Examining “untact” tourism behaviour in South Korea during the COVID-19 pandemic: a two-wave longitudinal study (March and September 2020)

ABSTRACT

This study highlights the alternative travel behaviour called “untact” tourism during the Coronavirus disease-19 pandemic in South Korea. Based on the two-wave longitudinal data collection in March and September 2020, this study aims to (a) examine individuals’ domestic travel experiences and patterns among Korean people, (b) develop a measurement scale for untact tourism from an emic perspective, and (c) demonstrate the major antecedents of untact tourism behaviour. This study offers a timely understanding of individuals’ travel patterns in the context of untact tourism during the unprecedented pandemic and provides insightful implications for practitioners to revitalize the tourism industry.

KEYWORDS:

• Untact tourism
• Coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19)
• risk perception
• theory of planned behaviour
• longitudinal study
• South Korea

Disclosure statement

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

Notes

1 The Korea National Tourism Survey 2018 was referenced here because the information on accommodation use was not obtained in 2019.