TOURISM LANGUAGE E-PROCEEDING

Notes. Specialties Juices: dragon fruit, melon, avocado, honey dew; Milk tea: Teh Harimau
Melaka, Thailand style, Korean style, Japanese style

Figure 6: Types of beverages sold at Jonker Street.

Under food category, there were 10 grilled BBQ and grilled seafood stalls out of 41 food
stalls. A total of 16 stalls sold grilled quail eggs, grilled sausage, oyster, and squid. Three
stalls served Dim sum whereas two stalls sold Fried kueyteow and chicken
respectively. For honey products, satay celup, Laksa Nyonya, Sushi, Chinese burger,
Curry fishball, Mee suah, and Bamboo chawanmushi, there had only been one stall for
each.

There were 54 stalls selling desserts and snacks. Most of the stalls offered one type of
dessert or snack in order to make it unique compared to others. Ice cream has seven
stalls followed by six Kuih Nyonya stalls. These Kuih Nyonya stalls offered one to five
types of Kuih Nyonya such as Onde-onde, Kuih Talam, Pulut Inti, Bingka Ubi Kayu, Talam
Gula Melaka and Kuih Lopes. Contemporary desserts and snacks appeared to dominate
the Jonker Street including pancake, apple fries, giant french fries, twister potato,
takoyaki, mochi, eggette, puff, corn-in-cup, curry chicken bun, and cartoon steamed bun.
In total there were 31 stalls with contemporary desserts and snacks compared to 23 stalls
offered local flavor.

Milk tea, also known as bubble tea or Boba milk tea has seen an increase in popularity
all over the world. By taking this opportunity into tourism attraction, nine stalls sold
variety of milk tea with pearl. Juices were the top one with 15 stalls selling various fruit
and vegetable juices. Herbal tea derived from flowers, spices, and herbs were sold at
seven stalls. These herbal tea were normally served hot and cold. Smoothies and
coconut shake had six stalls overall: three stalls respectively. Apparently, similar with
food and desserts/snacks categories, contemporary flavor of beverages was outshined
the local flavor. A famous local drink, air mata kucing, was only available selling at one
stall.

240

Table 2 shows a comparison between contemporary and local flavors for food,
desserts/snacks and beverages sold at Jonker Street. Apparently, contemporary
flavors are dominant over local flavors in all categories.

Table 2: Comparison between contemporary and local flavors sold at Jonker Street

Flavors Types of Food, Desserts/Snacks and Beverages No. of Stalls Overall
Contemporary 24 86
i. Food 31
Local • Grilled quail eggs, Grilled sausage, 48
Oyster, Grilled BBQ, Sushi, Chinese 31 134
burger, Dim sum, Mee suah, Bamboo 17
chawanmushi 23
8
ii. Desserts/Snacks
• Ice cream, Snacks, Popiah (Japanese
style), Mochi (moa chee), Pancake,
Apple fries, Giant French fries, Twister
potato, Takoyaki, Eggette, Fritter, Puff,
Cartoon steamed bun, Corn-in-cup,
Curry chicken bun

iii. Beverages
• Milk tea, Mango float, Smoothies,
Coconut shake, Juices

i. Food
• Honey products, Satay celup, Fried
kuayteow, Laksa Nyonya, Squid,
Chicken, Grilled seafood, Curry fishball

ii. Desserts/Snacks
• Popiah, Kuih Nyonya, Otak-otak, Fruit
slices, Kacang tumbuk, Gula Melaka
products, Gula ketuk, Cotton candy,
Winter melon soup, Pineapple tart,
Dodol, Kuih bahulu

iii. Beverages
• Air mata kucing, Herbal tea

Total stalls

4.2 Price Profile

The range of prices is classified into three categories: food, desserts/snacks, and
beverages, as tabulated in Table 3, Table 4, and Table 5. Each product is priced depending
on the types of serving materials and sizes of serving. The serveware was purposely used
to serve the customers for a take-away or a brief dine-in style. For instance, grilled
sausage or grilled quail eggs were packed in small plastic bags for a handy hold. Hot food
such as Laksa Nyonya or Fried kuayteow were served in disposable servewares (bowl or
plate) because the customers would enjoy the food by the stalls.

241

Table 3: Range of prices for food category Table 4: Prices for desserts/snacks

Types of Food Price Types of Price
(RM)/serving size Desserts/Snacks (RM)/serving size

Honey products 5-48/jar Ice cream 2-7.50/each

Grilled quail eggs 4-11/stick Snacks 4-10/each

Grilled sausage 3-10/each Popiah 2-6/piece

Satay celup 1/each Mochi (moa chee) 4-5/box

Oyster 6-10/100gm Kuih Nyonya 0.50-6/piece

Fried kueyteow 5-7.50/plate Pancake 7-8/each

Laksa Nyonya 5-6/bowl Apple fries 7/each

Squid 10-20/each Giant french fries 10/box

Grilled BBQ 4-11/each Twister potato 5-10/each

Chicken 10-12/piece Takoyaki 5-11/box

Sushi 3-6/each Eggette 5-8/each

Chinese burger 10/each Fritter 3.5/box

Grilled seafood 10-48/100gm Otak-otak 2-9/piece

Dim sum 4-7/5pcs Fruit slices 4-10/slice

Curry fishball 4-6/bowl Kacang tumbuk 3-5/packet

Mee suah 8-10/bowl Puff 3-25/box

Bamboo chawanmushi 12/each Gula Melaka 12-15/kg
products

Gula ketuk 4/packet

Cotton candy 10-15/packet

Winter melon soup 5/cup

Pineapple tart 9/box

Cartoon steamed bun 4/each

Dodol 10-20/packet

Kuih bahulu 4-9/box

Corn-in-cup 4/cup

Curry chicken bun 25-35/pc

Table 5: List of prices for beverages

Types of Beverages Price (RM)/serving size

Milk tea 4-14/cup

Mango float 7-10/cup

Smoothies 10-12/cup

Coconut shake 5/cup

Air mata kucing 2/cup

Herbal tea 1.50-10/cup

Juices 2-12/cup

From the observation, food and drinks sold in Jonker Street were a bit pricey compared to
other places. To compare, coconut shake special is priced at RM3.40 each at the Klebang

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Original Coconut Shake, a popular spot for coconut shake in Melaka but at Jonker Street,
the same product (though different vendors) is sold at RM5 per cup. Another example,
fruit slices are normally sold at RM1 to RM2 per slice at most eateries in Melaka.
However, one slice of similar fruit cuts is sold at RM4 to RM10 at Jonker Street.

5. CONCLUSION

In conclusion, contrary to the literature that food sold at local street food scenes
represents local culture and image and are also cheaply priced, it is apparent that the
street food sold at Jonker Street appears to adapt to the contemporary and trendy flavors
in order to meet the tourists’ demands. This shift in flavors, presentations, and in the
varieties of food offered is reflected in the pricing of the street food sold there. Future
research could explore the demographic of the street food vendors, the expectation of
the tourists towards the street food sold at Jonker Street and the economy impact of the
street food to the local economy.

In this study, the limitations appeared in several aspects. First, this study was self-
funded and this has caused financial constraint in expanding the scope of research.
Next, because this study was self-funded, time was crucial in completing the research.
The data collection process was completed within few hours and it could be a threat to
missing data. A longer time is needed to collect the data thoroughly. Third, the sample
was restricted to Jonker Street food vendors only, therefore there is no generalization
of street food in Melaka could be done. There are some streets in Melaka that offer
street food as tourism attractions as well. Future study could include those streets in
order to make a meaningful representation of street food profiling.

There are three practical implications of this study. As the contemporary flavor is
prominent among the food vendors, they could be the agents for change in tourism to
promote the local food flavor because they are able to decide what to offer to the
tourists. Next, local authority could offer incentives to food vendors who sell local food. It
is important for the local authority to begin government-led initiatives to boost the food
tourism. Lastly, this study also highlights the power of words-of-mouth marketing by the
tourists through social media in promoting the local food spot.

