Original Scientific Article
Are You Feeling Nostalgic, Neighbour?
Tina Segota
University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Economics, Slovenia tina.segota@ef.uni-lj.si
Zlatko Jancic
University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Social Sciences, Slovenia zlatko.jancic@fdv.uni-lj.si
Despite the fact that Slovenia is one of the most important emissive tourism markets for Croatia, little is known about the travel-related behaviour of young Slovenian travellers and their connection to the phenomenon of Yugo-nostalgia. This study focuses on the potential of segmentation of the neighbouring travel market in relation to the influence of the nostalgia factor. More specifically, the objectives of the study are: (1) to determine travel motives for visiting Croatia among young Slovene travellers; (2) to define segments (clusters) of visitors based on destination perceptions; (3) to determine the influence of Yugo-nostalgia on travel motivation. The findings of the study indicate that young visitors can be divided into four different segments with similar characteristics based on destination perception and the influence of Yugo-nostalgia. The results of the study could be applicable to tourism destination strategies and advertising on the part of destination management. Keywords: travel motivation; destination perception; market segmentation; Yugo-nostalgia, Slovenia, Croatia
Introduction
In recent years, Slovene visitors have played a prominent role in Croatian tourism as they represent, according to G. Blazic, a 'large, significant and steady market Croatia could count on' (personal communication, 6. August 2010). Significant geographical, political and economic connections between Slovenia and Croatia have resulted in a certain image of Croatia as a tourist destination, influencing the motivation of Slovenes to visit the destination or not. This is of crucial importance as improving the image and perceived quality of a destination can result in an escalation in tourism (Konecnik, 2005; Leisen, 2001).
The historical relationship established between the neighbouring countries during the period of the Yugoslav federation might result in Slovene tourists developing an emotional attachment towards the destination, the so-called Yugo-nostalgia. The phenome-
non of Yugo-nostalgia has been researched by numerous authors (Boym, 2001; Kuzmanic, 2008; Lampe, 1991; Seil, 2010; Velikonja, 2008; Volcic, 2007) and is generally defined as a collective memory recreating a time to which Yugoslavians belonged before the collapse of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (sfry) in 1991. By connecting Yugo-nostalgia with tourism, we decided to relate it to nostalgic feelings that might be aroused among Slovene tourists who visit Croatia because of its Yugoslavian traditions and cultural heritage, as well as their annual visits to the Croatian coastline (a long-standing tradition). The established historical and political connections between the two neighbouring countries resulted in many Slovenians owning weekend houses along the Croatian coastline in the sfry era, which currently gives them free accommodation during their visits to Croatia. This might also create the potential for
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Croatian tourism managers and stakeholders to recruit younger generations (sons and daughters of the weekend house owners), who do not have historical connections to Yugoslavia, to continue to visit the destination.
Although the Republic of Slovenia is one of the most prominent emissive tourism markets for the Republic of Croatia, little is known about the travel-related behaviours of Slovenes in relation to the nostalgic dimension. In particular, research relating to young Slovenian travellers and their connection to Yugo-nostalgia is still limited. Therefore, we assume that there is a significant difference in destination perceptions connected to Yugo-nostalgia among younger Slovene travellers. Moreover, we argue that young travellers, who do not experience Yugo-nostalgia, even though they regularly visit Croatia with their parents and friends, will have a negative overall perception of the destination, whereas those who do develop Yugo-nostalgia have a positive overall perception of Croatia as a tourist destination. Therefore, in this study, we examine the potential of segmenting the neighbouring travel market in relation to the influence of the nostalgia factor. More specifically, the objectives of the study are: 1) to uncover the possibility of segmenting the Slovenian travel market based on destination perception, and 2) to depict the influence of the nostalgia factor in travel motivation.
Literature Review
Importance of Destination Perception in Travel Motivation
Understanding the basic needs and wishes of tourists and their travel habits is of considerable importance in the tourism industry (Crompton, 1979; Jang & Wu, 2006; Yoon & Uysal, 2006). Numerous authors (e.g. Bigné, Sánchez & Sánchez, 2001; Fakeye & Crompton, 1991) note that the awareness of a destination's image is of enormous help to stakeholders in recognising the strengths and weaknesses that influence the attraction of tourists to the destination and ensuring the satisfaction of their wishes and needs (Andreu, Kozak, Avci, & Ciffer, 2006).
