Cultural Mobility and Acceptance: The Case of Japanese Tourists in Alpine Destinations

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to identify and evaluate determinants of cultural acceptance among tourists. Specifically the question to be answered is: which variables influence travelers' cultural mobility and which clusters of cultural interest can be identified among specific groups of Japanese long-haul distance travelers to alpine destinations? While the first part of the article provides a literature review focusing on tourists' cultural mobility, the second part of the article presents a case study in form of a survey that was carried out in the winter of 2005/2006 in the Alpine region of St. Anton, Austria and Zermatt, Switzerland. The two winter sport destinations differ appreciably in terms of their characteristics of cultural supply vis-à-vis Japanese long-haul visitors. Japanese tourists had been asked to indicate their travel motives as well as their satisfaction with the supplied tourism products and services offered. In addition, the questionnaire assessed their overall destination activities and their participation in cultural/local events. The authors were able to cluster Japanese long-haul tourists into two groups. To do so, their participation in local cultural events was analyzed and interpreted. The authors present this case study in order to demonstrate the relevance for continued research in the area of cultural and spiritual mobility. Tourism policy implications as well as suggestions for the design of destination authenticity will be presented in the final part of the article.

Tourism destinations and tourist behavior based on community interaction models of film-enabled tourism destinations

“…153–163; Li and Katsumata, 2020 , p. 20; Pérez García et al, 2021 , p. 315; Yang et al, 2022 ) and involves “tourists experiencing and having contact with a host population and its cultural expressions, experiencing the uniqueness of culture, heritage and the characters of its place and people” ( Lynch et al, 2011 , p. 979). This definition implies that cultural tourism allows tourists to engage, explore, and enjoy the difference of tourism destinations and the way they compare to their own home identities, encouraging self discovery ( Mueller et al, 2009 , p. 65).…”

Tourist Intercultural Competence: A Multidimensional Measurement and Its Impact on Tourist Active Participation and Memorable Cultural Experiences

“…This definition implies that cultural tourism allows tourists to live, explore, and enjoy the difference of "the other" as well as to discover their own identity generated from home (Mueller, Peters, and Weiermair 2009;Urry 2002). Studies have investigated mobility with respect to time, space, and behavior in the tourism context (Hall 2005).…”

“…The remaining concepts were deconstructed into different dimensions based on their definition and the items under the concept. For example, "cultural mobility" is defined as "travelers' interests and values towards cultural differences, and as real travel behavior in terms of traveling to culturally different regions and participating in local cultural events (Mueller, Peters, and Weiermair 2009)." Therefore, cultural mobility was deconstructed into intercultural appreciation and intercultural action.…”

“…Intercultural competence refers to “the skills and abilities that an individual needs in order to interact appropriately and efficiently with persons from a different culture” (Scherle and Nonnenmann 2008). Concepts related to intercultural competence applied in tourism literature include the following: intercultural sensitivity (Donohoe 2011; Kirillova, Lehto, and Cai 2015), intercultural understanding (Kirillova, Lehto, and Cai 2015; Raymond and Hall 2008), tourists’ appreciation (McIntosh 2004), cultural contact (Gnoth and Zins 2013), cultural mobility (Mueller, Peters, and Weiermair 2009), tourists’ predisposition (Nowaczek and Smale 2010), and cosmopolitanism (Molz 2006; Swain 2009). These constructs have been respectively applied in different tourism contexts, such as cultural tourism, ecotourism, international tourism, and volunteer tourism.…”

Asian tourism in Europe: consumption, distinction, mobility, and diversity

“…Balaz and Mitsutake (1998) discussed early patterns of tourism exchange between Japan and Europe, and identified young females, business executives / administrative workers, and conference participants as important target groups. Japanese visitors to the European Alps preferred package tours for safety reasons and were attracted by branded hotels (Mueller, Peters, & Weiermair, 2009), whereas the South Korean tourists in Europe favoured more independent and small-group travel (Bui & Trupp, 2014), and the Thai travel experience in Europe includes a fun and entertainment factor (Kanlayanasukho & Pearce, 2016) as well as an interest in classical music, natural attractions and brand-name products (Trupp & Bui, 2015).…”