BIBLIOGRAPHY: Siti Nurhayati Khairatun is a senior lecturer at Department of Food
Service & Management, Faculty of Food Science & Technology, Universiti Putra Malaysia,
Serdang Campus. Her research interests include food tourism, food entrepreneurship,
food franchising, food regulatory & policy, food fraud & food terrorism, food safety &
food defense, and food business management. She can be contacted via
[email protected]. Title of the abstract ‘Street food profiling: A case study of
Jonker Street, Melaka.’

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Proceedings of the 3rd International Language & Tourism Conference 2019
Sustaining Global Development Goals through
Language, Education and Tourism

Kulliyyah of Languages and Management, International Islamic University
Malaysia, Pagoh Edu Hub, Malaysia 18th-19th October 2019

THE INFLUENCE OF TOURISM PRODUCT AND TOURISM EXPENDITURE ON TOURIST
PREFERENCE THROUGH THE INTEGRATION OF TOURISM OBJECTS IN PADANG CITY

Hasdi Aimon*1, Hari Setia Putra2, Nanda Alfarina3

1,2,3 Faculty of Economics, Universitas Negeri Padang, Padang, Indonesia
(Email: *[email protected], [email protected], [email protected])

ABSTRACT

This study aims to explain the influence of variables of tourism products and tourism expenditure on
tourist preference in Padang City with tourism object integration as the mediating variable. The study, also
explains the causal relationship between tourist preference and the integration of tourism objects in
Padang City. The data was collected using a survey of visitors to tourist attractions in Padang City namely
Pantai Padang, Pantai Air Manis, and Mount Padang using accidental sampling. The data was then analyzed
using the moderated regression analysis. The study on tourism in Padang found an average tourist
preference of 66.20 percent in a range of 48.01 – 84.39 percent. Tourism product and tourism expenditure
have a significant effect on tourist preference mediated by the variable of tourism object integration. The
study also found a causal relationship between the integration of tourism objects and tourist preference.
The study recommends that the Padang City Tourism Development Authority and the Padang City
Government should intensify the integration of the tourism objects of Pantai Padang, Pantai Air Manis,
and Mount Padang through increased infrastructure investments The use of information technology is key
in developing tourism objects because it can be used as an effective promotional media, especially social
media. However, the Padang City Government must first increase investment in the tourism sector to
support tourism activities, especially transportation, recreational facilities, and infrastructure.
Keywords: Tourist Preference; Tourism Objects Integration; Tourism Product; Tourism
Expenditure

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1. INTRODUCTION

The tourism and travel sector is a key economic driver in countries around the world (Kuralbayev,
Sevim, & Abishev, 2017; Lorde, Li, & Airey, 2015; Pham & Vogt, 2019). As such, stimulating the
tourism sector can be an effective strategy for economic development in developing as well as
developed countries (Shafieea, Ghatari, Ali Rajabzadeh Hasanzadeha, & Jahanyan, 2019; Shalini
& Masood, 2010; WTTC, 2019). The potential of the tourism sector is reflected by its contribution
to GDP. In 2015 the direct contribution of the tourism sector to Indonesia’s GDP was 5.47 percent.
In 2016, this share increased to 5.82 percent. Meanwhile, the contribution of the tourism sector
to the GRDP of Padang City in the same year amounted to 16.72 percent. Thus, the tourism sector
contributes a larger share of the GRDP of Padang City than on the national level. Effective tourism
development strategies are efficient tools in increasing the use of a region's natural resources to
improve the regional economy.

The tourism industry offers several economic benefits, namely the creation of employment
opportunities for local communities and the improvement of the quality of life and standards of
living, while reducing poverty through the creation of integrated tourism (Andereck, Valentine,
Knopf, & Vogt, 2005; Hearne & A, 2016; UNWTO, 2008). In 2018, the global number of tourist
visits increased by 6 percent to 1.4 billion and is predicted to further increase to 1.8 billion by
2030 (UNWTO, 2019). The increased number of tourists is an opportunity for developing
countries to promote their culture and tourism products. Revitalizing underdeveloped tourist
destinations will impact on the number of future visits. Governments worldwide have invested in
the tourism sector by redeveloping their tourist destinations to attract tourists, including the
government of Padang City.

The Padang City Government has sought to increase economic activity in the tourism sector by
developing integrated tourism destinations (Kawasan Wisata Terpadu - KWT). Padang aims to
develop coastal tourism to utilize water tourism on the mainland. In addition, the development
of Padang coastal tourism is also directed to exploit the potential of culinary tourism and cultural
heritage tourism. Padang Beach is one of the three KWT destinations of Padang City. On average,
tourist visits to Padang Beach have increased by 10.5 percent over the 2011-2016 period
(DPMPTSP, 2017)

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Number of International Tourist Arrival (%)

8.00%
7.00%
6.00%
5.00%
4.00%
3.00%
2.00%
1.00%
0.00%

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

Number of Arrival

Figure 1: Number of World Tourist Visits

Number of Tourist Visits in Padang City (%)

30.00% 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
25.00%
20.00%
15.00%
10.00%

5.00%
0.00%
-5.00%

Number of Arrival

Figure 2. Number of Tourist Arrivals in Padang City
Source: Statistics Indonesia

Figure 1 shows that the number of international tourist visits to Padang Beach has increased
sharply in 2017. This increase indicates that Padang Beach is a key potential tourist attraction.
Further developing this potential could attract more tourists as, currently, the tourismpotential
of Padang Beach is not fully utilized. Successful tourism strategies can cultivate the relationship
between cycles of growth in the tourism industry and economic growth. Notably, empirical
analysis of the relationship between tourism growth and economic growth inOrganization for
Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries and in non-OECD countries found that
tourism development has a greater impact on GDP in non-OECD countries compared to OECD
countries (Lee & Chang, 2008).

249

Generally, visitors are interested in visiting tourism destinations again. To realize this, it is
important to ensure that tourists are satisfied with the experience of their visit. However,
satisfaction (preference) alone may not be enough to make tourists revisit a destination.
Therefore, more in-depth research is needed to study the various variables that affect tourist
preference and tourist decisions to travel to Padang City. Decisions regarding tourist destinations
need to be made based on an economic approach that specifically focuses on tourist preference
and utility. (Zemla, 2016) divide tourism studies into two approaches, i.e., demand-side or supply-
side approaches. The demand side approach is very important in analyzing tourist behavior,
tourist satisfaction, and tourist preference. However, it limitation is subjectivity related to the
different experiences and backgrounds of tourists. As such, this approach requires a more in-
depth analysis. Further study is required of the travel experiences that are remembered by
tourists to better understand tourist behavior. In this case, we must study cultural contact and
the influence of visitor involvement on a memorable tourism experience.

2. LITERATURE REVIEW

The concept of integrated tourism has been debated in theory and practice (Oliver & Jenkins,
2003). This concept can be defined as an inter-institutional integration that involves actors
including partners who are indirectly involved in tourism. Whereas, other definitions explain
tourism object integration as economic integration, namely the integration of economic sectors,
especially retail and local industries. In simple terms, integrated tourism can be explained as
tourism that connects economic, social, cultural, and natural structures with communities and
tourist attractions. Specifically, tourism is connected between local resources, products, and
communities (Toth & David, 2010).

There has been a great shift in tourist preference due to the industrial revolution 4.0, i.e.,
technological advances and the increasing role of social media. In line with this, (Yilmaz & Aytekin,
2018) have examined how past experiences affect tourists' decisions in choosing tourism
products. Their study focused on accommodation, which is one of the key aspects of tourist
destinations. One of the advances in information technology is the ease for tourists to look up
other people’s experiences before deciding on the right accommodation. This study emphasized
the consideration of online ratings by visitors to accommodations. It indicated that these ratings
do not affect the rating that the next visitor will give but they are a very important factor for
people in deciding whether to use the tourism product facilities.

