How Prospective International Retired Migrants Use Tourism for Decision Making

Abstract

Despite the current importance of international retirement migration for both academics and practitioners, the extant literature on the topic is still scarce and mostly focused on short-period migration flows from wealthy and northern countries to cheaper and warm-weather destinations. This article aims at shedding light on the role of tourism in prospective migrants’ decision-making process, considering the framework provided by the push-pull model, which is often used to explain both migration and tourism. A qualitative study was conducted, comprising ten in-depth interviews with 45+ year-old Brazilian citizens who intend to move to Europe after retirement. Results show that tourism is important for prospective migrants to evaluate possible migration destinations, as some of the most relevant migration pull factors (e.g., safety) are easily assessed during tourism experiences. Participants in this study also carefully plan tourism activities prior to their decision to migrate in order to get a more realistic notion of what the destination is like for residents. Overall, this study demonstrates that tourism is particularly important for several stages of migrants’ decision-making process.