Vacation Experiences Research Articles

A nice vacation: Variations in experience aspirations and travel careers

This article focuses on tourists' vacation experiences - both in the form of their experience aspirations and in terms of actual ‘lived’ experiences. The qualitative study upon which the article draws suggests a series of ways in which everyday life contexts (and especially stages in the family life cycle) profoundly impact the experiences that people aspire for during their vacations. Even more importantly, informants' accounts for their travel careers suggest that informants are very conscious about the type of experiences they wish(ed) for at different times during their lives. Thus, informants seem to be very aware that the broad spectrum of vacations one can take qualifies as a ‘repertoire of experiencescapes’. The article introduces and discusses the ways in which stages in the family life cycle (and other aspects of everyday life) influence which types of vacations people prefer and which experiences they seek. Finally, implications hereof for vacation marketers are discussed.

Recovery, well-being, and performance-related outcomes: The role of workload and vacation experiences.

On the basis of theoretical assumptions regarding resource gain and loss (S. E. Hobfoll, 1998), the authors used a longitudinal study to examine effects of vacation on well-being and performance-related outcomes. University employees (N = 221) completed measures of well-being (health complaints and burnout) and performance-related outcomes (self-reported task performance and effort expenditure) 1 week before and 2 days and 2 weeks after vacation and measures of workload 2 days after vacation. Specific vacation experiences (positive and negative work reflection, relaxation, mastery experience, and nonwork hassles) were assessed during vacation. Results showed changes in well-being and self-reported effort expenditure from before to after vacation, revealing vacation effects and partial fade-out effects. In addition, vacation experiences and workload significantly predicted some of the outcomes. The authors discuss applicability of the theoretical approach in the context of vacation and fade-out effects, implications for future research on recovery processes, and practical implications.

Tourist Memory Distortion

Tourists' memories of prior vacation experiences are an important source of information as they, their family, and their friends make future travel plans. However, those memories may be distorted by other types of information to which the tourists are exposed after they visit, such as advertising and other tourists' memory stories. In the present article, we utilize the false memory paradigm from cognitive psychology to assess whether external information sources can distort how tourists remember their own past. We end with a discussion of the implications of our results for tourism research and propose some future areas for investigation.

Casting Off

Growth in tourism during the past 20 years means more people are using physical spaces away from home for vacation. Yet research on vacation spaces is noticeably absent. Focusing on a cruise ship, the primary purpose of this article is to draw attention to how social interaction in a group vacation context intersects with vacation experiences. A secondary purpose is to introduce space and how it can extend thinking about the role that tourism spaces play in the development of social interaction. The results indicate that individuals use cruise ships to feel at ease and comfortable with themselves, as well as in control and liberated. They also develop social interactions during a cruise and make “playful” spaces on the cruise ship. Using these themes, the authors highlight limitations in current conceptualizations of tourism behavior. The authors also suggest how cruise lines might use the study to create more meaningful passenger experiences.

The role of affective factors on perceived cruise vacation value

In this study, we expanded the perceived value literature by demonstrating the role of selected affective factors (i.e., hedonics, control and novelty) on value in the context of cruise vacation experiences. We also examined the role of customer satisfaction in the affect–value relationship. Our results indicate that affective factors are important determinants of the perceived value of cruise services. In particular, hedonics or pleasure is strongly linked to cruise vacationers’ value perceptions and behavioral intentions. However, overall satisfaction as a mediator accounted for the relationship between affective antecedents and perceived value. The managerial findings of this research are briefly discussed.

RETIREMENT MIGRATION DECISION MAKING: LIFE COURSE MOBILITY, SEQUENCING OF EVENTS, SOCIAL TIES AND ALTERNATIVES

Post-retirement migration behavior and the decision-making process which underlies this behavior continue to attract scholarly interest. Based on a small self-selected sample of recent retiree migrants to Western North Carolina, this paper provides initial answers to the following questions: 1. Do retirement migrants exhibit high mobility throughout their life course? How are events in the retirement migration process sequenced and what is the timing between events? What, if any, pre-existing social ties did migrants have to the host community? To what degree were alternative retirement destinations considered? Approximately half (45 percent) of the respondents reported a remote daydreaming period before they started to make serious plans for their move in retirement. Comparisons of the timing of planning, retirement and move indicate much of the formal planning for the move may occur after retirement. Retirement is not simultaneous with the migration event; rather on average two years passes between retirement and the move. Two thirds of the sample had pre-existing social ties. Hence the majority of the migrants were not strangers making a "cold call" to the area. Friends in the locale were the most prevalent tie, accounting for one third of all pre-existing ties. Return migration to the native area or to a previous residence together account for more than a quarter of the ties; children or other family living in the area account for slightly less than a quarter. Prior vacation experiences account for only 14 percent of the unique ties to the region. The paper concludes with the implications of these results for those communities which have embarked on a strategy of recruiting retirement-aged migrants.

Measuring Destination Attractiveness: A Contextual Approach

This study examines two different types of vacation experiences as the experimental factors and empirically incorporates a context specific approach into the measurement of destination attractiveness. A total of 400 respondents were interviewed by telephone. Three areas were examined for two different vacation experiences: (1) the relative importance of touristic attributes in contributing to the attractiveness of a travel destination, (2) the variations in the perceived ability of destinations to satisfy tourists' needs, and (3) the influence of previous visitation experience with each destination on perceived attractiveness. A multiattribute situational attitude measurement model was employed to obtain a numerical index of the touristic attractiveness for each of the five destinations studied. Finally, the implications of these findings concerning marketing and development initiatives to improve the physical and perceptual attractiveness of the various destinations under study are discussed.

The Reorganization of English in the Elementary School

Previous articleNext article FreeThe Reorganization of English in the Elementary SchoolE. Gertrude BeasleyE. Gertrude Beasley Search for more articles by this author PDFPDF PLUS Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail SectionsMoreDetailsFiguresReferencesCited by The Elementary School Journal Volume 16, Number 10Jun., 1916 Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1086/454515 Views: 20Total views on this site PDF download Crossref reports no articles citing this article.