The main factors that determine tourist preferences are tourists’ income, the cost of goods, and
the cost of tourism services relative to the cost of alternative goods and services (Sevim, 2017).
These costs include transportation costs, accommodation costs at tourist attractions, exchange
rates that need to be taken into account when traveling abroad, as well as the population at the
tourist destination (Shalini & Masood, 2010). In addition, research by Lorde, Li & Airey (Lorde et
al., 2015) using the Augmented Gravity approach emphasized the importance of the word-of-
mouth effect which is effective in building expectations and preferences of tourists through the
development of social media.

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Developing integrated tourism objects, it is necessary to develop a sustainable travel chain and
add recreational transportation around the tourist attraction. In this case, developing public
transportation can be very effective (Schiefelbusch, Jain, Schafer, & Muller, 2007). However, a
study conducted by (Toth & David, 2010) showed conflicting results. This study found no
significant relationship between increased accessibility (e.g., transportation) and income in the
tourism sector

(Cawley & Gillmor, 2008) focused more on stakeholders in integrated rural touris and the need
for promotion in the development of tourism areas as well as the coordination between various
stakeholders and human resources. This study found that an integrated approach can address
deficiencies and be a useful tool in facilitating sustainable tourism which can contribute to rural
development.

3. METHODOLOGY

This research studied the tourist attractions in the Integrated Tourism Area of Padang City
(Padang Beach, Air Manis Beach, and Mount Padang) with the visiting tourists as the research
subjects. The data was collected through an on-site visitor survey questionnaires and interviews.
This study focuses on Tourism Expenditure (X1), Tourism Product (X2), Tourism Object Integration
(Y1) and Tourist Preference (Y2).

The research sampling method used was accidental sampling and it was analyzed with a
moderated regression analysis. This study aimed to examine whether tourism expenditure (X1)
and tourism products (X2) affect tourist preference (Y2) with tourism object integration (Y1) as a
mediating variable. In addition, this study also assessed the relationship between tourist
preference and tourism object integration based on the OLS (Ordinary Least Square) approach
comprising the t-Statistics test (Partial Test), the f-Statistics test, and the stationarity test using
Augmented Dickey-Fuller (ADF). As the first step of the analysis, the Level of Respondents
Achievement (LRA) test was carried out. LRA analysis describes the characteristics of each
research variable. The level of Respondents Achievement can be classified into the following
groups:

Table 1: Level of Respondents Achievement

No LRA Criteria

1 00% - 20% Very weak

2 21% - 40% Weak

3 41% - 60% Strong Enough

4 61% - 80% Strong

5 81% - 100% Very Strong

Source: (Riduwan, 2006)

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The line of thought in this study is illustrated in Figure 3 below:

X1
Y1 Y2

X2
Figure 3: Conseptual Framework

Based on the above framework, an equation model can be formed as follows:

Y1 = ∝1 X1 + ∝2 X2 + 1 (1)

Y2 = 0̂Y1 + 2 (2)
̂Y1 = γ0Y2 + 3 (3)

Where:
α, β, γ : Regression Coefficient
Y1 : Tourism Object Integration
Ŷ : Tourism Object Integration
Y2 : Tourism Preference
X1 : Tourism Expenditure
X2 : Tourism Product
ε1 ε2 ε3 : Error Disturbance

Equations (1) and (2) aim to see the relationship of tourism expenditure (X1) and tourism product
(X2) toward tourist preference with tourism object integration (Y1) as mediating variables. While
equation (3) aims to prove the causal relationship between tourist preference (Y2) and tourism
object integration (Y1).

Definition of Variable Operations

The variables used in this study are the result of a ratio data survey. Tourism expenditure (X1)
describes the total costs incurred by tourists when traveling with transportation, accommodation,
consumption, and recreation costs as indicators. Whereas, tourism product (X2) represents tourist
perceptions of the various products at tourist sites with the indicators of food and drink facilities,
recreational facilities, accommodation, transportation, tourist perception of the tourist

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attractions. Tourism object integration (Y1) represents the perceptions of tourists regarding the
integration of the three attractions, whereas tourist preference (Y2) describes the satisfaction and
interests of tourists before and after their visit.

4. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

4.1 Stationary Test Results

The results of the stationary test in Table 2 below show that all research variablesare stationary
at the level.

Table 2: Root Unit Test Results

Variable Unit Root ADF Test Critical Note
Test Statistic Values
Significant
Tourism Expenditure (X1) Level -8.240731 5% Significant
-2.899115 Significant
Tourism Product (X2) Level -7.502435 -2.899115 Significant
-2.899115
Tourism Object Integration (Y1) Level -7.970888
-2.899115
Tourist Preference (Y2) Level -9.891934

Source: Author's Processed Results

4.2 Description of Research Variables

The descriptive data processing gave the Level of Respondents Achievements (LRA) values for
each variable. The score for all variables shows the value of LRA which belongs in the fourth
criterion, the strong criterion. The dependent variable of Tourist Preference has an LRA value of
66.20 percent. This value fits in the criterion of a strong LRA value which indicates that tourists
tend to answer questions well. It can also be concluded that on average tourists have had a fairly
good experience traveling to the city of Padang. Meanwhile, the LRA value for the tourism object
integration variable is 73.83 percent. This value also fits in the fourth criterion. This means that
the tourism attractions in Padang City are well integrated. The variables of tourism expenditure
and tourism product have LRA values of 61.12 and 65.31 percent, respectively. Thus, both
variables belong in the strong criterion, which means that the perception of tourists about the
cost of tourism and the quality of tourism products in the city of Padang tends to be good.

4.3 Analysis Results

The following Table 3 presents the results of the analysis of the influence of tourism expenditure
(X1) and tourism product (X2) on tourism object integration (Y1).

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Variable Table 3: Model Estimation Results (1) Prob.

X1 Coefficient Std. Error t-Statistic 0.0000
X2 0.0000
0.531388 0.092245 5.760579
0.626406 0.085226 7.349976

Table 2 shows that tourism expenditure (X1) and tourism product (X2) have a significant influence
on Tourism Object Integration. Thus, the equation model can be formulated as follows:

Y1 = 0.5314X1 + 0.6264X2 +

Based on the above equation we find that the coefficient of determination X1 is 0.5314, meaning
that lower expenditure means increased tourism object integration. These results are in line with
another study in Taiwan (Tsai, Hsu, Chen, Lin, & Chen, 2010) which concluded that an integrated
approach to tourism can reduce tourism expenditure, and tourism expenditure can also be a
factor that influences the integration of tourism object. Cost is a key tourism variable and is often
the main focus of research on tourism. In fact, tourism destinations will be abandoned if tourism
expenditure is too high but tourists are not satisfied.

The analysis of variable X2 based on the equation shows that a higher value for tourism product
leads to higher tourism object integration. Tourism products are the main aspects of a person’s
consideration in selecting tourist destinations, as found by (Elliot & Papadopoulos, 2015). Their
study highlighted that tourists’ confidence in tourism products plays an important role in building
trust in tourism objects as a whole. Thus, creating a positive image of tourism products can be a
major focus in the development of integrated tourism. Both analyses show that tourism
expenditure and tourism product are key variables in supporting the integration of tourist
attractions. As such, the continued differentiation and innovation of tourism products will benefit
the various tourism-related sectors.

Next is the result of the analysis of the influence of the variable Ŷ1 (fitted) on Tourist Preference
(Y2) as shown in Table 4 below, the Ŷ1 variable is the Y variable that has been influenced by
variables X1 and X2.

Table 4: Model Estimation Results (2)

Variable Coefficient Std. Error t-Statistic Prob.
Ŷ1 0.0000
0.889090 0.029766 29.86938

Table 4 shows a significant influence of tourism object integration (Y1) on tourist preference (Y2).
The equation that was based on the results of the analysis below, shows that tourism object
integration influences tourist preference as high as 88.91 percent. This shows that the integration
of tourism objects offers higher satisfaction for tourists.

Y2 = 0.8891̂Y1 +

254

Tourism object integration and tourist preference are very closely related to tourism expenditure
and tourism product because tourism object integration is formed by these two variables. This
relationship is also explained by (Sevim, 2017), i.e., the main determinant of tourist preference is
visitor satisfaction in relation to tourism costs.

