Research of Glamping Tourism Based on the Aesthetics of Atmosphere

Abstract

Glamping, with its pursuit of connection with nature and focus on refinement, inspires the dissemination of glamping scenes—A tourism phenomenon that has received little attention in the literature despite its popularity with travelers. This study views the aesthetics of atmosphere theory as a breakthrough, analyzing user-generated content and in-depth interviews to identify three dimensions—physical environment, situation, and context—that are complementary developments of the aesthetics of atmosphere theory. After clarifying the characteristics of the construction of glamping scenes, we further explore the path of sustainable development of glamping from online to offline communication through the Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) framework. The results of grounded theory are used as stimulus and organism factors in the communication path and travel experience-sharing behavior and word-of-mouth recommendations are used as response factors. Research has revealed that physical environments and situational interactions play a decisive role in contextual perception and that unique organismic perception helps campers to respond positively to shared communication. The exploration of communication paths integrates atmospheric aesthetics theory and the SOR framework, contributing to the development of theory as well as suggesting ideas and references for the sustainable communication of glamping practices.