Tourist Flows and the Spatial Distribution of Tourists

Clustering and compatibility between tourism attractions

“…Data were also collected on compatibility in terms of indications of number of tourists visiting more than one attraction during the same holiday trip (Hunt and Crompton, 2008). This form of measurement has considerable limitations: it assumes that tourist fl ows take place directly between points, whereas real movement may be more complicated with variable individual travel routes (McKercher and Lew, 2004).…”

Spatial competition and agglomeration in the visitor attraction sector

“…A central location, with strong market access, enjoys two significant competitive advantages over remoter destinations with poorer market access. First, it attracts those who want to minimise travel time and maximise time at the destination, and secondly, potentially allows them to capture some market share from visitors en route to remoter destinations (McKercher & Lew, 2004). The linkages between competition, competitive strategies and space underlie the concept of spatial competition and suggest two competition strategies that incorporate the user of space, as discussed below.…”

An analysis of visitor movement patterns using travel networks in a large marine park, north-western Australia

“…Respondents staying in service centres (with multiple accommodation options) travelled further to reach a beach or launch location to undertake their recreational experience, which is indicative of a hub-and-spoke type pattern (McKercher & Lew, 2004), when compared to those staying at less developed camping sites along the remainder of the coast. The Ningaloo hub-and-spoke pattern was further characterised by a secondary peak in the distance decay curve when examining travel by vehicle from accommodation to either a beach or boat launching location.…”

“…Even so, McKercher and Lew (2004) have argued that the various itinerary types can be collapsed into four general themes representing; (1) a single destination trip (which may or may not involve side trips), (2) a transit leg (to a destination area) and accompanying circle tour to participate in activities and stopping overnight at different places, (3) a circle tour with multiple side trips, overnight stays and recreation day trips or, (4) a hub-and-spoke (radial pattern), for which visitors base themselves in a destination area and make side trips to other destinations.…”