Tourism Industry Practitioners Research Articles

Analysis of English Learning Needs for Travel Bureau Students in Bali, Indonesia

The tourism industry in Indonesia, especially Bali, has developed rapidly in recent years. This drives the need for skilled workers in the tourism sector, including good English language skills. This research aims to analyze the English language learning needs of students majoring in Travel Bureaus in Bali, Indonesia. This research uses quantitative and qualitative methods. Data was collected through a survey of 100 students majoring in Travel Bureau and in-depth interviews with 10 lecturers and 5 tourism industry practitioners. The research results show that students majoring in Travel Bureau have a high need to improve their English language skills, especially in the aspects of speaking, listening, and reading. This need is driven by the demands of work in the tourism industry, where English is widely used to communicate with foreign tourists. This research provides an overview of the English language learning needs for students majoring in Travel Bureaus in Bali, Indonesia. The findings of this research can be used to develop English language learning programs that are more effective and relevant to the needs of the tourism industry.

Exploring the destination network in the context of tourism mobility: a multi-scale analytical framework

ABSTRACT Tourist mobility has attracted considerable attention from tourism academics and industry practitioners. This study explores the destination network, which is constructed based on tourists’ digital footprint data collected from online travel diaries, by proposing a multi-scale analytical framework. In particular, to analyze the tourism destination network comprehensively, the proposed framework integrates traditional quantitative analysis (gravity center model, statistics of flow directions) and three scales of network analysis (macroscopic, mesoscopic and microscopic network metrics), to reveal the structural patterns of the underlying pattern characteristics; furthermore, by using the multiple regression quadratic assignment procedure (MRQAP), the framework also explores the formation mechanism of the destination network by measuring the correlation and causality between the destination network and the corresponding transportation network, combining other potential driving factors. Based on illustrative case study data, which contains 18, 939 travel diaries and 51, 603, 044 transportation records from Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle in China, the empirical results show that the destination network is dynamically changed during four-year period, and the transportation network has great potential in explaining the formation of destination network. The dynamic characteristics of destination network and the exploration of formation mechanism offer the opportunities for improving destination planning and management.

Tourism, commodification of Dongba script and perceptions of the Naxi minority in the linguistic landscape of Lijiang: a diachronic perspective

Abstract Ongoing debates in the field of sociolinguistics are centred around the implications of the commodification of the languages and cultures of ethnic minorities. Previous research has adopted synchronic approaches to describing how ideologies of tourist consumption shape language choices in the linguistic landscape. However, such snapshot analyses have proved to be inadequate in revealing changes in the linguistic landscape over time, especially the nuanced perceptions of minority communities who are subjects to ethnic tourism. This paper examines the use of Dongba script in the linguistic landscape of the Naxi minority in Lijiang under the conditions of commodification in tourism. A diachronic comparison of photographic data collected in 2016 and 2021 revealed the increasing visibility and prominence of Dongba script on public signs; interviews with ordinary inhabitants, tourism industry practitioners and Dongba priests within the Naxi community further demonstrated the evolving attitudes towards linguistic commodification, from hesitation and objection to integration and creative accommodation. The study provides new insights into how a diachronic perspective can help reveal the dynamic between packaging languages as commodities and retaining signs of identity, religion and culture.

Corporate Social Responsibility, Sustainability Governance and Sustainable Performance: A Preliminary Insight

This conceptual paper aims to investigate corporate social responsibility (CSR) practises in the tourism sector. Drawing on the existing literature this study conceptualises the linkage between CSR, sustainability governance, and sustainable performance. Moreover, this study conceptualises three sub-dimensions of CSR. The integration of CSR in the tourism sector is significant and novel. An analytical review is conducted to present conceptual linkage and research implications. The finding implies that CSR positively influences the sustainable performance of organisations and sustainable governance plays a mediating role between relationships. This study provides important implications that help tourism industry practitioners to realise the significance of reducing environmental and social problems, which cause by tourism activities. Further, this study obtains support from institutional theory to explain the relationships of governance mechanism and CSR that leads to economic performance as well as create value for nature and the local community. Additionally, the future direction of research is provided that highlights some important avenues in the sustainability field.

