Entertaining International Tourists: An Empirical Study of an Iconic Site in China

Entertainment is a feature of some tourism settings and acts as a key pull factor for visiting certain destinations. Research-based studies about entertainment and the tourist experience are, however, rather limited. This study pursued this research opportunity and explored international tourists’ e...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of hospitality & tourism research (Washington, D.C.) D.C.), 2018-06, Vol.42 (5), p.772-792
Main Authors: Pearce, Philip L., Wu, Mao-Ying
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Economic impact
Entertainment
Tourism
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Summary:Entertainment is a feature of some tourism settings and acts as a key pull factor for visiting certain destinations. Research-based studies about entertainment and the tourist experience are, however, rather limited. This study pursued this research opportunity and explored international tourists’ experiences in an iconic performance-based entertainment, the Impression Sanjie Liu in southern China. More than 350 tourists’ spontaneous reviews posted on TripAdvisor were analyzed through Leximancer software. It was found that international tourists were generally positive toward the culturally distinctive style of the entertainment. Despite the challenge of comprehending meanings and the language, they were impressed with the grand spectacle, the performances of many people, and the context. The disruptive behavior of other tourists, particularly the domestic Chinese tourists, troubled some international tourists. Implications for both academic research and the tourism entertainment industry are offered.
ISSN:1096-3480
1557-7554
DOI:10.1177/1096348015598202