Exploring online travel reviews of backpackers : motivations and travel decision-making process

• Autor(a) principal: Gomes, Tiago Alcântara Guerreiro Lopes
• Data de Publicação: 2019
• Tipo de documento: Dissertação
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
• Texto Completo: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.14/26893
• topic: Backpackers; Travel behaviour; Netnography; Motivations; User-generated content; Online communities; Comportamento de viagem; Netnografia; Motivações; Conteúdo gerado pelo usuário; Comunidades online; Domínio/Área Científica::Ciências Sociais::Economia e Gestão

Backpacking is becoming a growing and relevant trend in the tourism industry. Following this trend, companies that operate in this industry are taking some actions. For instance, they are adapting their business models and communications strategy according to the backpackers’ culture and characteristics as travellers. User-generated Content is growing in importance in the backpacker’s travel decision-making process. Especially, online travel reviews composed by other travellers are more available in the Web 2.0’s interactive-based sites and platforms and used to make travel-related decisions. This content resulted from the development of information and communication technologies, changed the consumer behaviour and allowed the emergence and spreadness of the backpacking phenomenon. The main purpose of this netnographic study is to understand the effects of Online Travel Reviews on backpacker’s motivations and travel decision-making process. Blogs, Forums, Online Travel Agencies’ websites and Social Media (Facebook Groups and Instagram accounts) were analysed in order to retrieve the online data. Furthermore, six in-depth interviews were conducted to reach a more detailed analysis. The main results taken from this study are a more detailed knowledge of the different motivations for travelling; it was possible to divide them into two personas according to their motivations. Additionally, it was possible to understand that backpackers’ travel decision-making process varies among them, however, all of them use the OTR to plan their journeys. Implications for travel marketing are also provided.