Daisy X.F. Fan

Potential Mainland Chinese cruise travelers' expectations, motivations, and intentions.

ABSTRACT The global cruise industry is the fastest growing sector in the entire leisure market. Due to the limited development of the Chinese cruise sector and government controls on outbound travel, the cruise, especially the outbound cruise, is a new concept in China. Few studies have addressed Chinese consumers’ perceptions of cruises. This study aimed to explore the preferences of potential Chinese cruisers and their expectations, motivations, and intentions in relation to taking an outbound cruise. This study also proposed and tested a conceptual framework: the Expectation, Motivation, and Intention (EMI) Model. Data were collected in Beijing and Shanghai; 242 valid responses were received. The results partially supported the proposed model. The theoretical and practical contributions of the study are discussed.

Creating a scale for assessing socially sustainable tourism

ABSTRACT As destinations absorb ever increasing number of visitors, destination managers become progressively more concerned about the longer term viability of tourism from a residents perspective. However, few studies have examined the application of real-time social sustainability within tourism, particularly how to measure impacts on social sustainability. This study outlines the development of a valid and reliable scale – the Scale of Social Sustainability (SSS) – for tourism that provides an assessment of social sustainability in destination settings. A 10-step procedure was developed drawing upon the related literature. A telephone poll-based survey generated 1839 valid responses from Hong Kong residents. Hong Kongs growing popularity as a destination provides a rich array of host–guest conflict situations. Dimensionality was identified using exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. Construct validity, reliability, and stability were assessed, and found good, showing that the scale could be used by other destinations worldwide. The theoretical and managerial implications of the scale are discussed, including options for annual surveys giving policy-makers alerts before situations worsen. Detailed host resident viewpoints and the large scale of the survey can help local residents be informed about tourism development and better involved in the policy formation process.

Comparing Motivations and Intentions of Potential Cruise Passengers from Different Demographic Groups: The Case of China

The cruise industry is the fastest growing leisure market in the world. As an essential component, the cruise market in China has been growing rapidly over recent years with the introduction of favorable government policies, new cruise terminals, and increased cruise awareness of customers. Unfortunately, only a few studies have investigated the perceptions of Mainland Chinese consumers toward such an industry. Hence, by adopting qualitative and quantitative research methods, this study explores how the motivation and intention of potential cruise consumers differ in terms of their demographic background. Travelers of different ages, incomes, and marital status groups demonstrate varying cruise motivations and intentions. The influences of motivation factors on the cruise intention of consumers were also explored. Both the theoretical and practical contributions of the study were proposed accordingly.

Does Tourist–Host Social Contact Reduce Perceived Cultural Distance?:

Tourist–host social contact significantly influences the perceptions of tourists and deserves more attention from scholars in the field of tourism research. However, studies on the relationship between these two constructs are limited. To address this research gap, the present study develops and validates instruments for measuring social contact and perceived cultural distance in the context of tourism, explores the effects of social contact on perceived cultural distance, and provides implications for tourism stakeholders, including governments, tourism operators, and local communities. A survey was conducted among Hong Kong tourists traveling to Mainland China. The study had two significant findings: (1) the quality of contact negatively influences tourists’ perceived cultural distance and (2) in terms of the quantity of contact, social-oriented contacts negatively influence perceived cultural distance, whereas service-oriented contacts positively affect perceived cultural distance. Implications were provided to contribute to theoretical and empirical realms, and to guide policy formulation.

Hai Di Lao Hot Pot : from Employee Stimulation to Service Innovation

The management of Chinese restaurant chains has for some time followed the western model while accommodating Chinese customers. The new Hai Di Lao Hot Pot Restaurant chain has established its own management style, pioneering chain catering management to help the Chinese restaurant industry establish a professional image, explore a local management model, and maintain high standards of food safety. The objectives of this case study are to introduce the Hai Di Lao managerial strategy, investigate the secrets of its success from a human resources management perspective, to explore its innovative service, and to assess why it has inspired both marketers and the catering industry. The results show that human resources management can change employees’ behavior and emotional states by addressing a wide variety of needs. In addition, attention to service quality can improve customer satisfaction and retention.

Exploring the Booking Determinants of the Airbnb Properties: An Example of the Listings of London

The aim of this paper is to investigate the factors which influence the probability of an Airbnb property being booked using the properties in London as an example. A binomial logistic model is estimated by sequential Bayesian updating due to the large volume of the data. The results show that, in spite of the market factors revealing great influence, the attributes of the properties play a more important role in influencing the booking probability of the properties. These research findings are potentially beneficial to both the Airbnb practitioners and the industrial organizers.

Analyzing the Economic Sustainability of Tourism Development: Evidence from Hong Kong:

Despite increased concerns about the negative economic impacts of tourism on host communities, insufficient attention has been paid to assess tourism’s economic sustainability. This article aims to develop and validate a framework for assessing economic sustainability from the perspective of local stakeholders. In-depth interviews with 12 major stakeholders and telephone surveys with 1,839 Hong Kong citizens were conducted. The tourism economic sustainability construct consisted of three dimensions: economic positivity, development control, and individual welfare. The reliability and validity of the dimensions were confirmed by the data of subsamples. The links between sociodemographic characteristics and attitudes toward tourism economic sustainability were evaluated. This article enhanced our understanding of tourism economic sustainability by expanding the measurement from the macro-level to the micro-level. Using the study setting in Hong Kong, it transcends previous analyses by providing a context to learn from ongoing controversies about the effects of tourism on the host communities.

35th International Society of Travel & Tourism Educators (ISTTE) annual conference, “Global Strategies in Tourism & Hospitality Education”, Hangzhou, China, October 12–14, 2016

The 35th International Society of Travel & Tourism Educators (ISTTE) annual conference was successfully held at the Dragon Hotel, Hangzhou, China, on 12–14 October 2016. As a tradition, the ISTTE a...