Tourism motivation can be defined as the underlying reason why people travel. It serves as the driving force behind a tourist's intentions and behaviours, shaping their goals, expectations, travel choices, behaviours, and perceptions of specific destinations.

Tourists' motivations arise from internal psychological factors that create a certain level of tension and unmet needs, which can be alleviated through engaging in travel activities. By satisfying these intrinsic needs and motives, tourists are able to achieve self-actualization and fulfilment.

The tourism motivation varies depending on the context in which it arises. For example, cultural motivation is influenced by an individual's way of life, encompassing their culture and traditions. It is uncommon for tourists to choose destinations that mirror their own culture. Instead, most tourists seek out destinations with different cultures in order to learn and experience alternative ways of life.

Types of Motivation: 

Intrinsic Motivations: This form of motivation stems from within the very essence of the tourist's heart and mind, driving them to engage in a particular activity. It arises from inherent satisfactions, enjoyment, the inherent challenge, genuine interest, or the inner pleasure derived from the task itself. Intrinsic motivation is independent of external pressures, rewards, or separate outcomes, and is solely fueled by the internal desire for personal fulfilment and gratification. 

Tourism serves as a means for individuals to fulfil their psychological needs, including the desire for travel, engaging in leisure activities, seeking novelty and personal growth, expressing oneself, building self-confidence, nurturing creativity, experiencing competition, finding relaxation, and fostering a sense of belonging. 

Examples of Intrinsic Motivations

Intrinsic motivations in tourism are diverse and can vary widely from person to person. Often, individuals are driven by a combination of these motivations, and the specific factors influencing travel decisions can be complex and multifaceted.

1. Cultural Exploration:

   • Example: A person may be motivated to travel to immerse themselves in different cultures, explore historical sites, and engage with local traditions, seeking personal enrichment and a deeper understanding of the world.

2. Personal Growth and Learning:

   • Example: Individuals may be motivated to travel to gain new skills, broaden their knowledge, or challenge themselves by experiencing unfamiliar environments. This could include activities such as language immersion programs, cooking classes, or workshops.

3. Nature and Adventure Seeking:

   • Example: Someone might be motivated to explore natural wonders, engage in outdoor activities, and seek adventure to satisfy their intrinsic desire for excitement, challenge, and a connection with nature.

4. Self-Discovery:

   • Example: Traveling alone or in a reflective environment can be a means of self-discovery. Individuals may seek solitude or quietude to reflect on their lives, values, and goals.

5. Relaxation and Wellness:

   • Example: Tourism motivated by a desire for relaxation, stress reduction, and overall well-being. This could involve visiting spa resorts, wellness retreats, or destinations known for their tranquil environments.

6. Artistic and Creative Pursuits:

   • Example: Traveling to destinations with a rich artistic or creative history to draw inspiration. This could involve attending art festivals, visiting museums, or exploring landscapes that have inspired artists.

7. Personal Achievement:

   • Example: Setting and accomplishing personal travel goals, such as visiting a certain number of countries, completing a challenging trek, or participating in unique cultural experiences.

8. Spiritual or Religious Pilgrimage:

   • Example: Traveling to sacred sites or destinations of religious significance for spiritual reflection, pilgrimage, or to strengthen one's connection to their faith.

9. Social Connection and Relationships:

   • Example: Traveling to spend quality time with friends or family, strengthen relationships, or create shared memories. The intrinsic motivation here is the desire for social connection and bonding.

10. Novelty and Curiosity:

    • Example: Seeking out new and novel experiences, whether it's trying exotic foods, participating in unique festivals, or exploring destinations off the beaten path.

Extrinsic Motivations: These are external factors that compel an individual to engage in specific tasks. Individuals undertake certain activities with the aim of obtaining or receiving something as a result. These activities are influenced by external stimuli and are driven by the desire to acquire external reinforcements or rewards from others, such as monetary compensation, recognition, status, nature of birth place, family and age, and other similar outcomes.

Examples of Extrinsic Motivations

Extrinsic motivations often involve external factors that influence travel decisions. While intrinsic motivations are more internally driven, extrinsic motivations can play a significant role in shaping travel behavior, particularly in response to external rewards, social expectations, or economic considerations.

