The influence of motivation on birdwatcher satisfaction and destination loyalty: the case of Hornøya, Norway

ABSTRACT Research on motivation among birdwatchers and the relationships between motivation, satisfaction and destination loyalty may provide further insight into this subgroup of wildlife tourism participants. Research on other forms of wildlife tourism suggest that motivation can be a useful segmentation tool and have effects on participants’ overall experiences, satisfaction and loyalty. Using a survey (n =248) of visitors to Hornøya in Norway, we investigated motivation’s potential as a segmentation tool in this setting, and motivation’s influence on birdwatcher satisfaction and destination loyalty, applying cluster-, factor-, and multiple regression analyses. Three distinct groups of birdwatchers were identified, and results indicated that although the main motivations to visit were to experience birds and nature, the importance of other motivational factors varied between clusters. Moreover, significant positive relationships were found between the motivational factor of experience birds and overall satisfaction and between the motivational factor of experience nature and destination loyalty. We conclude that facilitating and promoting such experiences should be a priority for managers of birdwatching sites, and that there are some variations when it comes to motivation, even among relatively specialized birdwatchers.