Impacts of advisory perception and cultural distance on travel intention: evidence from China

PurposeThis study aims to investigate the impact of travel advisory perception and cultural distance on travel intention based on the push and pull theory, the stimulus–organism–response model and protection motivation theory.Design/methodology/approachThe paper conducts an empirical test with a questionnaire survey. The authors asked respondents to answer questions on a five-point Likert-type scale, which included threat severity, threat susceptibility, advisory perception, perceived cultural distance, travel motivation and travel intention.FindingsIn this paper, through a questionnaire of 424 respondents, the authors found that threat severity has a positive impact on advisory perception and perceived cultural distance, and that advisory perception indirectly affect travel intention through travel motivation.Originality/valuePrevious literature has discussed the influencing factors of travel intention but rarely does it consider the intrinsic relationship and interaction between advisory perception and cultural distance. The results of this study help fill some gaps in the research on advisory perception and perceived cultural distance, guide governments on how to better formulate travel advisories and provide a new perspective for tourism industry practitioners to improve their travel products after the COVID-19 pandemic especially.

Examining Tourists’ Behavior Using Protection Motivation Theory and Health Belief Model: Covid-19 Crisis

Purpose - The main objective of this study was to investigate tourists behavior by applying protection motivation theory and health belief model during COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, the study examined how risk perception of COVID-19 affects tourists’ protection motivation and travel avoidance intention. Design/methodology/approach The empirical data was collected by self-administered questionnaires to obtain perception and behavior regarding COVID-19 pandemic situation. A total of 486 questionnaires were used for data analysis and SEM analysis was applied in order to examine seven hypotheses. Findings-The results showed that COVID-19 risk perception is a significant antecedent of threat appraisal, coping appraisal, and cue to action (H1, H2, H6). Moreover, protection motivation is affected by threat appraisal and coping appraisal (H3, H4) and influences on travel avoidance intention (H5). However, cue to action does not affect protection motivation (H7). Research implications or Originality This study provides insightful implications for tourism industry practitioners who will prepare the post-corona field and the results enrich knowledge of the tourist behavior during pandemic situation.

Has a Pandemic Provided an Opportunity for Food in Tourism?

This is an autoethnographic perspective, informed by my experience over four decades as a practitioner, policy maker and academic. The primary thrust of my argument is that, within the wider tourism industry, food in tourism is integral across all sectors, markets, and populations with enormous and sustainable social and economic potential. Realising that potential requires a shift beyond the existing traditional tourism paradigm that is based on narrow economic objectives. The pandemic may have created a tipping point, forcing that paradigm to shift to holistic, collaborative, and sustainable objectives reflecting fresh societal, cultural, environmental, and economic concerns. It is therefore critical to prepare for action in a post-pandemic world where challenges are different. This entails an awareness, and an understanding, of some of the conventions and practices of key elements outside of tourism and food. While there are many, I suggest focusing on those most critical to food-focused activity in tourism - that is, academic researchers in tourism, tourism industry practitioners, and tourism policy makers. In practice, these parties, and how they interact, inevitably require detailed attention and consideration in successfully advocating for any food-focused activity in tourism in general, and food in tourism in particular.

Is virtual reality technology an effective tool for tourism destination marketing? A flow perspective

虚拟现实是否能成为目的地营销的有效工具？一项基于沉浸理论视角的研究研究目的本研究旨在探索虚拟现实（VR）作为一项营销沟通工具来研究对目的地形象, 目的地态度改变, 诠释心流体验如何对目的地形象的影响, 以及目的地形象在心流体验对态度改变的中介作用的影响。研究设计/方法/途径本研究从342位观看了由HTC 提供的VR虚拟现实 VIVE 装备对旅游景区营销视频的参与者采集调研数据。调研数据由验证性因子分析和结构方程（PLS-SEM软件）来测试研究模型。研究发现研究结果显示由VR产生的基于心流体验的两个因子（友好程度和远程呈现）可以对目的地形象产生正面影响。研究显示目的地形象是心流体验影响态度变化的中介因素。研究原创性/价值由于旅游目的地面临着关于投资于不同VR 平台或者其他科技工具的战略性决策, 了解个体如何对各种VR刺激因素进行反应变得尤其重要。因此本研究结论为旅游业内人士提供了有价值信息。