Lubbe (1998) argues that an individual starts to think about travelling when the need for change in
his/her everyday life occurs; next, that person evaluates different destinations to satisfy this need. Therefore, wecan observeaconsumer decision-makingpro-cess among tourists in an information search phase, in which tourists search for information on the attractiveness, availability, services, costs and image of potential destinations (Mathieson & Wall, 1982; Mid-dleton, 1996). Although interest in destination image research is increasing, there is no single definition of the concept. What the various definitions have in common is that destination image is identified as a product of the thoughts, beliefs and impressions of customers (Dowling, 2001; Kotler & Gertner, 2002). Anholt (2003) briefly states that a country's image is defined by the perception of individuals, whereas Bre-zovec (2001) considers that the 'overall image of the country directly influences tourists' opinion about the attributes of tourism products and services, and indirectly influences the perception and evaluation of the country as a tourism destination' (p. 745). Moreover, numerous authors (Alhemoud & Armstrong, 1996; Birgit, 2001; Echtner & Ritchie, 1993; Leisen, 2001; Konecnik, 2005) agree that a better evaluation of destination image and quality perception results in a greater probability of the destination being chosen. Furthermore, a favourable destination image positively impacts tourists' motivation to travel to the destination, as well as their experience and satisfaction when there (Bigné et al, 2001).
Numerous studies on tourist decision-making (Ba-loglu, 1997; Baloglu & McCleary, 1999; Beerli & Martin, 2004; Chen & Kersetter, 1999; Calantone, Di Benetton, Hakam, & Bojanic, 1989; Stern & Krakover, 1993; Um & Crompton, 1990; Wamsley & Jenkins, 1993; Woodside & Lysonski, 1989) suggest the importance of socio-demographics (e.g. sex, age, occupation, social status) in the formation of destination perception. Moreover, the frequency of visits also influences destination perception as research has shown that recognition, density and length of a visit to a destination have an impact on destination image (Baloglu & Manga-loglu, 2001; Chon, 1991; Fakeye & Crompton, 1991; Hu & Ritchie, 1993; Milman & Pizman, 1995).
In relation to destination image, a key target maybe Generation Y consumers, in this research represented
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by young travellers from the Republic of Slovenia. As Lozarevic (2012, p. 45) pointed out: 'generation Y consumers are becoming a very important segment in today's market because of their size, their current significant amount of spending power and their potential for huge amounts in future spending power.'
Generation Y is thought to comprise up to 70 million people world-wide (Cui, Trent, & Sullivan, 2003; Tsui & Hughes, 2001; Wolburg & Pokrywczyn-ski, 2001) born between 1980 and 1994 with spending habits of usd 153-155 billion per year (Bush, Martin, & Bush, 2004; Cui et al., 2003; Lippe, 2001; Tsui & Hughes, 2001). In 2010, this segment in Slovenia represented 488,321 citizens, equal to almost a quarter (23.8%) of the Slovene population (http://www.stat.si). Little is known about these citizens' spending habits in Slovenia, but choosing to ignore this segment could be risky for Croatia as it could be the next dominant segment in tourism to the destination (Neuborne & Kerwin, 1999).
A factor that may influence destination image or perception in the context of this study is nostalgia, specifically 'Yugo-nostalgia.' However, its influence is unclear, especially for Generation Y Slovenes, who had little or no connection to Yugoslavia.
The Concept of Yugo-Nostalgia
Nostalgia derives from the combination of the Greek nostras (returning home) and algos (pain), and in the 17th century it was first used as a medical term to describe the physical manifestation of the homesickness of seamen and travellers (Bancroft, 2009). Boym (2001) divides nostalgia into two conceptual categories: restorative and reflective nostalgia. Restorative nostalgia is connected to Greek word nostros and represents an attempt to restore the past and the way something was before a certain change. Reflective nostalgia, connected to algos, describing pain and longing, refers to dwelling on feelings evoked by memories of the past, but with no attempt at restoration (Boym, 2001). Velikonja (2008) further divides nostalgia into feeling/idea nostalgia and materialised nostalgia. The first is the nostalgia present in individuals and in their collective and individual memories of the past; the second is present in material objects such as buildings,
monuments and souvenirs. In relation to tourism, we focus on Velikonja's (2008) definition of feeling/idea nostalgia and Boym's reflective nostalgia.
