Language Travel Demand: New Insights into Language Tourists’ Perceptions

More and more students of English as a foreign language take part in study abroad (SA) programs in an English speaking country. The development of the learners’ communicative competence has been largely examined, whereas their role as users of the services offered by language education providers in combination with the tourism industry has not been explored in depth. This paper will focus on the factors shaping language travellers’ perceptions in terms of preferences, expectations, satisfaction and recommendations. The model depicted in this exploratory study can constitute the basis for empirical research on SA sojourners’ perceptions to improve SA program design.