Motivation for domestic tourism : a case study of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors focused on the push and pull factors of tourist behavior towards domestic tourism in Saudi Arabia and found that the push factors positively and strongly correlate with pull factors.
Abstract: In Saudi Arabia there is a growing amount of leisure time and a high percentage of
disposable income is being spent on various forms of tourism; such trends have
increased the number of Saudis travelling to tourist destinations, internationally or
domestically. Spending the annual holiday away from Saudi is normal for most Saudi
families and it is estimated that the total expenditure on domestic tourism in Saudi
Arabia is only 16.7% of total tourism expenditure. International expenditure was
estimated (in 1995) to be US$ 7.6 million US$ and this increased to more than US$
8.2 million in 1997 which is about 17.3% of total oil revenue estimated in 1998 and
nearly 5.6% of the Saudi gross domestic product. Consequently, foreign tourism is a
substantial drain on the current account, so the government has been trying to
persuade more of its citizens to holiday at home. This situation will require tourism
marketer to understand fully the need of tourists. Under increasingly competitive
conditions, effective tourism marketing is impossible with out an understanding of
tourists' motivation to choose a Saudi travel destination.
The purpose of this study is to describe and analyse the status of domestic tourism
motivation. The research took place in Saudi Arabia, concentrating on the motivation
'push' and 'pull' factors of tourist behaviour towards domestic tourism in an Islamic
and Arabic culture.
Data were collected by means of a questionnaire using a 5-point Likert-scale. Out of
1400 questionnaires distributed, in two tourism cities Jeddah and Abha, 505 usable
questionnaires were verified and prepared for the final analysis. In view of the
intensive and extensive data and interdependent relationships between variables, the
statistical techniques used in this research include reliability analysis, frequencies,
cross tabulation, mean, standard deviation, chi-square, factor analysis, Pearson
correlation, multiple regression and one-way ANOVA.
The results of the analysis of push motivation indicates nine factors: (Fl) cultural
value factor; (F2) utilitarian factor; (F3) knowledge factor; (F4) social factor; (F5)
economical factor; (F6) family togetherness factor; (F7) interest factor; (F8)
relaxation factor; (F9) convenience of facilities factor.
The result of the factor loading for pull motivational items presents nine pull factors:
(Fl) safety factor; (F2) activity factor; (F3) beach sports/activities factor; (F4)
nature/outdoor factor; (F5) historical/cultural factor; (F6) religious factor; (F7) budget
factor; (F8) leisure factor; (F9) upscale factor. This study found that the most
important push and pull factors as perceived by Saudi tourists are 'cultural value' and
'religious'.
The major findings of the study were that the push factors positively and strongly
related to pull factors. Also, the study found that no significant correlation existed
between push and pull motivation items and the social demographic variables,
educational level, income level and age. The only significant correlation was found
between pull motivation items and the gender.
In the case of the push factors the test found that there is no significant correlation
between push motivation factors and the educational level, with one exception, a
significant correlation between social factor and the educational level in Abha. The
study found that there are significant correlations between the economical push
motivation factor and the income level, while the remaining eight factors are not
significantly correlated with the income level in Jeddah. Also, there is a significant
correlation between the knowledge factor and the income level in Abha.
The results indicate that there is significant correlation between push motivation
factors and age as follow: cultural value factor and age in Jeddah, interest factor and
age in Abha and social factor and age in Abha.
The study found that there is significant correlation between push motivation factors
and the gender. A significant correlation is found between the interest factor, social
factor and the gender in Jeddah. In addition, a significant correlation is found between
the interests, the cultural value, the utilitarian factors and the gender in Abha.
Relating to pull factors, the results indicate that there is no significance correlation
between pull motivation factors and the educational level with the exception of a
significant correlation between the upscale factor and the educational level in Jeddah,
and a significant correlation between the activity factor and the educational level in
Abha. A significance correlation exists between the upscale factor and the income
level in both Jeddah and Abha.
There is no significant correlation between pull motivation factors and age in Jeddah.
However, there is significant correlation between the activity factor, the beach sports
activities factor, the upscale factor and age in Abha. There is no significance
correlation between pull motivation factors and gender in Jeddah, except the activity
factor. In Abha there is significant correlation between the nature/outdoor factor, the
activity factor, the safety factor and gender.
The results indicate that educational and income level have no significant correlation
with the kind of accommodation, while tourist age and the length of tourist stay have
significant and strong correlation with the kind of accommodation. In respect of the
family number and the kind of accommodation the result shows that there is a
significant correlation between the kind of accommodation and the number of adults
and number of children under 11 years group. The study indicates that there is no
correlation between the kind of accommodation and the number of children in the 11-
16 years group.
The complex interdependent relationships mean that providers of tourist facilities
have to have a deep understanding of the motivation of potential markets to provide
the required facilities and activities.
Citations
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TL;DR: In this article, the effects of state religion on tourism development in Muslim countries with particular reference to Iran and Saudi Arabia are discussed, and issues of tourism policies, management and marketing and community involvement within the context of two cases are discussed.
Abstract: This paper is concerned with the effects of state religion on tourism development in Muslim countries with particular reference to Iran and Saudi Arabia. Aspects of the relationship between Islam and tourism are investigated overall and issues of tourism policies, management and marketing and community involvement within the context of the two cases are discussed. The distinctive circumstances prevailing in Iran and Saudi Arabia are suggested, but more general insights are also presented into the interactions between and management of tourism and Islam. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
304 citations
Cites background from "Motivation for domestic tourism : a..."
