Analyzing diversity amongst visitors of Portuguese wine routes based on their wine involvement

Purpose This paper focuses on the wine tourist market in the central region of Portugal, and it aims to analyze the wine tourist’s demographic and travel behavior and preferences profile, based on their level of wine involvement. Design/methodology/approach This paper presents results from an exploratory study with a quantitative design, including a total of 1,029 survey responses from visitors of three wine routes. A K-mean cluster analysis was carried out, and the emerging groups of wine tourists were statistically compared (ANOVA or Chi-squared test). Findings Participants present a demographic profile of the wine route visitor similar to that found in other studies, with an average involvement with wine. There were three clusters of wine tourists, with different levels of involvement with wine: less wine-involved; medium wine-involved; and highly wine-involved. Significant differences between the three mentioned categories are visible for gender, age and attractions visited and expenses, suggesting the possibility of a differentiated market approach. Additionally, most respondents report high interest in a variety of attractions that are not exclusively wine-related. This finding supports the conceptualization of (particularly rural) wine tourism as “terroir tourism.” Research limitations/implications The pandemic context in which data collection was undertaken led to a smaller sample than expected, which was also more domestic than would have been in “non-COVID” times. Practical implications This study provides relevant insights about visitors of wine routes in Central Portugal, which may resonate in other wine tourism destinations. Implications for both theory and practice are also discussed. Originality/value This paper fulfills an identified need to study the wine tourism market in the Central Region of Portugal and expands our understanding about wine tourists’ profiles, behavior and interests, adding with empirical findings to the debate on heterogeneity in the wine tourist market, the role of wine involvement and of terroir.