Next is the result of the analysis of the influence of the Tourist Preference (Y2) on Tourism Object
Integration (Y1), where the fitted Y1 variable used.

Variable Table 5: Model Estimation Results (3) Prob.

Y2 Coefficient Std. Error t-Statistic

1.034319 0.034628 29.86938 0.0000

Table 5 above shows that tourist preference has a significant influence on tourism object
integration which as is evident from their probability values. Thus, the equation can be formed as
follows:

Ŷ1 = 1.034Y2 +

The significance between these variables indicates a causal relationship between tourism object
integration (Y1) and tourist preference. This means that in addition to tourism object integration
affecting tourist preference, tourist preference can also affect tourism integration. Tourism object
integration can reduce tourism expenditure and increase the variety of tourism products so that
tourists have more complex choices for tourism products. These advantages attract tourists to
visit tourist attractions. Conversely, when visitors feel satisfied with a tourist attraction, they will
visit it again and explore new related attractions, thereby increasing the integration between
these attractions.

5. CONCLUSION

This study indicates that various tourism variables are interrelated. The causal relationship
between tourism object integration and tourist preference explains that the existence of
integrated tourism will increase opportunities for tourists to visit the Integrated Tourism Area in
Padang City, whereas tourist satisfaction that encourages tourists to visit again will increase the
tourism object integration in the city. Lower tourism expenditure because of the increased
integration of tourism objects leads to more diverse choices for tourists. Therefore,
improvements need to be made to increase the integration of tourism objects to provide
economic benefits for the City of Padang. This will especially benefit the communities around
tourism objects who are the main actors in the tourism sector.

The use of information technology is key in developing tourism objects because it can be used as
an effective promotional media, especially social media. However, the Padang City Government

255

must first increase investment in the tourism sector to support tourism activities, especially
transportation, recreational facilities, and infrastructure.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

The authors wish to thank the Rector of Universitas Negeri Padang for supporting this research in
the form of Non-Tax State Revenue (Penerimaan Negara Bukan Pajak (PNBP) funding, the
Research and Community Service Institute (LP2M), and the research team for its cooperation.

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257

Proceedings of the 3rd International Language & Tourism Conference2019
Sustaining Global Development Goals through
Language, Education and Tourism

Kulliyyah of Languages and Management, International Islamic University
Malaysia, Pagoh Edu Hub, Malaysia 18th-19th October 2019

THE USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA FOR TRIP PLANNING PROCESS:
A STUDY ON DOMESTIC TOURISTS TO PAHANG

Fouzai @ Fauzi, Fatin Shafiqa*1 and Abdul Latif, Samshul Amry2
1, 2 Department of Tourism, Kulliyyah of Languages and Management, International Islamic

University Malaysia, Pagoh, Johor, Malaysia
(E-mail: *[email protected] , [email protected])

ABSTRACT
In recent years, the use and reliance of social media by tourists have increased. Social media
becomes the alternative to traditional media in the process of trip planning and travel
decisions. This study aims to identify the influences of social media towards the trip
planning process, which are pre, during, and post-trip among domestic tourists who visited
the state of Pahang, Malaysia. This quantitative study identified the influences of social
media on two areas, namely the trip planning process and the perceived level of trust. The
data were collected using self-administered online questionnaires from domestic tourists
who had visited the state within the past 12 months. The findings of this study indicate that
the respondents use social media predominantly before the trip. The findings also show
that travel information obtained through social media is perceived as trustworthy and
reliable by the respondents. Future researchers may include larger samples from other
demographic segments as well as the inclusion of other tourist classification.
Keywords: Trip Planning Process; Social Media; Travel Decision

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1. INTRODUCTION

The advancement of technology and the rise of popularity of social media spark the interest
of the Malaysian population to consider social media as one of the medium to spot places
of interest and to make their travel destination choices. This lead to the initiatives by the
Malaysia government to incorporate social media as one of the marketing tools to promote
local tourism (Tourism Malaysia, 2015). Social media is also crucial within the tourism
industry as tourists rely on the trip information as it is easily accessed from the internet.
With the information gained from social media and the internet, travel uncertainties can
be minimized.

According to the report by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission
(2017), 85.7% of Malaysians use the internet for social media, online banking and online
purchasing. A report in Internet User Survey (2018) mentioned that 73.8% of Malaysian use
social media in 2018. Additionally, the improvement in digital technology is flattening
traditional differences across generations, which influence more travelers making online
bookings.

Previous studies have examined social media and its various functions. Social media can be
a useful marketing tool in influencing travelers’ behavior in planning a trip. Among other
areas, previous research includes the role of social media and tourists’ travel planning
behaviour (Cox, Burgess, Sellitto & Buultjens, 2009), social media on tourism among
students (Rathony, 2013), travel blogs and social media (Chen, Shang & Li, 2014) and social
media advertising effect on consumers’ responses (Hamouda, 2018).

In recent years, social media, websites and blogs became one of the most important
medium in tourism, and this contributes to the increasing research interests (Cheung &
Thadani, 2012; Hussain et al., 2017; Yang, 2017). However, there is a limited number of
studies that examined the use of social media towards the travel planning process
specifically in the context of domestic tourists' perspective. This study aims to identify the
use of social media for each trip planning process namely; pre, during and post-trip.

2. LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Social Media

The emerging of technology has created social media known as the medium for users to
participate and collaborative in order to create, share and exchange information on the
internet. As mentioned by Haenlein and Kaplan (2010), the internet is known as the
medium to enable users to exchange information. This medium is well known and fast-
growing, as social media featured several tools such as search, organize, like, share, and
comment content or information in different kinds of environments (Lopez, 2011). Hamid
(2015) defined social media as the medium on the internet for consumers to
correspondence, participation and create a creative expression by using the different
technologies or arranged gadgets.

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Consumers own, use and sometimes depend on social media so much; it becomes a part
of their life. As stated by Zeng and Gerritsen (2014), the permanent global growth of social
media not only influence individuals but also bring impact towards various industries such
as tourism and hospitality for promotion, business management and research functions
(Leung, Law, Hoof & Buhalis, 2013).

2.1.1 Social Media Classification

There are many types of social media used by consumers to engage with other users. Since
the beginning of the development of social media, many researchers attempted to identify
and classify the different types of social media (Kaplan and Haenlein, 2010, Fotis et al.,
2011, Al-Badi, 2014). Previous studies indicate that there is academic disagreement over
social media taxonomy or classifications.

The social media are classified based on the set of the related theoretical framework,
including media research (social presence and media-richness) and social processes (self-
presentation and self-disclosure). The authors argued that these theories were built based
on the foundation of social media itself. Thus, the categories of the social media include six
types of social media such as blogs and microblogs (Twitter), social networking sites
(Facebook), virtual social world (Second Life), collaborative projects (Wikipedia), content
communities (Youtube) and virtual game networks (World of Warcraft) as depicted in Table
1 below.

Table 1: Type of Social Media

List of social media Type of social media Authors (Year)

Facebook, Instagram, Social networking sites Kaplan & Haenlein

Google+ (2010)

TripAdvisor Reviews Xiang & Gretzel (2010)

Twitter Microblogs Cleffman, Feuerabend,
Howald & Kollmann
(2010)

YouTube Media-sharing- Cleffman, Feuerabend,
communities Howald & Kollmann,
(2010)

Whatsapp, Telegram Instant messaging app Lim, Xu & Pathak (2015)

Booking.com, Trivago, Online Travel Agencies Xiang & Gretzel (2010)
Agoda, Traveloka

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2.2 Trip Planning Process

There are millions of tourists who travel outside their usual environment every year.
Concerning this, there has been a significant increase in research on how these tourists
plan their trips to different places. Fotis, Buhalis, and Rossides (2012) acknowledged that
the role of social media for the trip planning process helps potential tourists to identify
their destination choice, as well as desired accommodation and activities they would like
to engage in. The number of tourists who rely on social media to plan their trip or search
for ideas has increased considerably.

