Impacts of Tourists’ Sociodemographic Characteristics on the Travel Motivation and Satisfaction: The Case of Protected Areas in South China

Anson T. H. Ma, Alice S. Y. Chow, Lewis T. O. Cheung, Karen M. Y. Lee and Shuwen Liu
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Anson T. H. Ma: Department of Social Sciences, The Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
Alice S. Y. Chow: Department of Social Sciences, The Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
Lewis T. O. Cheung: Department of Social Sciences, The Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
Karen M. Y. Lee: Department of Social Sciences, The Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
Shuwen Liu: School of Arts and Social Sciences, The Open University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China

Sustainability, 2018, vol. 10, issue 10, 1-21

Abstract: Western studies on nature-based tourism have long explored the relationships among tourists’ sociodemographic characteristics, motivation and satisfaction as a way of predicting their visitation patterns and travel behaviours. Relatively few studies have been conducted in the Chinese context given its varied and extensive landscapes. This paper seeks to fill this gap using data from questionnaire surveys conducted in two popular and prestigious forest nature reserves in Guangdong province between August and December 2015. Data collected were analyzed by multiple regression tests with socio-demographic factors as the predictors of travel motivation and satisfaction in SPSS 24.0. The key findings and observations include the following: First, contrary to some overseas studies, education level was negatively correlated with tourists’ satisfaction with management and educational value. Second, age was positively correlated with the sense of relaxation and nature exploration. Third, education level had a negative correlation with motivation regarding social influence. Fourth, the influence of local culture helps differentiate Chinese tourists from Western tourists, implying that different management strategies should be adopted. All these findings offer insights to nature-based tourism operators that cater to the growing ranks of Chinese ecotourists.

Keywords: travel motivation; nature-based tourism; satisfaction; national forest parks; South China (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (13)

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