Tourists' Length of Stay: The Case of International Summer Visitors to Norway

Abstract

Tourists' length of stay is a variable of key importance for any tourism destination due to its crucial effect on overall tourism expenditure. This study, using several econometric techniques, examines how nationality and a number of other independent variables affect length of stay. The empirical setting is the inbound summer tourism market in Norway, and the data refer to a large-scale visitor survey conducted in 2007. The results show that nationality explains many of the differences in length of stay among international visitors to Norway. The results also highlight how international visitors' age, spending patterns and other trip-related characteristics are associated with length of stay. The implications of the findings for tourism policy, segmentation and further research are, finally, discussed.