The relationship between motivation and experience of Chinese tourists Dissertation

The relationship between motivation and experience of Chinese tourists to UK - Dissertation Example Keywords: Hospitality, Tourism, Culture, Outbound Tourism, Destination Image, Motivation, Push-and-Pull, Chinese Tourists; Characteristics Acknowledgements This study has been completed with the support and guidance of my supervisor, who has been of tremendous encouragement. Acknowledgements are also due to the respondents and participants to the study for their time and cooperation in sharing their feelings and experiences. The researcher also owes thanks to the friends that have helped in editing and refining the study. Table of Contents Chapter One: Introduction 1.1 Background 1.1.1 Global Outbound Tourism 1 1.1.2 China’s Outbound Tourism 4 1.2 Rationale for the Study 6 1.3 Research Aims and Objectives 9 1.4 Research Questions 9 1.5 Structure of the Study 10 Chapter Two: Literature Review 2.1 Chapter Overview 11 2.2 Hospitality Industry 2.2.1 Overview 11 2.2.2 Hospitality and culture 11 2.3 Tourism 2.3.1 Overview 12 2.3.2 Tourism and Culture 13 2.4 Motivation 2.4.1 Definiti on and concept of Motivation 16 2.4.2 Motivation to Travel 17 2.4.3 Motivation for the Chinese Tourists 19 2.5 Characteristics of Chinese tourists 20 2.6 Tourism Experience 21 2.7 Push-and-pull framework 23 2.8 Destination Image 24 2.9 Chapter Summary 25 Chapter Three: Methodology 3.1 Research Philosophy 26 3.2 Epistemology 26 3.3 Research Phenomenon 26 3.4 Research Design 26 3.5 Research Methodology 27 3.6 Data Collection Instruments 29 3.7 Sampling Strategy 32 3.8 Data Analysis 33 3.9 Reliability and Validity 33 3.10 Ethical concerns 34 Chapter Four: Findings & Discussions 4.1 Chapter Overview 35 4.2 Presentation of Findings from the Survey 35 4.3 Presentation of Findings from Interviews 39 4.4 Discussion 42 4.5 Response to research questions 49 4.6 Chapter Summary 50 Chapter Five:... Tourists’ search for novel and distinctive experiences and sensations has been the drivers of outbound tourism (Là ³pez-Guzmà ¡n and Sà ¡nchez-Caňizares, 2012). International travellers are by nature novelty-seeking, inspired by a sense of exploration and adventure (Hartman, Meyer and Scribner, 2009). As per United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO, 2008) international tourism has been experiencing consistent growth and destination diversification (cited in Hartman, Meyer and Scribner, 2009). International tourist arrivals grew from 25 million in 1950 to 903 million in 2007, as per UNWTO which suggests an average growth rate of four percent. By 2020 this number is expected to reach 1.1 billion. So far people from Europe and the Americas accounted for the largest travel but now people from several countries such as Middle-East, North-East, South Asia, and Central and South America also travel to overseas destinations. Travel has now become a mainstream activity fo r the masses. This is perhaps the reason that despite the political crises and natural catastrophes in 2011, the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) predicted that international arrivals would increase by 4-4.5% in 2012 to an all-time high (ITB, 2011). Despite the uncertain economic outlook, industry experts have expressed optimism for moderate growth. Rising incomes in the emerging markets, stable employment and disposable income in mature markets are expected to drive the growth. The world travel and tourism was impacted in 2011 due to several events such as the conflicts and revolutions in Arab countries, the Tsunami and nuclear disaster in Japan, and the political and economic drama in Greece (ITB, 2011).