A comparison between domestic and international students' trip characteristics: Evidence from an australian university

Abstract

Changes in the demographic structure of a population present opportunities and challenges for the provision of tourism products and services. One such change is the increased participation of domestic and international students in tertiary education that has occurred in many countries over the past 10 years. Despite the research interest in international students' tourism behaviour, to date, few studies have compared domestic with international students. Drawing on the concepts of mobility and diaspora tourism a survey was conducted among both groups at an Australian university in 2009 to examine aspects of travel in the country in which they were studying. It was found that international students' trip characteristics differed from those of domestic students and that longer periods of residence in the host country did not result in international students adapting to domestic students. Recommendations regarding market implications are made and further areas of research are suggested. © The Author(s) 2011.