Pascal (2003) considers that nostalgia, defined as the result of idealising personal experience and the experiences of others, influences decision-making processes among consumers with low levels of involvement in a product or brand. In relation to tourism, Hou, Lin and Morais (2005) argue the importance of experience in that positive feedback on the attractiveness of a destination influences the development of an emotional relationship with the destination. In the case of Slovenia, a powerful emissive market for Croatia, one must not neglect the influence of the countries' historical links and interdependence in the period of the sfry, potentially resulting in Yugo-nostalgia, which may influence travel motivation and destination perception.
Nostalgia is about positive memories of the past (Holbrook, 1993); in the memorisation process, imagined memories (Belk, 1990) can reflect either personal experiences from one's own past or memories one has not experienced personally (Stern, 1992). Nostalgia based on memories that are not personal is defined as collective nostalgia, which represents longing for the past of a certain culture, nation or generation (Baker & Kennedy, 1994); this includes collective experiences related to a group or cultural events one may have been part of or that can be derived from secondary sources (Havlen & Holak, 1996). Holbrook and Schindler (1996) refer to nostalgia as 'a preference towards objects (people, destination, place, things) that were more common (popular, modern) in time of one's youth (childhood, adolescence period or even before one's birth)' (p. 29). According to Volcic (2009, p. 8), Yugo-nostalgia was about 'six nations, five languages, four religions and one Tito.' Without examining the conflicting historical disputes about his overall role, it is the fact that Tito, with his charisma and personality, played a crucial part in building Yugoslav identity. During his lifetime, he managed - 'to create a trusting relationship between the ethnicities; instead of Croats, Slovenes, Bosniaks, and Serbians, there were only Yugoslavs under Tito' (Seil, 2010, p. 6). Moreover, the unity of different nations was even more emphasised
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Are You Feeling Nostalgic, Neighbour?
by the Yugoslav education system, where pupils were participating in the communist Pioneers under the statement of brotherhood and unity (Volcic, 2009, p. 10), which also resulted in the annual ritual of Youth Day (May 25th). Yugoslav identity was also portrayed by music, the so called Yugoslav Rock (Volcic, 2009), some of whose bands that are still very much active and popular nowadays. The positive Yugoslavia memories were also reflected through sports by which all the nations of Yugoslavia were united into supporting Yugoslav teams, without being divided with ethnicity (Volcic, 2009).
Volcic (2010) states that there are some differences between generations in relation to how they produce and consume Yugo-nostalgia; specifically, she divides the generations into those who lived through the Yugoslav times and those born at the end of the 1980s and during the 1990s who do not or cannot remember the former state. For those who lived through Yugoslav times (p. 195):
Yugo-nostalgia is a way to idealise and embellish an experience that is postulated as superior to the subsequent war, suffering, exile and postwar existence in the successor Yugoslav states, a reaction to the prevailing nationalist critique of the Yugoslav communism, one-sidedness combating one-sidedness.
In contrast, for the younger generation, Yugo-nostalgia 'is an exotic construct, a mythologeme of a happy remote past, a bizarre, romanticized pocket of otherness in the overwhelming wave of globalization and its culture of commercial sameness' (Volcic, 2010,
p. 195).
Of course, Yugo-nostalgia takes on a variety of forms - collective past, individual experience, restoration and reflection on memories - but for the purpose of analysis, Yugo-nostalgia is referred to as an exotic construct as defined by Volcic (2010). What is of key importance in this study is to establish whether Yugo-nostalgia has an impact on the destination perceptions and travel motivations of young Slovenians, particularly as Generation Y has little or no connection to the former Yugoslavia.
Methodology
Purpose of the Study
Just as every person is different, so is every tourist. Thus, tourists are attracted to different destinations, like different types of accommodation and engage in different activities. However, some tourists are closer to each other in terms of their preferences than others, and tourism stakeholders employ market segmentation to detect these. According to Smith, 'market segmentation consists of viewing a heterogeneous market (one characterised by divergent demand) as a number of smaller homogeneous markets' (Dolnicar, 2008, p. 2). The benefit of viewing one heterogeneous market as a group of numerous homogeneous markets is the ability to 'specialize on the needs of a particular group and become best in catering for this group' (Dolnicar, 2008, p. 2). Moreover, Dolnicar (2008) distinguishes between two approaches to market segmentation: a priori (common sense) segmentation and a posteriori (post hoc, data-driven) segmentation. The latter approach, adopted in this study, is defined as the analysis of the data used by destination management to gain insight into market preferences long after tourists visit the destination.