A Study of Emotional Solidarity in the Homestay Industry between Hosts and Tourists in the Post-Pandemic Era

Tourists’ perceptions of various risks at their travel destinations have crucial implications for destination management organizations and other tourism industry practitioners, which is growing into an unprecedented concern in the post-pandemic era. The Internet has boosted the global homestay industry. The perceived risk of homestay tourists requires further attention from researchers to promote the sustainable development of the homestay industry, especially in the post-pandemic era. To supplement and enrich the literature, this study aims to explore the relationships between tourists’ perceived risk, three dimensions of tourists’ emotional solidarity with hosts (feeling welcome, sympathetic understanding, and emotional closeness), and their customer loyalty towards the homestay industry in the post-pandemic era by taking the homestay industry of Guangzhou, China as the context, and employing SmartPLS for the empirical analysis. The results indicate that perceived risk has a significantly negative impact on emotional solidarity and customer loyalty, while emotional solidarity has a significantly positive impact on customer loyalty and plays a partial mediating role in the relationship between perceived risk and customer loyalty. The theoretical contributions of the article and the practical implications of the findings for the sustainable development of the homestay industry are discussed.

RETRACTED: Teaching innovation and practice of tourism planning education

The development and promotion of tourism planning education is the basis and premise of tourism management education.Based on the teaching objectives and career direction of Tourism Management Major in higher vocational colleges, the teaching innovation of tourism planning course is studied. To interpret and evaluate the planning as the goal, based on a large number of complete case texts, explore practical teaching and training methods. Through the industry research and analysis of the students' learning situation, this paper finds out the demand and ability requirements of the current tourism management major for the course learning; combined with the professional and professional needs, the teaching innovation is carried out with the analysis and planning as the course objective. Through the teaching design, curriculum practice and analysis, based on the actual combat exercises, this paper studies the appropriate teaching and training methods, innovates and improves the education and teaching of this course. The three major elements of tourism management activities are tourism subject, tourism object and tourism attraction. While emphasizing the demand side, paying attention to the reform of supply side is the focus of current tourism management. With the development of tourism industry, the requirement of tourism management personnel training is to have strategic vision and overall awareness. Tourism planning has become the main course of Tourism Management Major in higher vocational colleges. Its teaching effect has a long-term impact on students' career, and will certainly play a decisive role in improving professional accomplishment and overall situation awareness of tourism industry practitioners.

Emerging rural tourism in China’s current tourism industry and tourist behaviors: the case of Anji County

ABSTRACT Recognizing the notable growth of rural tourism in China, this research aimed to take Anji County as a case to comprehend the role of rural tourism destination performances in affecting destination image and predicting satisfaction and loyalty. The empirical outcomes revealed that the higher-order construct of rural tourism performance significantly and positively influenced responsiveness constructs. Additionally, the moderating effect of tourist expectation was also demonstrated. This study provided certain guidance and reference for both academics and rural tourism industry practitioners to deepen the knowledge on investigating the associations among tourist expectation, rural tourism performance, destination image, tourist satisfaction and loyalty.

Attributes of Senior-Friendly Tourism Destinations for Current and Future Senior Tourists: An Importance-Performance Analysis Approach

This study aims to identify the tourists’ expectation and satisfaction of destination attributes from the perspective of senior tourists in Malaysia. Two groups of tourists were chosen as the study sample, that is, future seniors (40–54 years old) and seniors (55 years old and above). It is hoped that, through recognizing and raising awareness on the need for equal traveling opportunities, senior tourists and future senior tourists will be encouraged to undertake more tourism activities. An importance-performance analysis (IPA) and paired sample t tests were employed to investigate senior tourists’ perceptions of senior-friendly destination attributes. Measures of destination attributes included the “4As” (i.e., attractions, accessibility, amenities, and ancillary services). The findings from a survey of 227 respondents revealed that the most important attributes for a senior-friendly destination are safety and cleanliness. Other attributes deemed important by senior tourists include the availability of leisure facilities and barrier-free public transportation. The findings also highlight attributes that tourism industry practitioners may use to improve tourists’ satisfaction and develop into competitive advantages against other tourist destinations. Both theoretical and practical implications of these important findings are discussed.

