Cruise Line Industry and Caribbean Tourism: Guests' Motivations, Activities, and Destination Preference

Abstract

This study examines passengers' motivations for taking a cruise vacation, their travel-related activities while on vacation, and their preferences to return to each destination for a land-based vacation. The study is based on a survey of cruise passengers on a 10-day itinerary with six ports-of-call from Miami, Florida to the Caribbean. Five underlying dimensions of cruise passengers' motivations were found: Convenience/Ship Based, Exploration, Escape and Relaxation, Social, and Climate. The findings of the study indicate that while the majority of respondents participated in shore excursions and a diverse range of activities in port, they had mixed rankings of destinations on the itinerary. Generally, passengers ranked the more developed destinations higher, spent more money in port, and traveled further from the port area. Furthermore, destinations that were ranked high were also those that respondents indicated preference to return for land-based holidays, suggesting that the satisfaction with a port destination and the activities participated in could influence passengers' intent to return.