The purpose of this study is to define different segments among Slovene tourists visiting Croatia, based on a range of factors which represent travel motivation and destination perception. The research objectives are to: (1) determine the travel motives for visiting Croatia among young Slovene travellers, (2) define segments (clusters) of visitors based on destination perception, and /3) determine the influence of Yugo-nostalgia on travel motivation. The two fundamental questions addressed in this research concern the potential for market segmentation based on the destination perception and the detection of the influence of nostalgia on travel motivation.
Instrument
In this study, a posteriori segmentation analysis was employed to examine data derived from a questionnaire. The target population was Slovenian tourists aged 18 years old and over who had visited Croatia at least once. A pilot test was conducted with eight people with a marketing science background to obtain
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Are You Feeling Nostalgic, Neighbour?
feedback on clarity of the questionnaire. The questionnaire focused on different elements that might impact visitors' decisions on destination choice (Brezovec, 2001; Laroche et al, 2005; Milman & Pizam, 1995; Pascal, 2003). The elements we focused on were the total range of tourism services and the country's image. As both neighbouring countries have geographical, cultural, historical and political similarities, we decided to introduce nostalgia and political relations into the cluster analysis. Based on the literature review, a total of 40 items were generated for all five elements.
The questionnaire was designed in the Slovene language and consisted of four parts. The first part aimed to introduce the topic of the questionnaire and to ascertain the visitor/non-visitor status of the respondent. The second section, consisting of questions aimed at measuring the total tourist offer factor, asked the respondents to indicate the extent of their agreement to statements concerning their level of satisfaction with the total tourist offer of the destination. The third part consisted of questions on nostalgic motivations to visit the destination. The fourth section comprised questions relating to the country's image and statements on political relations. The respondents were presented with a seven-point Likert-type scale, ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). The questionnaire concluded by ascertaining the socio-demographic characteristics of the respondents.
We ran a four-step data analysis. In the first step, we wanted to check the reliability of the variables. Therefore, we used Cronbach's alpha coefficient to check the reliability of the total tourist offer, nostalgia, country image and political relations factors. The reliability of the first three factors was confirmed with a Cronbach's alpha value of .731 and above; therefore, these were taken forward for further analysis. We decided not to proceed with the political relations factor due to its low Cronbach's alpha value (.133). Second, all 34 variables were used in a cluster analysis that was performed to segment the market into homogeneous groups. Hierarchical and non-hierarchical cluster analyses were employed to segregate responses into mutually exclusive groups based on their perceived importance in relation to the three factors identified. Third, cross-
tabulations were used to profile each cluster based on socio-demographic characteristics and the perceived importance of the three factors. Finally, chi-square tests were performed to validate the clusters and further examine potential statistical differences (at the .05 level of significance).
Sample
For this survey, we wanted to obtain as many responses as possible, as we had only three conditions to fulfil: the respondents had to (1) be Slovene citizens (2) be aged 18 or over, and (3) have visited Croatia at least once. Therefore, we used a convenience sampling method to collect data via a close-ended internet questionnaire. Data were collected from 13 to 20 July 2010. Potential respondents were approached via electronic mail. The main email included the questionnaire and an invitation to participate in the survey. Potential respondents were asked to participate only if they fulfilled all three conditions and only if they were willing to participate. They were also asked to forward the questionnaire voluntarily to any of their acquaintances who demographically matched the conditions. In total, 456 usable questionnaires were collected.
The socio-demographic characteristics of the respondents are shown in Table 1. The proportion of female respondents (63.8%) was higher than that of males (36.2%). Respondents were diverse in age, the mean being 30.28 years and the standard deviation approximately 10 years. Moreover, 17.5% of the respondents were aged between 31 and 45 years and 11.4% were aged 46 or older. A vast majority of the respondents were aged 18 to 30 years as we decided to exclude all those aged 17 years or less. The latter respondents were considered not to be decision makers and were not taken forward for further analysis.
Also, as can be seen from Table 1, approximately 26.3% of the respondents had finished high school, 20.8% had obtained a technical or vocational degree and most (52.9%) at least had a college degree. The respondents were also differentiated by the frequency of their visits to Croatia as only those who had visited Croatia were included for further analysis. A small minority of 5.5% had visited the country only once. The majority of the respondents (44.6%) had visited the
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Are You Feeling Nostalgic, Neighbour?