Rise of the machines: towards a conceptual service-robot research framework for the hospitality and tourism industry

PurposeThis study aims to introduce a conceptual framework for service robot (SR) acceptance by customers, employees and policymakers – a framework to help determine corporate decision-making on SR workplace integration.Design/methodology/approachThis study reviews SR adoption literature within the tourism and hospitality industry. These SRs may have some level of artificial intelligence capability and possibly anthropomorphic (e.g. humanoid) or zoomorphic (e.g. animal-like) features, contingent on task and design choices. The study then identifies factors that potentially influence employee and consumer acceptance and experiences of SR, as well as policy and compliance factors and all elements of the corporate decision-making process concerning SR adoption in the hospitality setting.FindingsThis paper reviews the obstacles and benefits of SR adoption in the hospitality industry based on employee, consumer and public policy considerations.Research limitations/implicationsSRs are increasingly deployed within hospitality and tourism settings. Future studies should further explore the value-adding functions of SRs implemented in existing hospitality operations.Practical implicationsHospitality and tourism industry practitioners should integrate the dimensions in the conceptual framework to make fully informed decisions on SR adoption.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is one of the first studies to provide a holistic SR adoption framework offering theoretical and practical implications for ongoing SR research and implementation.

Creating local sustainability indicators towards evidence-based policymaking for tourism in developing economies: Evidence from the Philippines

ABSTRACT Sustainable development of tourism destinations is deemed a critical component of the global development agenda. Among developing economies whose tourism industries have remained a significant pillar of their economic growth, translating sustainability concepts and principles into policy remains a challenge. The incorporation of sustainability in public policies requires tourism development to generate positive impacts on the environment, economy, and society through the active involvement of stakeholders. At the core of this approach is the identification and use of indicators to evaluate the sustainability of destinations. This study primarily addresses concerns on the compatibility of existing indicators with local objectives and perceptions, with an aim of identifying local indicators that evaluate the sustainability of destinations in the Philippines. This study contributes to the existing development research through the identification of local sustainability indicators that are hinged on local understanding and perceptions of sustainability. A qualitative approach was employed to capture a holistic understanding of the multiple perspectives of stakeholders regarding sustainable tourism development. Results were determined through a focus group discussion with tourists and key informant interviews involving government authorities, tourism businesses, tourism industry practitioners, and academe.

Examining honeymoon tourist behavior: multidimensional quality, fantasy, and destination relational value

ABSTRACT This study examines which honeymoon quality dimensions contribute significantly to fulfilling fantasy and determining whether a realized fantasy enhances the relational value of honeymoon tourists. This study used Phuket, Thailand, as the study context and adopts a mixed-methods approach. The empirical validation of multidimensional qualities leads to a seven-factor structure. The structural model indicates that honeymoon service providers, honeymooner privileges, accessibility, honeymoon accommodation, and local tour product contribute to honeymoon tourist fantasy, subsequently increasing destination relational value. This study enriches the current body of honeymoon tourism literature and offers implications for tourism scholars and industry practitioners.

Domestic Tourism in Nepal: Issues and Challenges

Compared to international tourism, domestic tourism is less susceptible to external changes and provides a more stable business environment for industry stakeholders. Traditionally, the focus of a majority of tourism research has been international tourism. Existing domestic tourism literature predominantly focuses on the potential of domestic tourism and the measurement of its demands, but greatly ignores the issues and challenges in the domestic tourism industry. This article fills this gap and examines the issues and challenges the domestic tourism industry is facing with a focus on Nepal, a South Asian developing country. The data for this study were collected through semistructured interviews with 20 tourism industry practitioners. The findings of this study demonstrate how uncertainties created by the lack of institutional arrangements and prioritization, and confusion around the appropriate ways and means of managing domestic tourism have contributed to the chaos in the private sector tourism industry in Nepal. Implications for the government and other stakeholders in Nepal and other developing countries have been discussed.

