Tourism Transport and Visitor Spending: A Study in the North York Moors National Park, UK

Abstract

Understanding the determinants of day visitor spending is key to marketing planning at many visitor attractions and destinations. In a recent study of a small-scale rural destination in the United Kingdom, the findings suggested that group visitation coupled with duration of stay were key determinants of spending. This article explores the robustness of these findings in a different context, the relationship between mode of travel and spending. This study suggests that there is a difference in the pattern of visitor spending between carborne and public transport visitors, with car-based visitors spending higher amounts. The level of expenditure varies according to group size and duration of day visit, an important consideration for planners seeking to encourage a modal switch of visitors in national parks.