Table 1 Socio-Demographic Characteristics of Slovene Tourists in Croatia
Socio-demographic variables	Percentage
Gender	
Male	36.2
Female	63.8
Age*	
18-30 years	71.1
31-45 years	17.5
>46 years	11.4
Education	
High school or lower	26.3
Technical/vocational school	20.8
College degree	52.9
Number of visits to Croatia	
One time	5.5
At least once per month	3.1
Once per year	44.6
At least two times per year	25.5
More than two times per year	21.3
Notes * Mean 30.28 years, standard deviation 9.95 years.
destination once per year, more than one fifth (21.3%) had visited more than twice per year, 25.5% had visited at least twice per year, and 3.1% had visited at least once a month.
Results and Discussion
Cluster Analysis: Market Segmentation of Slovene Tourists in Croatia
Combining hierarchical and non-hierarchical cluster analyses, we identified the market segments of Slovene travellers to Croatia based on their perceptions of the range of tourism services, nostalgia and the country's image. First, a hierarchical procedure using Ward's method was performed to obtain a starting point in establishing the optimal number of clusters. By reviewing the dendrogram and agglomeration cluster coefficients, we determined that a four-cluster solution was the most appropriate for market segmentation. Second, the four-cluster solution was used in ^-means clustering (non-hierarchical analysis). Cluster mem-
bership was saved for further analysis and the cluster group comparison.
To label and delineate the four clusters identified, the mean scores for each dimension of the factors identified were computed, and the results are presented in Table 2.
As is apparent from Table 2, based on the values of the factor means, Cluster 1 had the lowest mean score on all factors. Therefore, we identified this cluster as including respondents who had the lowest opinion of Croatia and labelled it 'hostile critics.' Cluster 2 had a high mean score on Factor 1, primarily connected to the destination's gastronomy and entertainment, and in the case of Factor 3 connected to the likeability of the country's image. Therefore, Cluster 2 was labelled 'phlegmatic hedonists.' The segment with the highest scores for all factors was Cluster 3. What is of particular significance for this particular cluster is that the nostalgia dimension had a higher score than the country's image; therefore, this cluster was designated 'true nostalgics.' For Cluster 4, the most significant part of the range of tourism services related to nature, history and tradition, price sensitivity and the nostalgia factor, resulting in the label 'sensitive enthusiasts.'
Cluster-Based Profile of Slovene Tourists in Croatia
Using the cross-tabulation method, the socio-demo-graphic profiles of the four clusters were obtained and are shown in Table 3. The chi-square analyses were used to identify whether there were any significant differences between the four clusters.
Hostile Critics
This cluster represented only 13.2% of the total sample (n = 60) and consisted of travellers who demonstrated a strongly negative impression of the destination's range of tourism services. For this segment, Croatia represented a summer destination but did not make the top of their travelling list because, in their opinion, its cultural, natural and historical traditions did not reach their expectations. Its total range of tourism services was considered expensive, it did not provide suitable accommodation, and its locals and caterers were rude. This segment had a negative
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Table 2 Mean Scores of Factors as Rated by the Four Clusters
Factor dimensions
Factor 1: Tourist offer (factor mean)	4.03
Natural beauties	4.87
Environment arrangement	3.21
Nurture of tradition	3.76
Interesting historical sites	4.38
Village and town's architecture	3.82
Adventure	3.79
Entertainment	4.40
Traditional dishes	4.16
Traditional wines	3.92
Nightlife	3.54
Accommodation	3.71
Affordability	2.35
Locals' friendliness	5.38
Food shopping	4.51
Caterers'friendliness	2.35
Experience	3.64
Undesirability	5.08
Factor 2: Nostalgia (factor mean)	1.99
Childhood memories	1.87
Positive memories	2.78
Attention	2.23
Yugo-nostalgia	1.82
Visiting	1.33
Transmission of memories	2.07
image of the country, considering Croatia to be unsuitable for work, investment and shopping, as well as not meeting their requirements for a retirement lifestyle. The members of this cluster were not at all infected by nostalgia. This is the only segment of younger travellers (18-30 years) with a majority of male respondents (51.7%), most of whom had obtained a college degree (60%), and who mainly visited Croatia once per year (45.8%).
Phlegmatic Hedonists
The members of this cluster represented 21% of the total sample (n = 96). Travellers belonging to this cluster
Are You Feeling Nostalgic, Neighbour?