2.2.1 Pre-Trip

The “pre-trip” phase occurs before a tourist travels. According to McCann (2008), this stage
consists of the demands of the travelers itself. Would-be tourists gather information and
evaluation from social media before they make a travel decision.

2.2.2 During Trip

The “during” phase describes tourists who are currently experiencing their trip for various
purposes and experiences (McCann, 2008). Tourists who use social media at this stage are
likely to find out information on specific attractions or leisure activities.

2.2.3 Post Trip

The “post” trip is the final stage of the trip planning process. This phase describes the travel
activities which tourists have accomplished. McCann (2008) stated that this phase
describes tourists when they are back from their trip. Their experiences are evaluated, and
tourists can conclude their satisfaction level about the products and/or services that they
used during the trip.

2.3 Perceived Level of Trust

Perceived includes a variety of scopes such as social value, emotional value and information
value (Zhang et al., 2017). In this context, the information value is essential to understand
the use of social media among domestic tourists as information value refers to the benefit
and information that the consumers gain from friends and relatives, professional
information providers or social media. That information can be applied in order to solve
the problem and to enhance one's skill and ability (Zhang et al., 2017).

Trust is one of the most significant essential elements in consumer decision-making
especially when this involves the internet (Hanse, Saridakis & Benson, 2018). According to
Corritore, Kracher, and Wiedenbeck (2003), trust can be defined as ‘an attitude of
confident expectation in an online situation of risk that one's vulnerabilities will not be
exploited'. The recent study by Zhang (2017), found that the perceived level of trust has a
significant and positive effect on travelers' intention to use new technology to purchase
travel-related products and services. Consequently, the present study considers the
perceived level of trust among domestic tourists towards travel-related information
acquired from social media.

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3. METHODOLOGY

The research was undertaken using a quantitative approach. The study focuses on
domestic tourists as the sample of this research in order to identify the influence of
social media on the trip planning process among the domestic tourists in Malaysia. The
condition of this study is that the respondents must have visited or traveled to the state
of Pahang in Malaysia for tourism purposes for the last 12 months. Pahang was selected
as the state is well-known for its tourist attractions such as Taman Negara, Cameron
Highlands, and Genting Highlands to name a few. Domestic tourists are defined as tourists
who visit within the country of reference (UNWTO, 2014).

This study’s instrument is a set of questionnaires distributed through social media using
the Google Form survey. An online survey approach is selected due to the low-cost
factor and convenience. Online surveys also have a better magnitude of reach.

The survey was made to be bilingual using English and Malay language. Before the
distribution of the survey questionnaires to the respondents, the items were translated
from English to Malay Language and then back-translated to English. The questions and
items were reviewed, revised and corrected to ensure proper language and grammar
use.

The number of domestic tourists’ arrival to Pahang is 7,604,372 for 2018 (Tourism
Pahang, 2018). Based on Hair et al. (1995), the sample size should be ten times the
number of items in the questionnaire. There were 20 items included in this study;
therefore, at least 200 samples are needed for this study.

The study employed convenience sampling technique with snowballing approach,
where the link to the online survey questionnaire was disseminated to colleagues,
families and acquaintances via social media namely Whatsapp, Facebook and
Instagram. Respondents were then requested to pass on the link further to their friends
or colleagues via similar platform.

In the description of the questionnaire, it is mentioned that the survey was anonymous
and would be used for the research purpose only. The amount of time required to
complete the survey was approximately three to five minutes. In two weeks from 7th
March 2019 to 21st March 2019, the researchers approached 250 respondents;
however, only 220 respondents were valid for this research and used for the data
analysis. The removal of the other 30 respondents was based on the screening question
which required the respondents to have visited the state of Pahang within the last 12
months.

The questionnaire was divided into four sections. The first section covered the
demographic details, including gender, age, income level, education, types of social media
use and frequency. Following Fotis, Buhalis and Rossides (2012), all twelve items under the
Trip Planning Process were measured using the 5-point Likert-type scale: Strongly Disagree
(1), Disagree (2), Neutral (3), Agree (4) and Strongly Agree (5). Two items measuring

262

Social Media influence were measured using a 4-point Likert-type scale; Not at all (1),
Unlikely (2), Likely (3) and Definitely (4) following Lo, Cheung and Law (2002). The
perceived level of trust was measured through six items adopted from Lo, Cheung and
Law (2002) using a 7-point Likert-type scale where tend to disagree (3) and tend to agree
(5) were included.

4. MAIN RESULTS

4.1 Profile of Sample

The sample had the following characteristics; as per gender, 75.5% were females and 24.5
males. The over-representation of females had been observed in other studies (Ox et al.,
2009), and may to an extent be related to gender differences in trip-related roles (Decrop,
2006). As per age, the highest percentage of respondents fell between the age group of 22
to 25 years old and 18 to 21 years old, which constituted 47.3% and 36.4% of total
respondents, respectively. The age group of 36 to 40 and 56 to 60 years old carried the
lowest and same percentage at 0.5%. For the age of 26 to 30 years old and 31 to 35, it
constitutes 7.7% and 4.1% of the total respondents. The remaining age groups of 41 to 45
years old and 46 to 50 years old carried a percentage of 2.3% and 1.4%, respectively.

Based on the findings of the age demographic, the majority of the respondents are aged 25
years and below, which is 83.7% (N=184) out of 220 respondents. This can be assumed that
older generations were less likely to use social media in planning for a trip compared to the
younger generation. As stated by Rameez (2015), using social media is the most common
practice of today's younger generation. Social media like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube
offer youth a portal for entertainment and communication and have grown exponentially
in recent years.

4.2 Use of Social Media

The majority of the respondents (78.2%) use social media almost every day. Only 1.8% of
the respondents answered that they rarely use social media and 1.4% answered they use
it sometimes per week. Lastly, 18.6% of the respondents said they use social media several
times a day.

From the findings, it can be seen that the respondents use various types of social media
including Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Twitter and others. As mentioned by Xiang and
Gretzel (2010), tourists nowadays use different sources and tools in order to plan for a
vacation. The findings from this study showed that most of the respondents use Instagram
23.7% in planning for a trip. This result was supported by Germon et al. (2017) that
Instagram plays a vital role in the travel industry and could be advantageous for travel-
related businesses, such as destination marketing organizations and travel agencies. Also,
Instagram count as much as 285 million posts under '#travel' hashtag, and almost 1 million
accounts on Instagram are searching for travel-related hashtags every week (Business
Instagram, 2018).

263

Last but not least, one of the interesting findings found is that some of the respondents
depend on social navigation tools (eg. Google Maps and Waze) to find a route or location.
Waze combines GPS navigation capabilities with social sharing to get the most up-to-date
traffic and travel conditions. As referred to Nugraha (2015), Waze has one of the unique
features, which is chatting features in order for the users to share and talk about their
journey. Thus, it can be concluded that Waze can be one of the essential tools for planning
a trip.

4.3 Trip Planning Process

In order to understand the reason why people using social media during their travel
process, the study conducted by Buhalis, Fotis and Rossides (2012) lists twelve statements,
categorized by four trip stages: pre-destination choice, post-destination choice, during trip
and post-trip.

To search for ideas on

where to go for a trip Pre-Destination Choice

To have ideas as an 4.44 To narrow down my
inspiration for my…4.22 option of destinations

To provide evaluation 4.47 To confirm that I made
and reviews about my… 4.45 a good destination…
PRE-TRIP
3.96

POST-TRIP To share my To seek ideas and
experiences and4….35 information about…
3.81 4.48
To visit social media
that was not related to… 3.9 Post Destination Choice

To seek ideas and
4.49 information on an…

To stay connected with 4.32 4.44 To find out information
friends and relatives about specific…

To provide comments DURING TRIP
and reviews about my…

Figure 1: Trip Planning Process

This study shows that social media were used during all stages of the trip planning process.
Based on figure 1, the domestic tourists’ used social media predominantly before the trip
stages to search for ideas regarding the travel destination, attractions, recreational
activities, and accommodations. However, the previous study by Fotis, Buhalis and Rossides
(2011), showed the opposite result, where their respondents used social media after the
trip to share experiences and pictures to friends and relatives.

