Does the flamenco tourist exist? Motivation and segmentation

Abstract

Flamenco is a popular art, symbol of the culture of southern Spain, has a growing number of fans both from this country and from the rest of the world. This paper tried to find out if flamenco can be a determinant motivational element when choosing a destination and if there is a specific flamenco tourist who tries to travel to symbolic flamenco places. The results show evidence of the existence of three motivational dimensions directly related to flamenco: flamenco experience, flamenco brand, flamenco pretext. Also, a so-called ‘musical dimension’ was observed, where the motivation to participate in musical experiences in general prevailed. Based on these motivational dimensions, three types of flamenco tourists were identified: flamenco lovers, friends of flamenco, and musical attraction. It was found that the group formed by ‘flamenco lovers’ has a very high sensitivity to all musical variables related to flamenco, being this one, the most numerous group.