4.48	5.18	4.76
5.89	6.60	6.29
3.85	4.78	4.03
4.24	5.22	4.83
5.30	6.08	5.71
4.97	6.02	5.32
4.94	6.00	5.16
5.49	6.11	5.65
5.32	6.14	5.72
4.50	5.60	5.07
4.59	5.56	5.13
4.82	5.95	5.17
3.09	4.07	2.94
4.81	5.54	5.45
3.24	3.25	3.94
3.96	4.81	3.25
5.20	5.98	4.20
2.69	2.13	3-72
2.71	5.06	3.88
2.32	4.60	3.58
4.04	6.20	5.23
2.34	4.90	3.76
2.15	4.28	2.98
1.99	4.45	3.15
3.33	5.95	4.57
Continued on the next page
were eager to label Croatia as a fun and gourmet destination, but the nurturing of its cultural and historical tradition did not affect them (based on the results in Table 3). They tended to enjoy the friendliness of the locals and caterers and, in contrast to those in Cluster 1, had positive memories of previous visits and felt that they were desired tourists. The overall country image is neutral, but members would potentially consider the destination for shopping and travelling. The majority of this segment comprised women (64.6%) aged 18-30 years (68.8%). Most of them (60.4%) had obtained at least a college degree and almost half (48.4%) visited Croatia at least once per year.
Cluster 1 (n = 60) Cluster 2 (n = 96) Cluster 3 (n = 157) Cluster 4 (n = 143)
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Table 2 Continued from the previous page
Factor dimensions	Cluster 1 (n = 60)	Cluster 2 (n = 96) Cluster 3 (n	= 157) Cluster 4 (n	= 143)
Factor 3: Country's image (factor mean)	2.51	3.35	4.44	3.48
Kindness	2.69	4.38	5.46	4.38
Role model country	2.22	3.53	4.50	3.30
Scepticism	4.71	3.67	3.55	4.20
Likability	2.72	4.37	5.11	4.10
Working	1.13	2.08	3.60	1.93
Investing	1.33	2.41	4.15	2.51
Shopping	1.62	3.38	4.49	3.01
Travelling	2.80	4.71	6.18	4.84
Retirement	1.18	2.00	4.36	2.09
Table 3 Socio-Demographic Characteristics of the four Clusters of Slovene Tourists in Croatia
Socio-demographic variables	Cluster 1 (n = 60)	Cluster 2 (:n = 96)	Cluster 3 (« = 157)	Cluster 4 (« = 143)	X2	Sig.
Gender					7.624	0.054
Male	51.7%	35.4%	31.8%	35.0%		
Female	48.3%	64.6%	68.2%	65.0%		
Agef					9.623	0.141
18-30 years	78.3%	68.8%	64.3%	76.9%		
31-45 years	16.7%	16.7%	21.0%	14.7%		
>46 years	5.0%	14.6%	14.6%	8.4%		
Education					11.262	0.081
High school or lower	15.0%	22.9%	29.9%	29.4%		
Technical/vocational school	25.0%	16.7%	24.8%	17.5%		
College degree	60.0%	60.4%	45.2%	53.1%		
Number of visits to Croatia					77.029	0.000*
One time	25.4%	6.3%	1.9%	0.7%		
At least once per month	5.1%	2.1%	3.2%	2.9%		
Once per year	45.8%	48.4%	33.8%	53.6%		
At least two times per year	18.6%	23.2%	30.6%	24.3%		
More than two times per year	5.1%	20.0%	30.6%	18.6%		
Notes * p < 0.01. t Mean 30.28 years, standard deviation 9.95 years.
True Nostalgies
Travellers belonging to this segment represented 34.4% of the total sample (n = 157). Members of this cluster had the highest overall opinion of Croatia's range of tourism services and were significantly influenced by
nostalgia. They enjoyed the destination's culture, history, nature, and traditional dishes and wines. Croatia was perceived as a fun, entertaining and adventurous destination with suitable accommodation and nightlife. They perceived the locals and caterers to be
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Are You Feeling Nostalgic, Neighbour?
friendly. In comparison to all other clusters, members were primarily influenced by nostalgia (based on the results in Table 3). The destination represented the country most worth visiting on the basis of positive memories both present and past as it evoked childhood memories. Members labelled themselves as Yugo-nostalgics and were eager to recount their memories to their children at some point. The destination also represented a country worth considering in relation to travel, shopping and life after retirement. It was labelled as a kind and likeable destination with a positive country image. Most of the respondents were women (68.3%) aged 18-30 years. Nearly 30% had education at high school level, and almost 46% had obtained a college degree or higher. The number of previous visits differed: almost 31% visited Croatia twice per year and the same percentage visited more frequently. Nearly 34% had visited the destination only once per year. Only 1.9% of members were first-time visitors to Croatia.
