Memorable tourism experience in the context of astrotourism

ABSTRACT

Astrotourism involves a variety of activities carried out during the night, requiring a deeper knowledge about the cognitive and emotional process that the tourist has and that leads to a memorable experience and loyalty. This study explores how (i) astrotourism stimuli are associated with cognitive states, designed by knowledge and involvement, (ii) cognitive states increase emotional states, represented by hedonism and refreshment, and (ii) emotional states generate responses, such as recommendation and loyalty. This study contributes to extending the S (stimulus) -O (organism) -R (response) framework by integrating cognitive appraisal theory and incorporating stimuli, cognitive and emotional states not used in the previous research. Recommendations for astrotourism destination managers are also discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• Memorable tourism experience
• astrotourism experience
• S(stimuli)-O(organism)-R(response) approach
• cognitive appraisal
• tourist loyalty

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Áurea Rodrigues

Áurea Rodrigues is an Assistant Professor in Tourism Studies at the Department of Sociology and associate member of CIDEHUS, University of Évora, Portugal. Her current research interests include astrotourism, consumer behavior in tourism and sustainable tourism development in rural destinations. Her papers have been published at Journal of Vacation Marketing, European Countryside, International Journal of Tourism Research, Tourism Analysis and Anatolia.

Sandra Maria Correia Loureiro

Sandra Maria Correia Loureiro is the director of PhD in Tourism Management and coordinates the PhD in Management (Marketing) at ISCTE-IUL. Her current research interests include relationship marketing and tourism marketing connected to VR, AR and AI. Her papers have been published in journals, such as Journal of Marketing, Journal of Retailing, Tourism Management, Journal of Business Research, International Journal of Hospitality Management, Journal of Hospitality Marketing and Management, Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology.

Michelle Lins de Moraes

Michelle Lins de Moraes is a researcher at centro de Investigação em Organizações, Mercados e Gestão Industrial (COMEG) and an Assistant Professor at Universidade Lusíada. Her main research fields are innovation, sustainability and tourism.

Rosaria Gomes Pereira

Rosária Pereira, is an Assistant Professor at the School of Management, Hospitality and Tourism of the University of Algarve. She is a member of the Research Centre for Tourism, Sustainability and Well-being (CinTurs). Her research interests are related to tourism marketing, destinations’ branding, and brand personality.