Travelling to an unusual destination: Chinese tourists’ preferences for visiting North Korea

Abstract

ABSTRACT Although travelling to unusual destinations has aroused great interest among tourists, little is known about which aspects of these destinations compel tourists to visit. This study focused on the authenticity of revealed preference data and the favourable statistical characteristics of stated preference data through two studies, taking North Korea as an example of an unusual destination. Specifically, this study examined Chinese tourists’ preferences for travelling to this country by considering tourists who had and had not visited North Korea. Fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis was performed to confirm results’ validity and identify the effects of configurations of North Korean attractions on tourists’ preferences. Findings revealed that cultural sites, entertainment, and modern sightseeing positively influenced tour choices, followed by local meals and shopping sites. Price was not identified as an essential factor influencing tourists’ visit intentions. In addition, six attribute configurations were found to lead to a North Korea tour choice. Implications for the development of unusual or obscure tourist destinations were also discussed.