Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
What Do Young Tourists Want From Their Travels?
In 2009, a qualitative survey of young tourists in Barcelona was undertaken
by the author to identify their motivation to travel when holidaying with
their families. Barcelona was selected as it is a city that boasts approxi-
mately 11 million visitors a year, with about 40% of these being families
(Barcelona Turisme, 2006, 2007). In total, 25 young tourists and their
families were surveyed to understand how young people are influenced
by a culture when they travel to a particular destination. The aim was
to consider the motivations of young tourists in relation to destination
selection, cultural understanding and how their experiences on their holiday
affect their motivation to undertake further travel. The respondents were
from a range of developed countries: Italy (seven), Germany (two), France,
England, Portugal, Czech Republic, Switzerland (two), Turkey, the USA
(two), Canada, Singapore (three) and Australia (three). Not surprisingly, the
majority were from Europe, because of the travel distances.
Of the 25 young people surveyed, 24 said they wanted to learn more
about Barcelona and its culture, and that this influenced why their family
selected Barcelona as the destination. All families explained that their
children were eager to learn and that travelling supported this. The parents
had a desire for their children to experience and explore cultures other than
their own, and their children wanted this as well. All the families surveyed
travelled at least once a year to a destination outside their home country,
with the majority travelling more than annually.
The parent or parents accompanying the young tourists emphasised
three things:
(1) Their children wanted travel information and material that were
developed specifically for them, yet they could find little either during
the holiday planning stages or while in country that was designed and
produced for a young audience. This meant they had to absorb the in-
formation and translate it for their children. They all claimed this took
away from the experience for their children to explore and discover for
themselves.
(2) When their children had learnt about the destination, they enjoyed the
holiday experience more, as they felt a stronger understanding of and
connection to the culture and place.
(3) Each time they travelled with their children it unleashed an enthusiasm
for all the family to learn more about other places and other cultures,
even places they were not visiting.
This survey, while only a snapshot, reinforced the results from the National
Capital Educational Tourism Project (Ritchie & Uzabeaga, 2005) and the
research by Gmelch, described in
Tourists and Tourism
(2004), which canvassed
the motivations of different tourists and what they are trying to achieve