...Statistics hint at unrealised potential among Muslim and non-Muslim markets and signifi cant obstacles to destination development, although the often substantial scale of domestic tourism should not be forgotten (Bogari et al., 2003)....
[...]
TL;DR: This article explored which Islamic attributes of destinations could be used as a base for tailoring Halal tourist packages and identified two major aspects are identified which may attract Muslim tourists, and some suggestions are also presented to satisfy Muslim tourists.
Abstract: The success of marketing destinations for Muslim tourists could be guided by observing Islamic teachings in tourism activities. This study is a trial to explore which Islamic attributes of destinations could be used a base for tailoring Halal tourist packages. Qualitative data were collected by conducting two focus group discussions and fifty three interviews in Malaysia. Two major aspects are identified which may attract Muslim tourists. Some suggestions are also presented to satisfy Muslim tourists.
232 citations
Cites background from "Motivation for domestic tourism : a..."
...Bogari et al. (2004) claim that destination attributes and issues pertaining to Islamic culture were not suffi ciently covered by researchers....
[...]
...Many of the studies are based on the theory of pull and push motivations (Jamrozy and Uysal, 1994; Hanqin and Lam, 1999; Jang and Cai, 2002; Bogari et al., 2004; Yoon and Uysal, 2005; Jang and Wu, 2006; Kim et al., 2006; Correia et al., 2007)....
[...]
TL;DR: In this article, the authors test the relationship between tourism motivations and tourist satisfaction, and test how "Religion" moderates the relationship and find that tourism motivations are significantly and positively related to tourist satisfaction.
Abstract: The objectives of this study are to test the relationship between tourism motivations and tourist satisfaction, and to test how ‘Religion’ moderates the relationship. The variable ‘Religion’ is represented by the availability of Islamic norms and practices relevant to tourism at the destination. The results of the partial least square indicate that tourism motivations are significantly and positively related to tourist satisfaction. The results also showed that Religion significantly moderates the relationship between pull motivation and tourist satisfaction. However, the moderating effect of Religion on the relationship between push motivation and tourist satisfaction was not supported.
152 citations
Cites background from "Motivation for domestic tourism : a..."
...Bogari et al. (2004) claim that destination attributes and issues pertaining to Islamic culture have not been sufficiently covered by researchers....
[...]
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors developed a measurement scale for Islamic attributes of destination and then investigated the influence of Islamic attributes on overall tourist satisfaction and found a positive relationship between Islamic attributes and overall tourists satisfaction.
Abstract: The objectives of the paper are to first develop a measurement scale for Islamic attributes of destination and then to investigate the influence of Islamic attributes on overall tourist satisfaction. This study followed the sequence of steps that should be performed in developing measures of constructs. The measurement was tested and found to be both reliable and valid. The study found positive relationship between Islamic attributes of destination and overall tourist satisfaction. Important marketing implications are also presented.
129 citations
TL;DR: Segmentation guides budgetary decision making, and the proposed two-step approach to segmentation may assist tourism destinations to maximize limited resources by targeting more of the types of tourists who are frequenting the destination.
Abstract: Tourism segmentation studies have traditionally developed segmentation variables from secondary data or a review of the literature. Based on stakeholder theory, this study recommends a two-step approach to destination segmentation, incorporating the views of multiple stakeholders. This article details the recommended segmentation approach using one Australian destination. Step 1 involves understanding how multiple stakeholders viewed their market to identify relevant segmentation variables. Step 2 involves segmenting the destination based on the variables identified in step 1. When compared with segments currently used by the destination marketing organization, the segments derived from the two-step approach to segmentation capture more of the tourists visiting the area. Segmentation guides budgetary decision making, and the proposed two-step approach to segmentation may assist tourism destinations to maximize limited resources by targeting more of the types of tourists who are frequenting the destination.
101 citations
References
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TL;DR: In this article, a theoretical case is made for concentration on push factors, and, in particular, those stemming from "anomie" and ego-enhancement in the tourist himself, which is conducive to the creation of a fantasy world, one to which he plans a periodic escape.
1,639 citations
TL;DR: Dann and Dann as mentioned in this paper survey the recent literature and highlights seven different, though sometimes interdependent, uses of the tourist motivation expression and examine various allied terms, often employed as synonyms for tourist motivation.
1,288 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors developed a self-report scale to measure tourist travel motivation and evaluated its effectiveness in understanding, predicting, and influencing the relationship between tourist motivation and tourist behavior.
851 citations
TL;DR: Boynton et al. as mentioned in this paper presented an evaluation of tourists' experiences in rural Northern West Virginia and reported that tourism and traditional people: Forging Equitable Strategies. In Proceedings of the Travel and Tourism Educators Annual Conference, pp. 90-102.
583 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a factor-cluster market segmentation approach was used to delineate the motivations of Japanese travelers who travel abroad for pleasure based on six push motivation factors, and cluster analysis was employed to identify similar respondents based on their motivations.
Abstract: Using a factor-cluster market segmentation approach, this study attempted to delineate the motivations of Japanese travelers who travel abroad for pleasure. Based on six delineated push motivation factors, cluster analysis was employed to identify similar respondents based on their motivations. The findings show that there are three distinct groups: sports seekers, novelty seekers, and family/relaxation seekers. Age and education variables were shown to be statistically significant among the three groups. The article concludes with market ing implications of the study results and suggestions for future research.
531 citations