A cross-country analysis of decision-making factors influencing tourists’ shift towards circular destinations in EU-27

The end of the pandemic introduced paradigmatic changes in several application domains - including the tourism and hospitality industry - and revealed territorial differences across the EU-27 area. Hence, the main aim of this paper is analyzing how travel habits, social, territorial and cultural factors led tourists to shift toward more sustainable practices and circular destinations after COVID-19, with a specific focus on the detection of regional clusters based on cross-country differences. The multi-country comparative analysis is centered on the measurement of sustainability-/circularity-related constructs and is grounded in a unique theoretical framework, integrating Value-Belief-Norm Theory, Information Adoption Model and Theory of Planned Behaviour. We examined 25,711 responses from the Flash-Eurobarometer-499 questionnaire (June 2022), using multi-group partial-least-square structural equation models (MG-PLS-SEM). Moreover, we assessed hidden heterogeneity across EU-27 countries through segmentation techniques like Finite Mixture (FIMIX-PLS) and Prediction-Oriented Segmentation (PLS-POS) in order to identify homogenous territorial clusters. Findings show that more sustainable travel habits have emerged after COVID-19, and new, sustainable and cultural factors now influence destination choices, while people look for more information when planning trips, emphasizing circular practices on destinations. Also, six regional clusters were identified across EU-27 countries, suggesting that managers and policy-makers should adopt ad hoc measures to respond to the circular shift in the tourism and hospitality industry, depending on territorial differences.