Sensitive Enthusiasts
Members of this cluster represented 31.4% of the total sample (n = 143). Travellers belonging to this cluster labelled Croatia as a destination with beautiful nature and fascinating historical sites, where they could be entertained, and enjoy the country's traditional dishes (based on the results shown in Table 3). They tended to enjoy the friendliness of the locals but would prefer a more affordable overall range of tourism services. In comparison with the members of Clusters 1 and 2, these travellers were affected by nostalgia, especially by positive memories and the desire to transmit these to their children. The overall country image was neutral, but they would not consider the destination for work or life after retirement. The majority of this segment comprised women (65%) aged 18-30 years (76.9%). More than half (53.1%) had obtained at least a college degree and more than half (53.6%) visited Croatia once per year.
Discussion
As shown in Table 3, the chi-square test revealed significant differences for the socio-demographic variable measuring the number of visits to the destination.
Cluster 1 had a higher proportion of members who visited Croatia only once (25.4%) when compared to Cluster 2 (6.3%), Cluster 3 (1.9%) and Cluster 4 (0.7%). Cluster 1 was unusual in that the country image was negative and the highest percentage of members visiting the destination at least once per month was low (5.1%). In Cluster 4, more than one third of the members (30.4%) visited Croatia more than twice per year; in addition, this cluster had the lowest percentage of members who visited the destination only once per year (33.8%).
The results of this study suggest that there are differences among Slovene tourists in Croatia based on the ratings of the importance of the offer of tourism services, nostalgia and country image. The results show that Slovene tourists are not homogeneous in relation to their perceptions of Croatia's offer of tourism services, its image and the influence of nostalgia on their destination preferences. The results show some similarities to previous studies (Milman & Pizman 1995; Pascal 2003, Segota & Jancic, 2012) in that the offer of tourism services and nostalgia factors influence the perception of the destination among travellers. This should provide implications for further studies of the influence of nostalgia on travel decision making in the area of marketing strategy and service development.
Conclusion and Recommendations
In this study, three motivation factors of the four originally defined were used to segment the market of Slovene tourists in Croatia based on the Cronbach's alpha reliability coefficient: (1) the range of tourist services offered, (2) nostalgia and (3) country image. The political relations factor was not included in the analysis as it proved to be unreliable. By using cluster analysis, this study has shown that it is possible to segment the market of Slovene travellers to Croatia only using three factors. The four segments were labelled (1) 'hostile critics,' (2) 'phlegmatic hedonists,' (3) 'true nostalgics,' and (4) 'sensitive enthusiasts.' The results of the study contribute to the existing literature on tourists' decision-making behaviour in conferring better understanding of the segments of tourists visiting Croatia, especially in relation to the impact of the
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Tina Segota and Zlatko Jancic
Are You Feeling Nostalgic, Neighbour?
nostalgia factor. The results are also of use to marketing practitioners in developing marketing strategies and programmes to approach each segment and attract more tourists to the destination.
One of the key factors in this study was nostalgia, as the emissive country (Slovenia) and the receiving country (Croatia) are both historically and culturally linked. The results show that nostalgia could be the motivation to visit the destination and could, according to Pascal (2003), influence tourists with low involvement in the decision-making process. Furthermore, they provide useful implications for both marketers and industry practitioners for the application of nostalgia in tourism marketing strategies for the emissive countries with a long history of visiting Croatia. In order to reach more tourists from emissive countries, marketers and practitioners should match emotional nostalgia messages with advertising and services at the destination.
The results also show that Slovene tourists cannot be considered one homogeneous group and that there are differences between the groups based on the offer of tourism services and the country's image. Therefore, marketers should apply different communication strategies to reach each segment and further develop products and services to match tourists' needs and wishes. In relation to the of tourism service, the three components of natural beauty, fascinating historical sites and entertainment were shown to rank among the highest motivating factors for all four groups, which should be useful for destination marketers and practitioners when designing tour packages and marketing programmes.
