Assessing tourist willingness to pay for excursions on environmentally benign tourist boats: A case study and trend analysis from Berlin, Germany

Abstract

Assessments of tourist customer demand, their motivations, preferences, and their willingness to pay (WTP) a (comparatively slightly) higher ticket price for a more environmentally benign excursion service can provide important information for investors and operators. Information on WTP is also important for the optimization of marketing stategies and for local tourism or environment policy makers. In the scope of their empirical case study, the authors have conducted surveys among passengers on solar-battery-electric boats cruising the Spree River in downtown Berlin. A first survey was conducted in the summer of 2019, followed by a second survey in the summer of 2021, using the same methodology. The findings suggest that a limited yet distinct willingness to pay more for excursions on environmentally benign tourist boats exists. A considerable number of passengers interviewed indicated their conscious preference for the more sustainable form of the boat excursion despite the higher price. Some form of willingness to pay more was found in all customer groups, even if their other preferences, motivations, consumption patterns, and touristic interests differed. A comparison of data collected in the 2 years indicates that the observed willingness to pay more for environmnentally benign services may have gradually increased over time between 2019 and 2021, at least among the interviewed tourists in the sample. These three findings may reflect a slowly growing consumer attention to environmental concerns, including recognition of the need to mitigate local air pollution and climate change through own purchase decisions.