What motivates people to visit an unknown tourist destination? Applying an extended model of goal-directed behavior

Abstract

This study aims to identify the motivations of people travelling to North Korea, and to determine the effects these have on the travel decision-making process. An on-site survey was conducted with Chinese tourists in Dandong, China. The results of an exploratory factor analysis identified four motivation factors: red (communist identity), uniqueness, convenience, and escape. The results suggest that motivations for tourism to North Korea have at least a partial influence on attitudes. "Uniqueness" has the greatest impact on tourist attitudes, implying that the most powerful motive stimulating Chinese tourists to North Korea is their "curiosity" about that isolated society.