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Beth holds a master's degree in integrated marketing communications, and has worked in journalism and marketing throughout her career.
Think about the last vacation you took - hopefully you were lounging on a sandy beach, shopping down the narrow streets of Italy's shopping district, or taking in the sights and sounds of a new culture. Wherever you went, you likely had a very specific reason for doing so.
Maybe you went to Colorado to go skiing, New York to tour famous museums, or Florida for sun and theme parks. Perhaps you didn't care so much about the location but wanted to get away from the stress of work or to meet up with family and spend some time together. We can, however, pinpoint some pretty popular reasons that are motivators for people traveling. Let's try it in this lesson.
In the 1940s a psychologist by the name of Abraham Maslow came up with a concept we now call Maslow's hierarchy of needs. In it, he details why people do the things they do. Of course, he didn't necessarily mean it to apply to traveling - that's our job! He said that basically people are motivated based on a number of things including physiological needs such as:
It's a pretty solid foundation upon which we can look at the motivating factors for why people travel.
Motivations for travel can generally be broken down into one of four areas:
Job got you down? Kids on your nerves? Travel that is motivated by physical factors has to do with refreshing the mind or body - or both. These types of vacations typically involve stress- and tension-reducing activities so that the vacation-goer can return home feeling rejuvenated.
Say John has planned a week-long stay at a condominium in Cancun, Mexico. Sarah has scheduled a luxury spa vacation to the Poconos with a group of girlfriends. Tom and Jen are heading to Iceland to experience the relaxing hot springs.
Sometimes, travel isn't about simply relaxing but about incorporating opportunities to learn more about a different culture or group of people. Perhaps you're interested in experiencing the lifestyle of another country or learning more about the food, art, or history of an area different from your own. Traveling in another country can be a great way to immerse yourself in a culture that you're unfamiliar with.
Say Beth traveled to Italy, where she took in Italian architecture, art museums, and new foods. Jerald's ancestors are from Germany, so he booked a trip to Frankfurt to learn more about his heritage. Alicia scheduled a vacation to Kenya, to learn more about the culture of her newly-adopted family members.
An interpersonal motivation for travel might involve strengthening relationships between you and another person - or several people. Travelers who venture out for interpersonal reasons may do so to visit friends or family in far-flung locations or to meet new people in new places. It could also be a way to change up your daily routine with the people you see at home and at work every day.
Melody is planning a trip to the Cayman Islands to see her grandparents who live there. Damon is meeting up with a travel group of five new people from other states to backpack the Inca Trail in Peru. Rosa is scheduled to meet friends in Montana for a week-long camping expedition.
Status travelers embark on their trips as a way to either continue a favorite hobby or pastime, or for more selfish reasons: to gain the admiration or recognition of others. Drawing the attention of friends and family can be a boost to an individual's ego but isn't always done with impure intentions.
Renee is planning a two-week trip to do missionary work in Haiti. Eric, an avid hiker, has summer plans to travel to Tanzania to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro. Sherry enjoys studying different species of butterflies and has opted for a vacation to Brahmaputra Jungle Resort in India to observe new types. Camille wants to go on safari in Namibia to show the pictures of the animals on her social media accounts.
The reasons that people are motivated to travel are as varied as the travelers themselves. Abraham Maslow equated most of our experiences to his hierarchy of needs, the idea that we do the things we do for one of several reasons:
For most, the motivating factors for travel can be summarized in one of four categories:
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Hospitality 105: Introduction to the Tourism & Travel Industry16 chapters | 90 lessons | 11 flashcard sets
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