The decisional process for a family tourist experience: some evidence from a Sicilian sample

The tourist sector and above all the hotel one nowadays is more and more specialized in satisfying particular needs. To identify typical tourist needs of Sicilian families, and get a valuable product definition, we investigate the consumer behaviour, and before, the features of the persons that in a family take the decision to go on holiday and their motivations. But, who does decide inside the family? Which target the tourist operators should consider in defining family tourist services? We start our discussion by considering three hypotheses: H1) children influence the type (destination, accommodation, duration, etc.) of family vacation; H2) the way of influencing in connected to their age; H3) there is no difference in role between mother and father in the decision process. The empirical survey uses a questionnaire divided in different sections: demographic details (settlement, education, employment, etc.), type and evaluation of previous holiday experiences and reservation channels, persons involved in the choosing process and selecting items, services really included during the vacation. The considered sample involves 100 Sicilian families selected with the help of a not for profit association of parents: “Noi Genitori. Famiglia e Società”. The results coming from a correlational analysis confirm the first and the second hypothesis but not completely the last one: mother and father play different role in connection with the different step of the decisional process. Coming from the data processing, the survey offers first advices to hotel entrepreneurs and managers in order to define in a more effective way their services and their communication strategies; the results highlight that an effective definition should consider, firstly, which conception of family inspires the target. The results emphasize that different persons with a specific family role usually occupy a particular position in the decision process (planning, selecting the destination and services, etc.). The results stress the importance of the vacation as an opportunity to make stronger the family mood.