Before the trip of “pre-destination stage”, most of the respondents used social media in
order to narrow down the option of destinations with the mean of 4.47 and during “post-
destination stage”, the respondents usually used social media to seek ideas and
information on an excursion and other leisure activities with the mean of 4.49.

264

During the trip, most of the respondents likely used social media to find out information
about specific attractions and leisure activities with a mean of 4.44. Last but not least, after
the trip or “post-destination choice”, social media has been used to share experiences and
pictures with friends and other relatives with a mean of 4.35.

4.4 The Influence of Social Media

This study also intends to identify the social media influence on tourists’ travel plans. Based
on the question, the respondent were asked to recall back their last trip to indicate whether
social media has influenced the tourists’ travel plan.

Table 3: Influence of Social Media
Influence of Social Media

Items Percentage (%)

How likely are you to Not Unlikely Likely Definitely
make a final decision to At All 5.0 40.9 52.7
book a trip or travel
product because of the 1.4
influence of social
media?

How likely are you to 6.8 14.5 48.2 30.5

change your existing

travel plans because of

the influence of social

media?

Based on Table 2, the findings of this study revealed that most of the respondents (52.7%)
definitely make a final decision to book a trip or travel product because of the influence of
social media. Similarly, Cox et al. (2009) also indicate that social media influenced 51% of
the respondents to make a final decision relating to booking a trip or travel product. Besides
that, for the second question, 48.2% of the respondents likely to change their existing travel
plans because of the influence of social media. The study by Fotis, Buhalis and Rossides
(2011) found that 49.5% of the respondents likely to make some changes in their existing
travel plan. Thus, it can be concluded that the credibility of social media is vital in
influencing the respondents towards the traveler's trip planning process (Yulin, 2016).

4.5 The Perceived Level of Trust

265

In order to understand the reason why people using social media during their travel
process, the study conducted by Buhalis, Fotis and Rossides (2012) lists twelve statements,
categorized by four trip stages: pre-destination choice, post-destination choice, during trip
and post-trip.

Table 3: Perceived level of trust

I trust information about the holidays Mean Standard Ranking
1
provided by… deviation

(N=210, 7-point Likert scale: 1=Strongly

Disagree, 5= …..,7 = Strongly Agree)

Friends and relatives 5.70 1.070

Information provided by the other tourists 5.35 1.110 4
on the internet

Information on social media 5.40 1.165 3

Official tourism websites 5.70 1.189 2

Travel agencies 5.32 1.296 5

Advertisements on TV, radio, newspaper or 5.30 1.261 6
magazine

In addition, the researchers also analyzed the perceived level of trust towards social media
compared to traditional sources of holiday-related information. As displayed in Table 3,
social media was ranked as third out of six travel information sources. This study revealed
that the respondents still trust the information provided by the official tourism website as
it is ranked first and the information from friends or relatives ranked second with the same
value of the mean. Similarly, the findings by Cox et al. (2009) also found that tourism official
tourism websites have slightly higher of the perceived level of trust compare to social
media. Even though the findings of this study indicate the social media is ranked as third
place, it can be suggested that most of the respondents still trust and depend on social
media as there is only a slight difference between the mean of the three items. The official
tourism websites and friends and relatives shared the same mean of 5.70 while the mean
for social media is 5.30. Thus, it can be suggested that the respondents still rely on social
media in order to search for information related to travel purposes as it is easy and
convenient to use.

5. CONCLUSION

This study identified the influence of social media towards the trip planning process for pre-
destination choice, post destination choice, during trip and post-trip. This study also
examined the use of social media, social media influence and perceived the respondents’

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level of trust towards social media.

This study was conducted in order to understand at which stage the domestic tourists in
Malaysia would be using social media for their trip planning process and the influence of
social media towards their trip decision. Furthermore, this research also contributed by
providing a better understanding of domestic tourists’ behavior for marketing purposes.
Based on this study, marketing strategies can be strategized to promote Pahang as one of
the popular destinations for domestic tourism.

There are several limitations to this study. The respondents of this study were only focused
on the domestic tourists to Pahang. For future study, researchers can replicate this study
with larger representative samples from other demographic segments to include domestic
tourists from other states, international, inbound or outbound tourists.

It is recommended for future researchers to add translations of the questionnaire in other
languages such as Mandarin and Tamil as Malaysia is a multiracial country. Some of the
respondents might not understand English well so it will better if there are translations in
their mother tongue.

Lastly, the government of Malaysia promoted domestic tourism aggressively through
several campaigns, namely ‘Cuti-Cuti Malaysia’, ‘Zoom Malaysia’ and the latest ‘Cuti-Cuti
Malaysia Dekat Je’ (Tourism Malaysia Integrated Promotion Plan, 2018). Besides that,
Tourism Malaysia aims to encourage domestic tourists to stay at paid accommodation and
increase domestic tourism expenditure through meeting, incentives, conference and
exhibition (MICE) segment (Tourism Malaysia Integrated Promotion Plan, 2018).

In conclusion, this study shows that social media are used at all levels of stages of the trip
planning process (pre-destination choice, post destination choice, during the trip and after
the trip). Contrasting to the findings by Cox et al. (2009), which found that social media are
mainly used during the trip, however, this study revealed that the domestic tourists’ used
social media predominantly before the trip stages (pre and post destination choice). Thus,
organizations and marketing team from the tourism and hospitality industry in Malaysia is
encouraged to use social media as one of their marketing tools and channel to promote
and attract more tourists by providing more information online.

Acknowledgment: I would like to express my appreciation for the support from my lecturer
and supervisor Dr. Samshul Amry Abdul Latif for sharing his expertise, valuable guidance
and encouragement which contributed to the outcome of this study.

267

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269

Proceedings of the 3rd International Language & Tourism Conference 2019
Sustaining Global Development Goals through
Language, Education and Tourism

Kulliyyah of Languages and Management, International Islamic University
Malaysia, Pagoh Edu Hub, Malaysia 18th-19th October 2019

THERMAL COMFORT IN THE FACE OF CLIMATE CHANGE:
ARE WE REALLY COMFORTABLE IN REGION WITH INCREASE AND PROSPECT OF

VOLUNTOURISM

Yakubu A. Dodo1*, Lawrence P. Moveh2, Elina M. Husini3, Said A. Kori4 & Medina Chukusa5

1, 3 Sustainable Environmental Research Group, Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment, Universiti
Sains Islam Malaysia (USIM), Nilai, 71800, MALAYSIA.

2 Facilities Department, Bola Tinubu Health & Diagnostic Center, Lagos State University Teaching
Hospital (LASUTH), Lagos, NIGERIA.

4 Building Information Modeling, Africa Initiative, 19, Kaltungo Street, Garki 2, Abuja, NIGERIA
5 Nigeria Institute of Architect (NIA) Abuja, NIGERIA

(Email: *[email protected] , [email protected], [email protected],
[email protected], [email protected] )

ABSTRACT

Global warming and environmental degradation are two of the greatest challenges facing the
world today, there case of increase in the level of oceans, desert encroachment, hurricanes,
earthquakes, tsunami, heat, flash floods etc. all of this have claimed lives while rendering millions
homeless. Recent studies have shown that this will continue to increase with developing
countries being the most vulnerable. Man’s response to these challenges should not be limited
to combating efforts alone but should also include adequate adaptation strategies that would
help minimize the impending disasters. This paper examines the science of global warming and
its implication on thermal comfort with increase and prospect of voluntourism in the regions were
these prospects are high. From this study it shows that voluntourism could directly or indirectly
affect all the goals in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) especially goals no 1 and 2 (‘No
Poverty’ by creating job for tourist guide) as well as (Zero Hunger as it will boost the tourist
industry). In another case more it could slow down the quest by tourist to travel, as individual
comfort is placed as take.

