Purpose

The purpose of this study is to find the underlying variables of travel motivations associated with a coastal and marine destination, and the motivations that predict satisfaction and the intention to return and recommend a destination, as loyalty variables.

Design/methodology/approach

Coastal and marine destinations are highly visited by travelers for their variety of tourist activities. Motivation is one of the crucial aspects to understand visitors’ behavior in these tourist places. This in situ research was conducted in Acapulco, a major tourist destination in Mexico. The 441 questionnaires gathered were analyzed using exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis and the stepwise multiple regression method.

Findings

The results show six underlying variables or motivational factors: heritage and nature, learning, sun and beach and physical activities, authentic coastal experience, social interaction and novelty. The “novelty” dimension is the most important and influential predictor of satisfaction and loyalty, followed by “social interaction” and “learning.”

Research limitations/implications

Timing was the main limitation of the present study, considering that the survey was administered in March and April, and the demand could vary in different seasons. The findings will contribute to academic literature and will offer valuable information to tourist destination planners.

Practical implications

Acapulco’s potential for coastal and marine tourism has been identified. This destination should organize activities related to the motivational factors found, for example, visits to museums, craft markets and walks can increase visitors’ “heritage and nature” motivations. Community visits can help to promote the “authentic coastal experience” dimension. Increasing the offer of water sports will better position the “sun & beach and physical activities” motivation. As “novelty” is the most predictive variable, activities that include the novelty component and related to beach festivals, coastal events, educational workshops, sports contests, parades, gastronomic activities and navigable tours should be carried out.

Social implications

The results will serve as management guides for the destination management organizations and as sources of information for the companies involved in marketing to develop products according to the demand found.

Originality/value

Until now, tourism studies have been carried out on the influence of motivations as predictive variables of satisfaction and loyalty in different types of destinations. However, research in coastal and marine destinations is scarce, representing a gap in the academic literature.

中文翻译：

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动机作为沿海和海洋目的地满意度和忠诚度的预测变量：墨西哥阿卡普尔科的一项研究

目的

本研究的目的是找出与沿海和海洋目的地相关的旅行动机的潜在变量，以及预测满意度和返回和推荐目的地的意图的动机，作为忠诚度变量。

设计/方法/方法

沿海和海洋目的地因其各种旅游活动而受到游客的青睐。动机是了解游客在这些旅游景点的行为的关键方面之一。这项原位研究是在墨西哥的主要旅游目的地阿卡普尔科进行的。采用探索性因素分析、验证性因素分析和逐步多元回归方法对收集到的441份问卷进行分析。

发现

结果显示了六个潜在变量或动机因素：遗产和自然、学习、阳光和海滩和体育活动、真实的沿海体验、社会互动和新奇。“新奇”维度是满意度和忠诚度最重要和最有影响力的预测指标，其次是“社交互动”和“学习”。

研究限制/影响

考虑到调查是在 3 月和 4 月进行的，并且不同季节的需求可能会有所不同，因此时间是本研究的主要限制。研究结果将有助于学术文献，并将为旅游目的地规划者提供有价值的信息。

实际影响

阿卡普尔科的沿海和海洋旅游潜力已被确定。该目的地应组织与发现的动机因素相关的活动，例如参观博物馆、工艺品市场和散步可以增加游客的“遗产和自然”动机。社区访问有助于促进“真实的沿海体验”维度。增加水上运动的提供将更好地定位“阳光海滩和体育活动”的动机。由于“新奇”是最具预测性的变量，因此应开展包括新奇成分并与海滩节、沿海活动、教育研讨会、体育比赛、游行、美食活动和航海旅行相关的活动。

社会影响

结果将作为目的地管理组织的管理指南，并作为参与营销的公司根据发现的需求开发产品的信息来源。

原创性/价值

到目前为止，旅游研究一直在研究动机作为不同类型目的地的满意度和忠诚度的预测变量的影响。然而，对沿海和海洋目的地的研究很少，这代表了学术文献的空白。