Senior and non-senior traveller behaviour: some exploratory evidence from the holiday rental sector in Switzerland

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to test a number of hypotheses concerning the differences between senior and non-senior travelers in the particular context of holiday rentals. A further aim is to provide exploratory evidence for these differences.
Design/methodology/approach – A brief review of the extant literature leads into the formulation of some hypotheses. The hypotheses are tested using survey data. Data from the same survey are used to explore further data.
Findings – It was possible not only to find some evidence to support the hypotheses, but also to find significant differences between the preferences of seniors and non-seniors, as well as between pre-seniors and seniors. Thus, pre-seniors exhibit a higher willingness to pay for holiday rentals than seniors, whereas seniors have a higher preference for domestic travel. Seniors are less interested in technology than other age groups.
Originality/value – This paper reports on survey findings for a segment of the tourism market that has received practically no attention in the literature – the holiday rental market. The results pave the way for further investigations within this segment.