Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between product characteristics, product preference and purchase intention for Mongolian tourists visiting Korea, and in particular, to analyze the moderating effect of product involvement and tourist image in the relationship between product characteristics and purchase intention. Research design, data, and methodology: A research model was derived through existing literature research and a survey was conducted on Mongolian tourists visiting Korea. SPSS and AMOS24.0 were used for data analysis and hypothesis testing. Results: The tourism product characteristics affect the product preference and purchase intention. Tourist image and involvement have moderating effects between product preference and purchased intention. Conclusions: This study demonstrated that product characteristics at travel destinations is a key factor in order to enhance the product preference and purchase intention for foreigners visiting Korea. On the other hand, since the purchase intention of the tourism destination vary depending on tourist image and involvement, it suggests that travel industry practitioners or researchers should try to various efforts to enhance the factors which affect the involvement or the tourists or image of the tourist site.