1. Economic Incentives:

   • Example: Traveling for business purposes, conferences, or work-related events where the primary motivation is driven by financial gain, career advancement, or professional development.

2. Social Recognition and Status:

   • Example: Traveling to destinations that are considered prestigious or socially desirable to enhance one's social status. This could include visiting popular or exclusive travel destinations.

3. External Rewards and Recognition:

   • Example: Participating in travel competitions, earning travel-related rewards, or seeking external recognition for visiting a certain number of countries or completing specific travel challenges.

4. Peer Influence and Social Pressure:

   • Example: Traveling to destinations or engaging in activities because friends, family, or social circles have done so, creating a sense of social pressure or a desire to conform to the expectations of others.

5. Special Offers and Discounts:

   • Example: Choosing a destination or travel experience based on promotional deals, discounts, or special offers, emphasizing cost savings or economic benefits.

6. Incentive Programs:

   • Example: Participating in travel incentive programs offered by employers, businesses, or loyalty programs that provide rewards or perks for achieving certain travel-related goals.

7. Event Attendance:

   • Example: Traveling to attend specific events, such as concerts, festivals, sports competitions, or conferences, where the primary motivation is the event itself rather than the destination.

8. Educational or Career Advancement:

   • Example: Traveling for educational purposes, such as attending workshops, training programs, or academic conferences, with the aim of advancing one's knowledge or career.

9. Personal Obligations:

   • Example: Traveling due to family obligations, ceremonies, or events, where the motivation is driven by a sense of duty or responsibility rather than personal desire.

10. External Recognition through Social Media:

    • Example: Traveling to destinations or engaging in activities specifically to share experiences on social media and gain external validation or recognition from online communities.

Fig: Tourism Motivators

Motivation Process:

Travel Motivation Theories: 

Various theories attempt to explain the complex nature of the motivation process. However, none of these theories alone can fully capture what motivates people and activates their need-driven behaviour. 

1. Maslow's Need Hierarchy Theory of Motivation

Maslow's Need Hierarchy Theory is considered to be the closest to accurately describing the motivation process.

Characteristics of Maslow's Need Hierarchy Theory of Motivation:

One key characteristic of this theory is that an individual's needs progress in a hierarchical order, from bottom to top. Moving from a lower-level need to an upper level is possible only once the former need is satisfied. Once a particular level of need is fulfilled, it loses its ability to further motivate the individual.

Maslow's theory is based on a hierarchy of five basic needs:

Basic Physiological Needs: These needs are the most fundamental and include hunger, sleep, thirst, etc. In the context of the tourism industry, a traveller ensures the availability of appropriate accommodation, access to potable water, and restaurants offering quality food.

Safety/Security Needs: These needs encompass protection from physical and emotional harm, such as job security and income stability. In the tourism industry, destinations can attract tourists by providing sufficient security and ensuring a hassle-free vacation experience. Assistance and measures for travellers' repatriation in case of emergencies (natural disasters, etc.) contribute to ensuring safety and security.

Affiliation/Belonging Needs: This need pertains to the desire to form relationships and create a sense of belonging. For tourists, this need is essential in becoming acquainted with communities and fully immersing themselves in the travel experience.

Esteem Needs: Once affiliation and belonging needs are fulfilled, the need for esteem arises. This includes self-respect, recognition, and attention. In the tourism industry, a significant portion of the tourist community travels to showcase their experiences among friends and family and to elevate their social status.

Self-actualization Needs: This is the final need in the hierarchy, focusing on personal growth and self-fulfilment. In the context of tourism, travellers often engage in activities to improve specific skill sets, such as hiking, trekking, scuba diving, or cave exploration. These activities enhance stamina, develop risk-taking abilities, and contribute to personal growth.

Maslow's Need Hierarchy Theory highlights the progression of needs and how they influence individuals' motivations and behaviours. It provides insights into the different aspects of motivation within the tourism industry.

2. Gray's Travel-Motivation Theory:

Gray's theory explains the motivations of individuals for travel and identifies two key motives:

Wanderlust: This motive represents the desire to explore unfamiliar and unknown places, moving away from familiar surroundings to experience different cultures, monuments, and socio-cultural heritage.

