Leisure Trends in the Youth Backpackers Segment in Australia
Executive Resume
Introduction
The Segment
Leisure
Serious Leisure
Casual Leisure
Project-based Tourism
Conclusion
References
Tables
Table 1: International Young travellers’ online behaviour while travelling.
Table 2: Summary of social networking usage
Executive Resume
This paper explains and explores the International young travellers segment in Australia, understanding the principal trends and need that affect the leisure activities that this particular group has. It also explains which are the most important and frequent activities within the segment and why are so important.
Introduction Just walk through Auckland St in St Kilda or to your waitress in a restaurant on Lygon St. International Young Travellers have become one of the biggest markets in the Australian Hospitality and Tourism Industry. In 2011, this market represented the 31% of the total travellers from overseas in Australia (Tourism Australia B, 2011). The aim of this paper is to understand how this large segment of the Australian tourism leisure, how they spend their free time and which other activities the do. However, it is important to understand the different factors which affect the leisure time of the young travellers. Issues as Youth subcultures, internet, social media, etc. are changing the way of how, not only travellers, all youth behave (Lynch, 2006). The Segment Although Lynch (2006) describes young travellers in ages between 15 to 21 years old, other authors have a a bigger range of age. Tourism Australia (2012, A) defines this segment as people between 18 and 30 years old. However, both of them identify almost the same needs. They are in a transition from childhood to adulthood (Lynch, 2006) which make them a unique segment for leisure. They are looking for innovating products and activities (Schwieterman, 2011), are aware of environmental issues (Tourism NSW, 2011), use social media and are always looking for a new and unique experience (Richards, 2004).
Introduction
The Segment
Leisure
Serious Leisure
Casual Leisure
Project-based Tourism
Conclusion
References
Tables
Table 1: International Young travellers’ online behaviour while travelling.
Table 2: Summary of social networking usage
Executive Resume
This paper explains and explores the International young travellers segment in Australia, understanding the principal trends and need that affect the leisure activities that this particular group has. It also explains which are the most important and frequent activities within the segment and why are so important.
Introduction Just walk through Auckland St in St Kilda or to your waitress in a restaurant on Lygon St. International Young Travellers have become one of the biggest markets in the Australian Hospitality and Tourism Industry. In 2011, this market represented the 31% of the total travellers from overseas in Australia (Tourism Australia B, 2011). The aim of this paper is to understand how this large segment of the Australian tourism leisure, how they spend their free time and which other activities the do. However, it is important to understand the different factors which affect the leisure time of the young travellers. Issues as Youth subcultures, internet, social media, etc. are changing the way of how, not only travellers, all youth behave (Lynch, 2006). The Segment Although Lynch (2006) describes young travellers in ages between 15 to 21 years old, other authors have a a bigger range of age. Tourism Australia (2012, A) defines this segment as people between 18 and 30 years old. However, both of them identify almost the same needs. They are in a transition from childhood to adulthood (Lynch, 2006) which make them a unique segment for leisure. They are looking for innovating products and activities (Schwieterman, 2011), are aware of environmental issues (Tourism NSW, 2011), use social media and are always looking for a new and unique experience (Richards, 2004).
References: Lynch, R., & Veal, A. (2006). Australian leisure (3rd ed.). Sydney, NSW: Pearson Education Australia. A .Tourism Australia (2012). The youth segment. Canberra, ACT: Department of Resources, Energy and Tourism B. Tourism Australia (2011). Youth Market 2011: Travel Trends. Canberra, ACT: Department of Resources, Energy and Tourism Destination NSW (2011). International Youth Leisure Market. Sydney, NSW. Destination NSW. Schwieterman, J. (2011). The Travel Habits of Gen Y. Planning; May/Jun2011, Vol. 77 Issue 5, p30-33, 4p Stebbins, R. 2007. Serious Leisure: A Perspective for Our Time. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers. Sustainable Tourism CRC (2009), Evolution of the Backpacker Market and the Potential for Australian Tourism, .