Motivations of senior tourists: the case of the Azores Islands, Portugal

ABSTRACT

Senior tourism is increasingly expanding. This quantitative and exploratory study aims to understand the motivations that drive elderly travellers to visit the Azores. The Senior Tourists Motivation Scale (STMS) was applied to 470 participants. Collected data were submitted to nonparametric tests. The results showed that: i) STMS items’ scores differ according to the type of tourist (national or foreign); ii) scores obtained in the three factors of the STMS differ between the two types of tourists, different age groups and levels of income perception. These findings may contribute in the future to the identification of market niches so that decision-makers can develop activities that suit these tourists’ needs and desires.

KEYWORDS:

• Senior tourism
• travel motivations
• motivation Scale
• Azores

Acknowledgments

The development of this study was financed under the research project Senior Tourism and Well-Being in the Destination Azores: Creation of a Cultural Product “TuSenior 55+”, by the program PO2020 Azores and Regional Government of the Azores, with the reference ACORES-01- 0145-FEDER-00002 TuSenior 55+. We thank the volunteers who collaborated in the data collection, namely: Antonieta Menezes, Fernanda Lezaola, Ilda Magalhães, Joana Maia, Leonor Garcia, Margarida Viveiros, Marina Ferreira and Linda Sousa.

Disclosure statement

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

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Osvaldo Silva

Osvaldo Silva, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Mathematics and Statistics Department of the Faculty of Science and Technology of the University of the Azores, Portugal, and a researcher in the Interdisciplinary Centre of Social Sciences (CICSNOVA.UAc, FCT Center). His current research interests are in the areas of exploratory and confirmatory data analysis, sampling, quality control, and applied statistical methodologies (special interest in the social sciences and health).

Teresa Medeiros

Teresa Medeiros, Ph.D., full professor of psychology at the Faculty of Social and Human Sciences of the University of the Azores, Portugal, and president of the Scientific Council of the same university. She is the researcher responsible for the Projects AZORES PO2020 Açores-01-0145-FEDER 000044 TUSÉNIOR 55+ and ACORES-01-0145-FEDER-000115 TURIVIVA+. She is the author or co-author of several books, book chapters and articles in the areas of psychology, psychogerontology and senior tourism.

Virgílio Vieira

Virgílio Vieira holds a Ph.D. in biology and is an integrated researcher at the Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes/Biodiversity Group of the Azores (cE3c/ABG), Portugal, developing his professional scientific research activities at the University of the Azores, Portugal. His main interests are in biodiversity, ecology and insect evolution in the Azores Islands. In these areas, he has participated in some research projects and has published articles in national and international journals of the speciality.

Sheila Furtado

Sheila Furtado, MSc, holds bachelor and master’s degrees in psychology. She is a senior technician in the Project AZORES PO2020 Açores-01-0145-FEDER 000044 TUSÉNIOR 55+ “Senior tourism and well-being in the destination Azores: creation of a cultural product”. She is the author or co-author of several chapters of books and articles in the areas of psychology, psychogerontology and senior tourism.