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Motivation and segmentation of gastronomic events: festival of the Red Crab in Ecuador

Abstract:

The objective of this study is to identify the different segments of tourists that attend the ‘Festival of the Red Crab' in Ecuador and the motivational dimensions of each segment. Two hundred surveys were collected from those attending the gastronomic event, and these data were analyzed using factor analysis and K-means non-hierarchical clustering. The results of this leisure event show six motivational dimensions: ‘escape/event novelty', ‘socialization', ‘food', ‘knowledge', ‘art', and ‘local food'. Based on this, three types of visitors were identified. The first, ‘escape and food seekers', includes visitors highly motivated to try local crabs, who want to change their routines, have fun, and taste the food. The second group, ‘passive visitors', shows low ratings for all the motivational variables. The third, ‘multiple motives’, has high scores for all the motivation variables and highest levels of satisfaction. The results will contribute to Destination Marketing Organizations and tourism service providers.