Keywords: Thermal comfort; Climate change; Region; Voluntourism

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1. INTRODUCTION:

Thermal comfort as defined by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-
Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) “is the state of mind that expresses satisfaction with the
surrounding environment” (ASHRAE, 2004). Our ever increasing developmental need is one of
the major issues which confront us as humanity. The United Nations’ High Level Panel on Threats,
Challenges and Change (2004) declared it as one of the ten threats to international peace and
security. In the past decades a lot have been discussed about climate change and its implication
within the academic society. There are strong scientific evidences to prove the existence trends
in global climate. Changes in time frequency and magnitude of climatic events are observed. For
instance Africa has lost 30% of its forest to city expansion since 1970 (Mba, 2005; Zubairu, 2006).
Similarly, the ozone layer which shields the Earth’s surface from direct ultraviolet rays from the
sun is rapidly being eroded by certain substances released into the atmosphere through human
activities such as space rocket and satellite launching, nuclear weapon testing and industrial
activities.

Perhaps more worrisome is the issue of global warming which is starring the whole world in the
face. There are reported cases of severe ocean surge, hurricanes, earthquakes, tsunamis, etc.
which have claimed many lives and rendered several millions homeless. The phenomenon is
believed by many scientists to have been caused by human emissions of greenhouse gases which
come from a variety of human activities including burning fossil fuels for heat and energy, clearing
forests, fertilising crops, storing waste in landfills, raising livestock and producing some kind of
industrial products. Global warming has been projected to increase worldwide by 1.4oC – 5.8oC
by 2100 due to the ever increasing human activities and the world population (IPCC 2012). With
this increase it will amount to more frequent and intense ocean surge, hurricanes, storms, heat
stress, and flooding than are currently being experienced in urban centers.

2. BACKGROUND OF STUDY

2.1 Science of Climate Change: An Overview

Climate change refers to significant changes in global temperature, precipitation, wind patterns
and other measures of climate that occur over several decades or longer. A change in global or
regional climate patterns, in particular a change apparent from the mid to late 20th century
onwards and attributed largely to the increased levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide produced
by the use of fossil fuels.

The sun being the primary source of energy for the earth’s climate, with some of the incoming
sunlight gets reflected directly back into space, especially by bright surfaces such as ice and clouds
with the rest being absorbed by the surface and the atmosphere. Much of the absorbed solar
energy gets remitted as heat (long wave or infrared radiation). The atmosphere gets to absorb
and re- radiates heat, with some escaping into space. The incoming and outgoing energy will be
affected if there is any disturbance to the balance. For example, any change in the output of

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energy from the sun will affect this balance. Any changes in the sun’s energy usually affect the
climate by natural processes such as, shifts in ocean current, etc., which in turn affect the
weather, oceans, snow, ice, ecosystems and the entire society. Small changes in the average
temperature of the planet Earth, for example, can translate to large and potentially dangerous
shifts in local climate and weather. In recent times observation in the earths’ climate shows it is
facing a rapid warming.

Several studies have raised alarm over the raid increase in gases into the atmosphere through
human activities, (Wilby, 2009; IPCC, 2007; IPCC, 2012). For example, carbon dioxide
concentration which was reported to be 281 parts per million (ppm) in 1750, has increased to
368 ppm in 2006, representing 31%. This translates to 1.5 ppm increase per year. The
concentration of nitrous oxide, which traps 300 times more than does the same amount as CO2
has equally been reported to be 17% more than it was during the preindustrial period (IPCC,
2007). These activities are more pronounced in urban centers which tend to be warmer than less
populated area. The resultant effect of this warming is increase in humidity as a result of more
water evaporating from the oceans, which in turn will increase rainfall (about 1% for each
Fahrenheit degree of warming). Not only does the warming accelerate water evaporation, it
causes the surface layer of the ocean to warm as well, expanding in volume and thus raising sea
level. Wind speed is also expected to decrease in frequency and intensity in areas that are close
to the equator, which will subsequently raise heat stress (Roaf, et al, 2009). The higher
temperatures and solar radiation also stimulate the production of photochemical smog as well
as ozone precursor biogenic Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) by some plants (Wilby, 2009).

2.2 The Concept of Voluntourism

Volunteer tourism represents a combination of volunteerism and tourism. It normally involves a
travel experience during which the traveller dedicates a portion of time to rendering voluntary
services to a destination – its residents, environment, or infrastructure – in an effort to create a
positive impact on the destination. Typical of an emerging niche, a consensus of one definition
for volunteer tourism does not exist. While the definition of volunteerism varies, it is generally
assumed that a volunteer is a person who contributes services to a cause without gaining
financially. In many non-profit organisations, volunteers form an essential part. In some cases,
they equal or outnumber the amount of paid staff an organisation may have. One area where
volunteers are often utilised by non-profit organisations is in the delivery of services. These are
often referred to as ‘service volunteers’. While they may have different motivations from a
normal employee, non-profit organisations use these individuals as much as they do regular
employees. The key element is the existence of both a volunteer component and a tourism
component. Other terms such as volunteer vacations and gap years etc. have all been applied to
the volunteer tourism concept.

In a recent study conducted by Xola Consulting and the George Washington University, three
models of tourism that gives back to the local population or destination were identified. In many
cases, tour operators or non-profit organisations may incorporate more than one model.

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• Traveller philanthropy: contribution is financial; frequently inspired, directed and
facilitated through travel experiences and contacts – tour operators or NGOs.

• Facilitated traveller community interaction: tour operator or NGO facilitates quality
interaction for the express purpose of cultural exchange and learning between local
communities and travellers

• Travellers physically volunteer: traveller is physically engaged in a community or
environmental project, hosted by either an NGO or a tour operator.

At present, volunteer tourism is a rapidly emerging form of alternative tourism. Unlike some of
the other alternative tourism activities, volunteer tourism can incorporate culture, education,
science, adventure and agricultural tourism, among others.

2.3 Voluntourism and Climate Change

Climate change, accelerated by anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, will induce
drastic changes in the near future, affecting the environment and consequently the lives of
people all around the world (IPCC, 2012). A recent special report by the Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change (IPCC), estimates that already 1.0°C of global warming after the industrial
revolution is caused by human activities, and between 2030 and 2052 the temperature is likely
to rise to 1.5°C. An emerging trend alongside conventional tourism is volunteer tourism, so called
‘voluntourism’. A volunteer tourist is a person who uses “discretionary time and income to travel
out of the sphere of regular activity to assist others in need”. As conventional tourism continues
its growth, it is likely that voluntourism will also grow in the future, as more and more young
people are interested in making an impact while simultaneously enjoying the cultural experience
of tourism. This is why it is important to estimate the climate impact of voluntourism, in order to
formulate mitigation policies and inform the voluntourism industry and international volunteers
about their environmental impacts.

3. METHOD

The primary data for this paper was obtained through a critical literature review on the various
subjects discussed in the paper; thermal comfort, climate change: comfort ability and
voluntourism as they relate to the subject matter and was critically analyze to come up with an
empirical conclusion.

3.1 Climate and Human Thermal Comfort

The human body temperature is constant at 370C under different internal and external conditions
in order to stay healthy. This is achieved by maintaining a balance between the heats produced
and acquired by the body and the amount of heat lost by the body. Low humidity encourages
evaporation of perspiration from the human body which allows a rapid cooling of the skin. The
converse is also true: increase in humidity decreases the evaporation of perspiration, thereby
inhibiting the cooling efficiency of sweating.

