Tourist characteristics that influence shopping participation and expenditures

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyze tourist and trip‐related characteristics and tourist motivations in connection with the decision to participate in shopping and for those tourists who decide to participate, the main determinants of the amount of expenditure.Design/methodology/approach – By estimating a Heckman model this paper analyses characteristics relating to the decision to participate in shopping and characteristics related to the amount of corresponding expenditure. The explanatory variables included in the model are tourist motivations and tourist and trip‐related characteristics. Data used for the analysis come from a survey conducted in the high season of 2008 in Mallorca (Spain), a leading Mediterranean sun and sand destination.Findings – The results indicate different motivations and tourist and trip‐related characteristics are associated with the decision whether or not to participate in shopping and with the level of shopping expenditure. This facilitates the identification ...