Lesbians and gay men’s holiday motivations, perceptions and constraints: a case study of cruise vacation choice

This study explores the push-pull vacation motivations of gay male and lesbian consumers, and examines how these underpin their perceptions and purchase constraints of a mainstream and LGBT[1] cruise. Findings highlight a complex vacation market. While lesbians and gay men share many of the same travel motivations as their heterosexual counterparts, the study reveals sexuality is a significant variable in their perception of cruise vacations, which further influences purchase constraints and destination choice. Gay men have more favorable perceptions than lesbians of both mainstream and LGBT cruises. The paper recommends further inquiry into the multifaceted nature of motivations, perception and constraints within the LGBT market in relation to cruise vacations. [1] While this paper focuses on gay men and lesbians, other terminology is also utilized. As noted by other researchers (Hughes 2006a, 2006b; Southall & Fallon, 2011) ‘gay’ is used interchangeably with ‘LGBT’ (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered) depending on the context. For example, some gay tour operators market cruises as lesbian, whilst others as all-gay which may appeal to both gay men and lesbians, and even some heterosexuals. LGBT is used to represent a range of inclusive identities beyond just gay and lesbian.