External factors in spiritual tourism segmentation : a three country exploratory study

This paper presents a combination of theory and practical application of consumer behaviour and market segmentation of spiritual tourists. The Moutinho consumer behaviour model for tourists was employed to identify the factors influencing the decision making of spiritual tourists. A pilot study was conducted to explore the external factors affecting the buying behaviour of spiritual tourists. Semi-structured and in-depth interviews were conducted with selected stakeholders in three countries, i.e. Australia, United Kingdom and Pakistan. The general observation for Australia and UK were apparently similar, though the behaviour of sub-culture, religious and cultural groups indicates different priorities. However, Pakistan shows a more typical uni-cultural response, through the planning of the government to attract foreign non-Muslim spiritual tourists segments is interesting.