To explore the holiday taking patterns of people aged 70 and over: Patterns, influences and changes over time

Abstract

This paper researches and reviews factors that affect the holiday taking patterns of a sample group of individuals aged 70 and over. To begin, a summary of literature surrounding this theme will be reviewed to help understand and critically analyse the background of the research and build knowledge on the topic. The aim of the quantitative research being carried out is to determine influences that affect people’s holidays and if they have changed over time, and why, to reveal patterns in data. Factors influencing holiday choice will be explored, highlighting how the industry can cater more to the needs of this age group, to ensure travelling is made more possible and leisurely. Taking this research into account, experts and marketers can provide more appropriate options for the demographic, resulting in better quality products and services in the tourism industry, while also gaining further insight into an area which currently has contradictory findings. The paper closes with the results from the study, followed by a discussion and conclusion surrounding the research as a whole, including details of some limitations encountered.