A Typology of Tourists from a Different Angle

Abstract

Over the years, academics have attempted to develop typologies that distinguish between various types of tourists. There is, however, general consensus that these taxonomies suffer from several weaknesses. In particular, they are based on a priori theoretical assumptions that rely on just one or very few dimensions, such as numbers of tourists. In remedying these shortfalls, the current paper proposes a new typology of tourists grounded in a two-fold empirical research that contrasts two opposite types of tourists, namely, solitary travellers and group tourists. Two separate qualitative pieces of fieldwork were carried out in order to obtain the necessary data from solitary travellers and group tourists in Norway. The comparison, based on psychographic variables (travel philosophy, travel motive and personal values), suggests that tourist experiences vary along a continuum of individualistic/collectivistic orientation. The solitary traveller represents an individualistic-oriented person whereas the group or package tourist typifies a collectivistic-oriented person. Each of these categories may further include a variety of tourists depending on their degree (i.e., low or high) of individualistic or collec-tivistic orientation.

Key Words:

• Individualism
• individualistic
• collectivistic
• solitary
• typology
• tourist types