Abstract:
Consumers’ decisions to spend money on tourism occur
in the context of the other potential uses of their resources
and corresponding values or utilities. Although many studies
have examined the demand for travel and tourism, there
is no known study that reveals how individuals and households
make trade-offs when allocating their spending among
various potential categories of discretionary expenditure.
This study assesses these trade-offs empirically through the
conduct of a choice experiment on a random sample of
Australian consumers. The results provide insight into how
each category of discretionary expenditure is valued and
how spending in each category competes for a share of the
discretionary expenditure “pie.” We discuss the results with
an emphasis on the implications for tourism.
