Cornell Study Reveals Role of Traveler Activities in Determining Destination Popularity

Finds Costa Rica May Be in a Transitional Phase

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. October 14, 2008

ITHACA, NY, October 23, 2006. One of the most useful tools for destination planners may be staring them right in the face-the very tourists who are visiting their country. A new study from Cornell University's Center for Hospitality Research suggests that travel planners should take a careful look at their visitors' preferences and activities to see where their destination stands in terms of global popularity. The study, "Competitive Destination Planning: The Case of Costa Rica," uses Costa Rica as a test case for the analysis. The report is available at no charge at http://www.hotelschool.cornell.edu/chr/research/centerreports.html.

Costa Rica is high on the list of attractive travel destinations in the Americas. The question addressed by the Cornell study is whether Costa Rica has begun to attract a different group of travelers. The study is based on the travel-preference framework developed by marketing analyst Stanley Plog. With Costa Rica's focus on ecotourism and unspoiled environment, Plog sees it as a location sought out by trendy travelers, whom he called Venturers and Near-Venturers. These are the highest spending travelers who are most willing to visit relatively unknown destinations.

Authors Zhaoping Liu, Sara Lo, Paula Vasconcellos, Judy A. Siguaw, D.B.A., and Cathy A. Enz, Ph.D. tested whether Costa Rica is still a destination for those high-spending Near-Venturer travelers. To do so, the researchers, two of whom were Cornell undergraduate students, surveyed the demographics and travel preferences of 116 travelers to Costa Rica from the United States.

What they found may be a wake-up call for destination planners everywhere. On balance, the Cornell researchers found that Costa Rica's U.S. visitors are still leaning toward the Near-Venturer category. In the midst of that relatively good news, though, the Cornell researchers found many respondents who seemed to be inclined toward controlling their spending and traveling in groups, rather than going it alone.

"We studied Costa Rica as an example for all destinations," explained Enz, who is the Louis G. Schaeneman Professor of Innovation and Dynamic Management and associate dean of industry research and affairs. "The problem with attracting the large mass of travelers is that it drives away the high-spending Venturer types and invites potentially less profitable development."

Instead, the Cornell authors suggest reinvigorating the market for exploration-type activities that continue to draw the novelty-seeking Venturer-type traveler, while resisting inappropriate development.

All CHR Reports and Tools are available from the Center's web site, www.chr.cornell.edu. Thanks to the support of the partners listed below, all CHR Reports and Tools are made available free of charge.

About The Center for Hospitality Research

A unit of the Cornell School of Hotel Administration, The Center for Hospitality Research (CHR) sponsors research designed to improve practices in the hospitality industry. Under the lead of the Center's 51 corporate affiliates, experienced scholars work closely with business executives to discover new insights into strategic, managerial and operating practices. The Center also publishes the award-winning hospitality journal, the Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly. To learn more about CHR and its projects, visit www.chr.cornell.edu.

CHR Partners and sponsors: AIG Global Real Estate Investment, Expedia, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, HVS International, JohnsonDiversey, Inc., Kohinoor Group, Marsh's Hospitality Practice, Nestl'e, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Smith Travel Research, Southern Wine and Spirits of America, Inc., SynXis (a Sabre Holdings Corporation), Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces, Thayer Group of Companies, Travelport, and Wimberly Allison Tong & Goo.

Contact:

Glenn Withiam, 607.255.3025; [email protected]

Cydney Peters, 607.255.8698; [email protected]

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