Motivations

As noted in the previous chapter, people take vacations because they feel that, by doing so, they will satisfy various needs and wants. Abraham Maslow identified a set of universal needs that he arranged in a hierarchy. These needs are physical, psychological and intellectual. By understanding what makes people travel we can do a better job of advertising to them to induce them to travel. Additionally, we can do a better job of catering to their needs if we know what those needs are.

Physical

The most basic need of all is physical. When people worked 70 hours a week for 50 weeks a year they saved a little each week for their two-week break. During those two weeks they "escaped" from their everyday life. They recharged their weary bodies and did things they did not have a chance to do during the year. They ate too much, drank too much, and took afternoon naps in a deckchair on the beach.

Today the escape may be more mental than physical. As the physical demands have been reduced for many people, the mental demands have increased. It is increasingly difficult for the white-collar manager to "clock out" mentally at the end of the day. It often takes several days in a vacation spot before the person seeking mental relaxation can tune-out the office.

The key words that are heard are such terms as: get away, escape, relax, change of pace, mellow out, break. Different people in different circumstances look for different ways of expressing this. The harried executive desires a secluded spot away from telephones and interruptions. The couple in a northern city want to escape the winter snow. The rural family seeks the excitement of a seaside resort. The “9-to-5” office worker longs for the adventure of an exotic getaway. The factor that explains these varied examples is "opposite". It is said that a change is as good as a rest. As noted before, opposites attract. The key in attracting and satisfying the traveler who seeks satisfaction of physical needs is to look at his or her everyday life and provide something different.

Safety

When we take care of our bodies we are helping ensure that we will live a longer life. This is a very basic motivation. It shows itself in people who travel for health or to engage in recreational pursuits.

As was seen in the chapter, “Tourism, its historical development” people have long traveled for health reasons. Doctors would prescribe trips to the seaside for the beneficial effects of the bracing air. The resorts in Switzerland were predated by sanitoria where people were sent because of the unpolluted air and sunshine. Today, medical opinion is less in favor of the impact of sun on the skin. While warnings of skin cancer abound, for many the warmth of the sun is very beneficial. In fact, it is said that the area around the pool at a US state of Florida resort is a sardine's revenge: "Many bodies, crammed into a tight space, covered in oil."

An increasing tendency these days is for people to participate in various recreational activities. The top recreational pursuits in the United States have remained popular for the past decade. They are swimming, walking, bicycling, fishing and team sports. The past decade has seen a significant growth in canoeing, jogging, roller skating, racquetball, soccer skiing and tennis. A major trend has been a move toward physically demanding activities.

The major words associated with participation in outdoor recreation are: fun, exercise, keep in shape, outdoors, health, feel good, fresh air.

Belonging

The need for belonging is expressed in the desire to be with friends and family, to be part of a group, to belong. People, by and large, are social beings. They want communication and contact with others.

There are several aspects to this motivation. First, the fact that people move their residences, on average, once every five years, means that family and friends can renew relationships by using vacation time to keep in touch. The major reason given for taking a trip in the United States is "visiting friends and relatives". Typically, this type of tourism involves travel by auto. Many stay with friends and family at the destination. Hotels and restaurants along the way are the recipients of this type of travel.

Second, there is ethnic tourism, the desire to find one's roots. This involves the desire to "return to the homeland". Two segments of the market were mentioned earlier. First-generation visitors go back to see things as they remembered them. They will often stay with friends. This cuts down on the economic importance of this segment to the destination. On the other hand, little in the way of development or facilities is needed, for these tourists want to see things as they were. Later generations have grown up somewhere else and have become used to the conveniences in their country of birth. Consequently, they desire the comforts of home. That costs money for the destination in terms of the provision of facilities. On the other hand, this group is more likely to stay in hotels and to eat in restaurants. They spend more money at the destination than does the former group.

While these are the two primary segments of this market, in other cases people may travel to begin or renew relationships.

Club Med is one organization that originally appealed to the singles crowd. They advertised a carefree, activity- based opportunity to meet and mingle with the opposite sex. As changing demographics brought a mini baby boom, Club Med sought to appeal to families with young children.

It is not necessary to be young to have a relationship. There are an increasing number of "empty nesters" in the marketplace. An empty nester is a couple whose children have left home. For so many years the focus of the couple's life had been the children; getting them through school, taking them to sports activities, Boy Scouts, and Girl Guides; onto dating and the senior prom. Now they are on their own. Because the focus had been on the children, parents oftentimes had spent little or no time on their own relationship. They may even feel apprehensive about this "stranger", their spouse, who is all of a sudden the one they are spending time with. Such things as coach tours offer an opportunity to renew the relationship while being part of a larger group. The group offers the "security" of being able to mix with others rather than have the "pressure" of talking to the same person for the entire trip.

This motivation is expressed by such things as: family togetherness, companionship, maintaining personal ties, interpersonal relations, roots ethnicity, showing affection for family members.

Esteem

The two aspects to this motivation are self-esteem and esteem from others. When people travel to a conference to increase their business knowledge they are concerned with their own personal development. This translates directly into feeling more confident about their ability to perform the job. Their self-esteem is enhanced.

We also seek esteem from others. People often buy things to "keep up with the Joneses". They are concerned about what others think, and they feel that what they buy and where they go is a reflection of themselves. It has been said before that, in tourism, "mass follows class". Royalty and film stars determine where the "in places" are. Others follow in the hope that they will be seen by their friends as status people. Their egos are being massaged.

The phrases used to describe this are: convince oneself of one's achievements, prestige, show one's importance to others, status, social recognition, ego-enhancement, professional/business, personal development, achievement, mastery, competence, fashion.

Self-actualization

Self-actualization involves being true to one's nature. It means knowing who you are and using your gifts to the fullest. If we consider leisure to be the freeing of ourselves from lower-level needs, then self-actualization is the end goal of leisure.

Self-actualization is seen in: exploration and self-evaluation, self-discovery, satisfaction of inner desires.

To know and understand

The desire for knowledge is felt in a great number of people. It is truly said that travel broadens the mind. After we have traveled to a particular place, for example, we are more interested in news items or television programs about it. Our interest is sparked by the fact that we have personal experience of it. It was the desire for knowledge that was the reason for the growth of the Grand Tour. Still today, we feel an "obligation" to visit museums and monuments at a distant destination.

By learning about other cultures we can also discover our own. Some of the ways in which this is expressed are: cultural, education, wanderlust.

Aesthetics

The last of Maslow's needs refers to the appreciation of beauty. Those who are concerned with the environment or who like to view scenery are expressing this need.

Maslow believed that lower-level needs had to be satisfied to some extent before the satisfaction of higher-level needs became a concern. This would mean that vacations, which were targeted toward the satisfaction of lower- level needs, would be more resistant to barriers to travel. In times of a gasoline shortage, for example, people would be less likely to put off a trip to visit friends and relatives than a drive to take a scenic tour.

If we in the business of tourism are aware of the underlying reason for taking a vacation (the satisfaction of various needs) then more effective marketing campaigns can be developed to meet those needs. More effective appeals will lead to more people buying trips. Additionally, we will be better able to satisfy those needs if we are aware of the (often hidden) real reason for traveling.