Crisis-resistant tourists

•Crisis-resistant tourists are defined and theoretically conceptualized.•They have a higher risk-propensity and higher resistance to change.•They are also distinct with respect to other travel characteristics, most importantly: their information search behavior.

Despite the negative impact of unexpected events—such as 9/11 and the Global Financial Crisis—on the tourism industry, and despite substantial research into managing crises in tourism, little is known about tourists who are most needed in such situations: crisis-resistant tourists. In this study, crisis-resistant tourists are defined and theoretically conceptualized. Empirical results indicate that segments of tourists resistant to external or internal crisis events indeed exist and—as theoretically postulated—demonstrate higher levels of risk propensity and resistance to change. In contrast, risk shifting is not associated with being a crisis-resistant tourist. An initial profile of crisis-resistant tourists is provided, offering guidance to the tourism industry on how to identify and communicate with this highly attractive market segment.

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