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Examining Factors Influencing COVID-19 Vaccine Tourism for International Tourists

Author

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  • Laddawan Kaewkitipong

    (Thammasat Business School, Thammasat University, Bangkok 10200, Thailand)

  • Charlie Chen

    (Walker College of Business, Appalachian State University, Boone, NC 28608-2037, USA)

  • Peter Ractham

    (Centre of Excellence in Operations and Information Management, Thammasat University, Bangkok 10200, Thailand)

Abstract

Since early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating impact on global tourism. Vaccine tourism is a novel health tourism concept, which provides an opportunity for countries with a vaccine surplus to offer medical tourism packages to entice international tourists from countries with vaccine shortages to visit for sightseeing and receive vaccine inoculations. Understanding the factors that influence people to adopt vaccine tourism is one of the strategies that could boost a country’s tourism sector and help to revive the local economy. This study aims to examine the factors influencing the intention to adopt and recommend COVID-19 vaccine tourism among young travelers. A total of 179 questionnaire surveys were collected from traveling-related social media outlets. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was performed to analyze the data. The results indicate that young tourists in Thailand are inclined to promote vaccine tourism to others. Price value appears to be the most significant influencing factor on intentions to both adopt and recommend vaccine tourism. Additionally, trust in the foreign healthcare system was positively associated with young travelers’ intention to recommend vaccine tourism to others. Theoretically, this research adds to the medical tourism literature, suggesting that, while trust is an important factor influencing the medical tourism decision, it appears to be insignificant in the context of vaccine tourism.

Suggested Citation

  • Laddawan Kaewkitipong & Charlie Chen & Peter Ractham, 2021. "Examining Factors Influencing COVID-19 Vaccine Tourism for International Tourists," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(22), pages 1-18, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:22:p:12867-:d:684173
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    1. Muhammad N. Abdul-Rahman & Thowayeb H. Hassan & Ahmed H. Abdou & Mostafa A. Abdelmoaty & Mahmoud I. Saleh & Amany E. Salem, 2023. "Responding to Tourists’ Intentions to Revisit Medical Destinations in the Post-COVID-19 Era through the Promotion of Their Clinical Trust and Well-Being," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-19, January.
    2. Elisa Zentveld & Günay Erol & Ebru Düşmezkalender, 2022. "VFR Travel in Turkey during and Post-COVID-19," Tourism and Hospitality, MDPI, vol. 3(3), pages 1-15, July.
    3. Emily Cameron-Blake & Helen Tatlow & Bernardo Andretti & Thomas Boby & Kaitlyn Green & Thomas Hale & Anna Petherick & Toby Phillips & Annalena Pott & Adam Wade & Hao Zha, 2023. "A panel dataset of COVID-19 vaccination policies in 185 countries," Nature Human Behaviour, Nature, vol. 7(8), pages 1402-1413, August.

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