Visitors from outside the county who directly spend $19.6 million at businesses around Kent County annually.
• Construction that created 39 jobs during the last year.
• 86% of the visitor spending is the result spending by individuals that do not live in Kent County.
• Nonresidents spent an average $129 per group outside the venue during their visit to Meijer Gardens while in Kent County.

Applying The Holistic Conceptual Conservation Framework For Sustainable Tourism, George Alexakis, Larry Rice

Journal of Tourism Insights

The tourism and hospitality industry has not always followed sound environmental stewardship. Increased awareness among tourists worldwide has prompted sustainabilit­y discourse encouraging long-term systemic approaches to planning and development. The research article proposes a holistic conceptual conservation framework that shows how a united tourism and hospitality industry can curtail the processes of environmental destruction and collectively offer authentic touristic experiences. Visitors can fully experience tourist destinations through integrated ecotourism, ethnotourism, and other related tangential offerings alongside those of larger tourism and hospitality providers. The conservation framework hypothetically strengthens the customer loyalty of tourists towards all industry operators and related practitioners, …

Exploring Motivational Factors For Dude Ranch Vacations, Aj Templeton, Ji-Eun Lee

Journal of Tourism Insights

Dude-ranch vacations have been popular for a segment of travelers. Research in purchase motivation spans various sectors of the hospitality industry; however issues surrounding the dude-ranch industry remain unexplored. The objectives of the study were: (1) to examine the impact of push and pull factors of motivations on customer purchase intention in dude-ranch vacations, (2) to survey the sources of information behind purchase decision for dude ranch vacations. Factor analysis and regression analysis were used for data analysis. The results of the study indicated that pull factors significantly influenced purchase intention of dude ranch vacations more strongly than push factors. …

You Look Like You’Ve Seen A Ghost: A Preliminary Exploration In Price And Customer Satisfaction Differences At Haunted Hotel Properties, Kimberly Mathe-Soulek, Grant C. Aguirre, Ioana Dallinger

Journal of Tourism Insights

With the increasing popularity of paranormal ghost hunting shows in mainstream television and popular culture, research in haunted lodging establishments is warranted. The purpose of this study is to explore differences in price and customer satisfaction between haunted vs. non-haunted properties; while also considering inn vs. hotels and chain vs. independent properties. Using TripAdvisor customer satisfaction scores and average daily rates, results of this study are opposite of what is hypothesized such that overall, haunted properties have lower customer satisfaction; while haunted, chain properties have higher prices. An exploration of interactions among variables is explored and practical implications are discussed. …

Developing A Tourism Opportunity Spectrum Scale, Joshua Carroll, Kelsey Hession

Journal of Tourism Insights

The Recreation Opportunity Spectrum (ROS) has been used in a multitude of recreation planning and management applications, and has led the way for the development of the Water Recreation Opportunity Spectrum (WROS) – its water based counterpart. More recently the Tourism Opportunity Spectrum (TOS) has been identified as a valuable tool for assessing nature-based tourism viability and host community-visitor relationships (Butler and Waldbrook, 2003). This tool relies on important tourism conditions of site access, compatibility of other uses, regimentation, tourism impacts, onsite management, and social perceptions of visitors and hosts.

This tool however, has its merits for application, but …

Festival Attendees’ Perceptions Of Green Hotel Practices, Jason D. Oliver, Alex Naar, Erin Harris

Journal of Tourism Insights

Lodging managers and festival organizers have an incentive to understand how festival attendees perceive hotels with green practices in place. Lodging managers that understand how to segment, target, and position their offerings to festival attendees, including sustainable practices, can maximize financial gains from festivals. Festival organizers have related interests: they want to minimize negative impacts on the physical environment and maximize positive customer experiences on- and off-site. To provide insights into festival attendees’ perceptions of green hotel practices that may assist both sets of stakeholders, the manuscript presents the results of a survey of convenience samples from two food festivals. …