People have almost unlimited wants, but limited resources (Kotler et al 1996). Therefore when buying a product, customers want to receive satisfaction in quality as well as good value for money (Kotler et el 1996). When buying a certain product, a customer is influenced by various factors such as family life-cycle, occupation, economic situation, lifestyle etc. A customer, who is young and unmarried, might spend more on entertainment, while married couples with children have other costs to think about. Also occupation is very important, as it affects customers buying behavior and their choice and decisions to buy a product (Kotler et el 1996).
Last but not least, lifestyle influences people’s choices too. One person might have a completely different pattern of living than another person (Kotler et al 1996). For example, where the customer prefers to stay overnight, in a hotel or in cheap hostel? What does the customer want to eat, a sandwich or a three course meal?
There are many ideas behind why people travel. For some it is only an educational purpose, whilst others consider it an entertainment pass time. People travel for recreation, to meet business partners or just visit friends and families (Human Kinetics 2006).
If looking back only a few years ago, travelling required serious preparation: booking with the help of travel agents, buying guidebooks and maps, collecting brochures, catalogues and leaflets (Human Kinetics 2006). Today everything has changed as innovative technologies allow more flexible access to information, booking services, and other tourist support. Therefore, on-the-spot travelling becomes more flexible ( Berendien Lubbe 2005)
