Family vacation decision making process: evidence from Croatia

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate tourists’ habits and preferences when making decisions regarding family vacations, their motives for going on vacation with their family, how decisions about a family vacation are made within the family and which roles do individuals have in the decision making process. Methodology – Empirical research about the family vacation decision making process was conducted on a convenience sample of families with children and married couples without children in the Republic of Croatia. Data processing and analysis applied methods of descriptive statistics. Findings – The findings clearly indicate that a family vacation is an action which has been planned in advance. The primary motive for going on a family vacation is to spend quality time with the family, which stresses the importance of family vacations. The research indicates that all family members participate in the decision making process. Contribution – This paper sheds light on a poorly researched field within the Croatian context. In practice, the research results can serve all providers of tourism services, especially those who design their offer based on the demands of families as their target market segment.