Understanding the causes of negative tourism experiences

The extant literature on destination attributes has seldom focused on negative tourism experiences. Considering that negative tourism experiences result in undesirable future behaviours, destination managers and researchers must understand the factors that influence tourists’ negative experiences. Therefore, this research examined the destination attributes that influence visitors’ negative experiences. A total of 298 travelogues were analysed via an a priori approach. We identified 16 destination attributes that result in negative tourism experiences, including safety, price, quality of service, environment, physiography, culture and history, infrastructure, accessibility, hospitality, variety of activities, weather, food, tourist information, unethical business practices, regulations and customs, and visitor management. The chi-square and correspondence analysis results show that these destination attributes differ by contextual factors, such as the travel destination (domestic or international) and travel type (independent or package tour). Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed based on the study results, and directions for future research are provided.