Sunlust: This motive involves travelling to destinations that offer specific facilities or amenities not available in the traveller's place of residence. It focuses on seeking particular purposes or facilities that enhance the travel experience.

3. McIntosh Theory: has stated that basic travel motivators may be grouped into four broad categories:

Motivators for Physical Well-being:

These motivators revolve around individuals' physical health and well-being, encompassing activities such as seeking relaxation, participating in sports, accessing medical care or treatments, and engaging in specific health management practices. They encompass a range of physical motivators, from engaging in recreational activities to attending yoga retreats or seeking medical treatments for maintaining good health.

Motivators for Interpersonal Connections:

As social beings, humans have a natural inclination to forge new friendships, visit and reunite with relatives and friends, or simply seek respite from the daily challenges of life. These motivators are termed as interpersonal motivators, driven by the desire to establish and nurture social relationships.

Motivators for Cultural Exploration:

Cultural motivators stem from tourists' curiosity and their aspiration to experience different cultures and lifestyles. These motivators are tied to the desire to travel to diverse destinations in order to learn about other countries, their people, culture, traditions, lifestyle, art, music, and more.

Motivators for Status and Prestige:

These motivators centre around tourists' pursuit of gaining respect and recognition among their peers, family, and acquaintances, often linked to their education, knowledge, or pursuit of personal interests. Such motivators are driven by the need for fame, social status, personal esteem, and personal development. They can also include travel for business or professional purposes.

4. Anomie and Ego Enhancement Motivation Theory:

Dann's theory explores two push factors that influence travel motivation:

Anomie: Anomie refers to the desire to escape the sense of loneliness and routine in everyday life. It involves seeking meaning, interaction with family and friends, and social communication. Anomic tourists are typically young, married, male, repeat visitors with above-average socio-economic status.

Ego Enhancement: Ego-enhancement motivates individuals through the desire for recognition and social status. It is associated with the need for social recognition achieved through travel experiences. Ego-enhancement tourists are often female, married or single, first-time visitors from lower socio-economic backgrounds but seek personal esteem through travel.

5. Push and Pull Theory:

Crompton's theory highlights two levels of socio-psychological motivation:

Push Factors: These internal motives drive the desire to engage in recreational activities or tourism, such as self-exploration, escape from mundane environments, relaxation, health and fitness, reconnection with family, social interaction, novelty, cultural experiences, education, and prestige.

Pull Factors: These are external factors that attract individuals to specific destinations, such as attractions, climate, culture, facilities, core attractions (sports, entertainment, shopping), and landscape features (natural and cultural environment).

6. Escaping and Seeking Motivation:

Mannell and Iso-Ahola propose a socio-psychological perspective on motivation, suggesting two dimensions:

Escaping: This motive involves getting away from the daily challenges and problems of life. It focuses on leisure activities that provide a sense of exploration, relaxation, learning, challenge, and competence.

Seeking: Seeking motivation arises from the desire for intrinsic psychological rewards through travel experiences. It encompasses personal and interpersonal rewards, including social interaction, recognition, and a sense of accomplishment.

7. Travel Career Ladder (TCL):

The TCL model, based on Maslow's hierarchy of needs, suggests that travel motivation changes as individuals progress through different levels of needs:

Biological Needs: These include relaxation and safety needs.

Relationship Needs: This level involves the desire for social connections and relationships.

Self-esteem and Development Needs: This level focuses on personal growth and self-esteem.

Fulfilment Needs: At the top of the ladder, individuals seek fulfilment and self-actualization through travel.

8. Travel Career Pattern (TCP):

The TCP model expands on the TCL approach, considering travel motivations over an individual's life cycle and the influence of travel experiences. It suggests three layers of travel motivation:

Layer 1: Core motivations, including escape, relaxation, health and fitness, and social interaction.

Layer 2: Motivations related to self-actualization and interaction with the host society and environment.

Layer 3: Motivations of lesser importance, such as social status and nostalgia.

These theories provide insights into the diverse motivations that drive individuals to travel and how these motivations evolve and change over time.