An Examination of Travel Motivation and the Influential Factors of Mainland Chinese Grey Tourism Market

Grey tourism market is important to the tourism industry. The seniors travelers are traveling more frequently, going longer distances, staying away longer, spending more money. China is unique in its aging trend, more than 30% of the Chinese population is expected to be aged 60 or older in 2050. The primary objectives of this study were to determine the travel motivations of mainland Chinese seniors travelers and to discover what variables are influential in explaining the variances of the motivations. Using factor analysis, the knowledge-seeking factor and cleanliness & safety factor appeared to be the most important push and pull motivations, respectively. Subsequent regression analysis indicated that health status and positive and negative emotional state of seniors significantly contribute to accounting for the travel motivations of mainland Chinese seniors.