Abstract
Culinary tourism holds a significant role in the tourism industry, providing travelers with a unique opportunity to deeply engage with a region's culture while delving into its local culinary delights. This study focuses on classifying culinary tourists in Chongqing by considering both psychological and comprehensive factors related to food and dining experiences. Using a customized psychographic measurement and the K-means clustering technique, it identifies four distinct tourist groups: “Low-Interest,” “Medium-Interest”, “Local Diversity-Seeking”, and “Active Experience-Seeking”, with each group distinguished by its own psychographic characteristics. Investigation of demographic factors, typical travel behaviors, preferred communication channels for receiving and sharing information, reviewing tendencies, and participation in food-related activities, were investiaged on these categories. The results suggest that culinary tourists frequently travel with their families and favor online platforms for posting positive reviews, gathering information, and sharing their experiences. Furthermore, these travellers are interested in activities such as exploring tea culture, visiting hotpot museums, and culinary excursions. Among the identified segments, the “Low-Interest” and “Medium-Interest” groups are more likely to comprise individuals aged 50 and above, whereas the “Local Diversity-Seeking” and “Active Experience-Seeking” categories predominantly consist of travelers in their 20s. Based on the findings, this study provides significant advice and effective marketing tactics for Chongqing's tourism stakeholders, with the aim of enhancing culinary tourists' satisfaction and contributing to the sustainable advancement of the tourism sector.
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