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3.2 Impacts of Global Warming on Built Environment

Global climate keeps changing. Some of the changes take place over millions of years; for
instance, the slow passage of ice-age to ice-age. This steady rise in global temperature is known
as global warming. According to experts, the global temperature change is attributed to some
factors, but most recently is the increasing atmospheric concentration of greenhouse gases such
as carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (NH4), nitrous oxide (NO2) and chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs).
With the construction industry tied to most sectors that are the focus of global warming
initiatives, including transportation, power generation, residential and commercial building,
manufacturing, mining, forestry, and waste management, experts maintain that knowledge
about short-term weather and long-term climate variability are essential to adequately design
and successfully manage construction projects. this is especially so in developing countries, which
are said to be vulnerable to this situation because their economies are dependent on climate-
sensitive natural resources, but are yet, less able to cope with the impact. “The effects of climate
change need to be taken into consideration in all aspects of construction, from land use planning
to the positioning, construction, and life-cycle management of buildings. Clever infrastructure
planning can counteract some of the negative effects of climate change and create attractive
built environments. This is the tenets of environmental sustainability,”

3.3 Impacts of Global Warming on Voluntourism

Climate change is of crucial concern to international development and poverty reduction. The
seventh UN Millennium Development Goal (MDG) is ‘ensure environmental sustainability’:
managing climate change is integral to achieving this goal. Any organisation that addresses
poverty must also engage with the issue of climate change since climate change is predicted to
exacerbate many of the processes that compound poverty. There are a number of naturally
present greenhouse gases in the atmosphere including carbon dioxide, methane and water
vapour. By delaying the loss of heat from the Earth and trapping it in the atmosphere, these gases
create the greenhouse effect. The combustion of fossil fuels releases vast amounts of carbon
dioxide into the atmosphere; therefore human activity is responsible for an enhanced
greenhouse effect. Fifty per cent of this enhanced greenhouse effect is attributed to carbon
dioxide emissions. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicts that by 2100
the Earth’s average surface temperature is likely to increase by approximately 2oC to 4˚C (best
case scenario); because current climate change is a net increase in temperature, the term ‘global
warming’ is used interchangeably with climate change. Climate change is already identified as
the cause of increasingly frequent severe weather events (including storms and droughts) and
sea level rise. Climate change has received much recent media attention, largely due to the
development of carbon offset schemes and awareness events (a recent example is the
international Live Earth concert in July 2007). Al Gore’s highly successful film An Inconvenient
Truth, released mid-2006, established climate change as a mainstream media issue. Although
there are many disagreements regarding causes and effects and trajectories of climate change,

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there is a broad consensus that anthropogenic activities have accelerated climate change and
that the impacts of climate change will have far reaching consequences of a great magnitude

3.4 Popular Volunteer Tourism Destinations

There are several lists of top volunteer destinations compiled by organisations and companies
such as Forbes, Condé Nast and Voluntourism.org. In 2008, the UCSD published a survey of 1,400
US adults regarding volunteer tourism. Africa came out on top as the most desired international
destination for a volunteer trip, followed by East Asia and South America. While international
destinations are especially popular among the younger travellers, 36% of retirees and Baby
Boomers surveyed indicated a preference to stay in North America.

Table 1: Most desired international destinations for US-based volunteer tourists, 2007 source:
technical report (2008)

S/N Destination Estimated share of the Market
1 Africa 17

2 East Asia 12

3 South America 9

4 Mexico 8

5 Western Europe 8

6 Eastern Europe 7

7 Central America 6

8 Pacific Islands 5

9 Australia 4

10 Middle East 3

3.5 Voluntourism Influences on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Volunteering brings people together, allowing them to participate in their own growth and reach
out to other people, including those in marginalized communities. Volunteer Services Overseas
(VSO) worked with networks like the Volunteer Groups Alliance to influence the creation of the
Goals and ensure the unique role volunteers can play in achieving them was recognised. VSO
volunteers have worked towards all 17 Goals, but especially Goal 1 (No Poverty), Goal 3 (Good
Health and Well-Being), Goal 4 (Quality Education), Goal 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth),
Goal 10 (Reduced Inequalities) and Goal 17 (Partnership for the Goals).

275

Figure 2: Voluntourism influence on the SDGs source: Google image O'Sullivan, (2018)

4.0 RECOMMENDATIONS

From the literature reviewed the following are some of the recommendations that are suggested;

4.1 Layout and Form Buildings should be arranged in such a way that one does not cast shadow
over the other. Streets should be aligned in parallel, or up to 300C to the prevailing wind direction
to minimise the penetration of prevailing wind through the array of buildings in the towns and
cities. Optimum ventilation can be achieved if the distance between these buildings does not
exceed six times the height of the building. The enactment of setback and height regulations that
ensure adequate air space and low rise building corridors is therefore important.

4.2 Roof Design and Materials Roof is a building element that receives direct sunlight. Its design
and construction therefore plays an important role in the mitigation of heat stress. A highly
reflective roofing material with a wide overhang for protection against direct sunlight should
therefore be used. A pitched roof of considerable slope can be of immense benefit. This lowers
incidence of global solar radiation. Higher ceiling height can further improve the thermal climate
of buildings. This causes the hot air layers to be pushed away from the occupants of the space
(Guaramaes, et al, 2013; Mofrad, 2013).

4.3 Landscape Materials Mitigation of thermal discomfort can be accomplished through careful
design of external areas. Hard paving materials such as concrete, bitumen, stones, etc have high
heat capacity and thus dissipate much heat at night. Extensive and continuous stretch of parking
lots should therefore be avoided. Interwining the parking lots with green areas would go a long
way in improving thermal comfort. Vegetation, by absorbing unwanted carbon dioxide, cleans
the air; reduces the sun glare; absorbs solar radiation; and by transpiration, cools the air.
Greenery reduces overheating of air and thus paralyses the formation of rising air currents that
create clouds and smoke over the environment. This can be complemented by the use of green

276

roofs. The roof plants cool the structure through evaporation while the earth upon which the
vines are planted insulates the roof from deleterious effects of sunlight.

4.4 Shading Devices projecting structures such as overhanging cornices and vertical screens can
be used as sun control measures. Balconies, verandas, courtyards and other outdoor living areas
should be generously used also. Light-coloured curtains with high reflectance properties can
further be used to improve upon the internal climate of the rooms.

4. 5 Material Specifications There is an established relationship between building materials and
the thermal comfort desirable in a space. All enclosure materials must therefore be carefully
selected. Extensive use of fixed glass, in particular, should be avoided. This simulates greenhouse
effect which creates heat in buildings and thus renders the internal climate uncomfortable.

4.6 Fence-Wall Design Fence-walls contributes much to heat gain in the buildings. They should,
therefore, not be too close to the building. A tall, impermeable fence alters the speed and
direction of wind, creating a region of positive pressure on its windward side and a suction
pressure on its leeward side. Buildings located on the latter side experience poor ventilation.
Fence-walls should therefore be as low as possible. A see- through fence-wall should be used
also. This would permit a large quantity of air into the building it encloses.

5. CONCLUSION

The foregoing discussion has established that the urban centers are getting warmer by the year.
This has been predicted to be on the increase by 2050 irrespective of the intensity of carbon
reduction effort. Humidity is expected to increase and the wind speed would be reduced. The
implication of this on building is that the outdoor temperatures would rise thus reducing the
cooling potential of natural ventilation. This could be made worse by tall solid fence-wall that are
usually built very close to the buildings, and those aspiring western forms which are both
economically and environmentally burdensome, utilizing similar designs, materials and
technologies in different climatic regions. This, according to the paper, portends danger to the
health and survival of the urban dwellers. If the environmental goal of reducing greenhouse gas
emission is to be achieved, and at the same time build resilient cities and structures that can
stand up to the imminent overheating, then the key to comfortable survival is an urban and
architectural design that reduces solar penetration into the building and enhances air circulation
within and between buildings. This can be achieved by following the design guidelines
recommended above. Africa came out on top as the most desired international destination for a
volunteer trip, followed by East Asia and South America. While international destinations are
especially popular among the younger travellers, the question is with the current threat of
climate change globally how will voluntourism improve the SDGs or how would it affect this goals
especially when we are talking of comfort.

From this study it shows that voluntourism could directly affect or indirectly affect all the goals
especially goals no 1 and 2 (‘No Poverty’ by creating job for tourist guide) as well as (Zero Hunger

277

as it will boost the tourist industry). On a more serious note it could slow down the quest by
tourist to travel, as individual comfort is placed as take. With the recent case in Paris where the
temperature rose up to 45oC. Similar occurrences in other cities as well; in places like Indonesia
and Japan constant earth quake and tremor as well as volcanic activities would make intended
tourist to think twice before embarking on such activities.

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