Boundary conditions for the implementation of smart management systems in tourist destinations

Objective: Purpose of this paper is twofold: (1) to indicate the business and technological foundations of smart tourism, as well as prospects for its further development; (2) to indicate factors and barriers to the development of smart tourism management system in Poland. The paper then discusses a series of challenges currently neglected in the practical smart tourism agendas and the academic literature. Research Design & Methods: A combination of 3 methods was used: mind mapping, STEEP analysis and semi-structured interview with 48 experts, representing tourism industry new-tech sector. All the interviewees were interviewed in Jan/Feb 2020. Findings: The article presents the general concept of the smart tourism and smart tourism destination (STD) development and identifies opportunities and threads to the development of smart tourism in Poland. Contribution & Value Added: The article is an important value from the point of view of tourism industry practitioners (destination managers). The study contributes with valuable insights on how the chances of implementing smart tourism assumptions are perceived in Poland. The final diagram gives the idea of big data availability and usability in tourism and its impact on management efficiency.

PESANTREN AS HALAL TOURISM CO-BRANDING: HALAL INDUSTRY FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

One of the sustainable development goals is to promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all. Tourism industry has recently become one of the important aspects in the Indonesia's economic growth. Halal tourism is considered a plus value for the tourism industry in Indonesia. Pesantren, as one of the stakeholder institutions in Pentahelix system of halal tourism industry, plays an important role in many things, among others: identifying halal tourism destination, raising public-awareness in processing food, choosing travel services and concepts, determining the payment method of travel services. Pesantren is involved in the educational process about Islamic business ethics, formal or non-formal training for halal tourism industry practitioners, and also the syar'i daily life concept for the residents of halal tourism area. This study aims to identify the importance of Pesantren's role, socially and psychologically, as one of the main pillars of halal tourism development in Indonesia. The result of this qualitative research shows that Pesantren ought to participate holistically and comprehensively in the agenda of Indonesia's halal industry so that with maximal management makes a big contribution to achieve the internationalization program of Indonesian halal tourism and to succeed SDG’s agenda in supporting sustainable tourism and creates employment while supporting local cultures and products in 2030.

When in Rome, do as the Romans do

PurposeInternational students are considered as a huge and potentially lucrative segment for various products of the tourism industry in Malaysia. One of the tourism products is the local food they consume. The purpose of this paper is to investigate key factors that contribute to international students’ intention to consume Malay food. Drawing on the theory of planned behavior (TPB), the present study examines the impact of attitude, subject norm and perceived behavioral control (PBC) on international students’ intention to consume Malay food.Design/methodology/approachA quantitative approach using self-administered questionnaire was adopted. A total of 163 samples were collected from international students studying in five different Malaysian higher education institutions. A partial least squares structural equation modeling technique was used to test the hypothesized model.FindingsThe findings highlight that attitude, subject norms and PBC significantly motivate international students to consume local food. The subject norm toward consuming local food was revealed as the strongest predictor of international students’ intention to consume Malay food.Originality/valueAlthough this is one of the early studies that uses the TPB in assessing the factors that influence international students’ intention to consume local food, this paper is driven by and aimed for practical consideration and thus making a significant contribution to practice. Specifically, the findings of the present study provide important implications for tourism industry practitioners to plan and implement initiatives that may promote local food among international students studying in Malaysian institutions.

Measuring Tourist Attitudes and Consumer Behavior

This article explores the general profile and behavior of tourists coming to Crete, and shows how qualitative, multistate data from a tourist survey can be used in market segmentation research using explanatory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis and cluster analysis. The primary audience for this study consists of tourism industry practitioners interested in a practical, cost-effective approach to market segmentation analysis. For this study, around 2100 questionnaires were given to tourists who were about to leave Chania at the end of their stay during the 2017 touristic season. After collecting the data and preparing the final database a descriptive data analysis was conducted. Then factor analysis was applied using the principal component analysis (PCA) method. The next step was to apply a cluster analysis with the K-means method. Finally, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to test the goodness of fit of a prior specified model based on previous studies. The CFA results confirmed that there are clearly two different types of tourists: those who consider Crete as a relaxation destination and those who consider it for recreation activities. These results provide hotel managers with a clearer understanding of the current market segmentation which is useful in terms of pricing decisions. This article fulfills a need to study the tourist's behaviours and profiles in Crete and to classify them according to their activities, needs and budgets.