Motivation-Based Segmentation of Hiking Tourists in Taiwan

Sai-Leung Ng () and Ming-Chien Hsu
Additional contact information
Sai-Leung Ng: Graduate Institute of Earth Science, Chinese Culture University, Taipei 111396, Taiwan
Ming-Chien Hsu: Taiwan Thousand Miles Trail Association, Taipei 231006, Taiwan

Tourism and Hospitality, 2024, vol. 5, issue 4, 1-18

Abstract: Hiking is one of the most popular and significant recreational activities in natural settings, yet hiking tourists are often not distinguished from the broader population of nature-based tourists. This study aimed to identify distinct segments of hiking tourists based on their motivations and to explore the relationship between segmentation, motivations, and their satisfaction with the hiking experience. Using a questionnaire survey of 262 hiking tourists in Taiwan and multivariate statistical techniques, four hiking motives—“relaxation”, “social interaction”, “competence and exploration”, and “mental refreshment”—were identified, and four segments of hiking tourists—“mental refreshment seekers”, “social hikers”, “challenge seekers”, and “general purpose hikers”—were classified, respectively. While all segments reported high levels of satisfaction, their satisfaction was influenced by different motives. This study enhances the theoretical understanding of hiking motives and provides practical recommendations for enhancing hiking experiences and nature conservation.

Keywords: expectation fulfillment; hikers; motives; revisit intention; tourism; word of mouth (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Z3 Z30 Z31 Z32 Z33 Z38 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2673-5768/5/4/60/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2673-5768/5/4/60/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jtourh:v:5:y:2024:i:4:p:60-1082:d:1511018

Access Statistics for this article

Tourism and Hospitality is currently edited by Mr. Philip Li

More articles in Tourism and Hospitality from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().