The results indicate four different segments of Slovene tourists in Croatia. Cluster 1 (hostile critics) is the smallest group identified in the study (13.2% of the sample) and its opinion is based either on one single visit to the destination or one visit per year. This cluster is also the youngest segment, which leads us to assume that certain financial or social pressures might prevent them visiting the destination. They view Croatia as a destination with friendly local people, but restaurant service employees seem unfriendly, and this may result in the country being perceived as undesirable overall as a potential destination. This result should be useful
to tourism service practitioners in improving the service provided by their staff as most of the workers in this industry are seasonal. As the members of this segment consider the destination to be unaffordable and bring most of their food from home, it is suggested that marketing practitioners developing low-cost accommodation and gastronomic offers or so-called last minute offers. The members of this group are likely to consider Croatia only for travel, so it is highly recommended that marketing communications contain strong messages about travelling experiences available in the country.
Based on the results, the members of Cluster 2 (phlegmatic hedonists) seem to perceive Croatia's traditional dishes and the overall experience as the main factors driving them to visit. The group's name derives from their high ranking of areas of natural beauty, captivating historical sites, entertainment, traditional dishes and experience. The group represents 21% of all respondents, with the majority being women who mainly visit Croatia once per year. Positive memories are the only component of the nostalgia factor that affects their motivation to visit the destination; they tend to consider Croatia as a destination for travelling and shopping. This might suggest the potential of advertising the destination as a source of shopping resorts since large shopping centres have emerged around the key cities and coastline in the last five years. The promotion would be yet more effective if destination marketers were to position Croatia as a land of unique traditional gastronomy and culture that is different from other Mediterranean destinations. In addition to its uniqueness, focusing on shopping would highlight that the country is fashionable and in vogue and would differentiate the overall experience from other destinations. Typically, global advertisements for the destination communicate only its areas of natural beauty and historical sites, which indicates a certain lack of vision of the overall visitor's experience. To provide greater satisfaction to this segment and to motivate them to change from being phlegmatic into becoming interested, destination marketers should offer programmes to visit traditional gastronomic sites in particular regions, as well as different shopping centres and entertainment sites. In addition, the visits could
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Tina Segota and Zlatko Jancic
Are You Feeling Nostalgic, Neighbour?
be merged into one programme and offered as a single tour package.
The largest segment identified in this study is Cluster 3 with 34.4% of all respondents and is called 'true nostalgies.' The majority of this segment comprises repeat visitors, strongly influenced by nostalgia, suggesting that the products and services offered to this segment have to be different from all other groups. Their main motives for visiting Croatia are the natural and cultural heritage combined with positive experiences and adventures. At the same time, they are influenced by so-called Yugo-nostalgia. Therefore, it is suggested that marketing practitioners design a variety of travel and leisure activities connected to historical events in Yugoslavia. Furthermore, to ensure greater satisfaction for this segment, destination marketers should offer programmes to visit historical sites in particular regions or events connected to the former Yugoslavia available at the destination and to offer them as a tour package. In addition, tour companies should offer several kinds of holiday and leisure products, such as agro-tourism, shopping, and spa stays. This segment gave the highest score for the country's image factor with above-average scores (when compared to the other groups) for the overall kindness of the people in the country and likeability. The group also showed a high interest in considering Croatia as a potential investment market and retirement resort. Based on these findings, it is suggested that investment and retirement products and services should be designed and marketed. Croatia has never been promoted as a country with above-average health and natural conditions for retirement. By combining its aspects of natural beauty, Mediterranean gastronomy and coastline, there is the potential to market retirement programmes and specialised offers.
The fourth segment, the second largest homogeneous group with 31.4% of respondents, called 'sensitive enthusiasts,' perceives the destination experience and nightlife as among the factors motivating them to visit. This group strives to find the most suitable accommodation but is price sensitive. The overall sense among the respondents is that they are undesirable tourists. As this is a very young group with a majority of women (65%), we might assume that they prefer
to spend their visits at parties and adventure sites. The feeling that they are undesirable tourists could arise from the presence of an elderly population unused to its place of residence being a party destination; there is major generation gap and considerable differences between the resident population and the visitors. To satisfy this segment, marketers should promote Croatia's party destinations such as the famous Zrce beach, the towns of Rovinj, Porec and Rabac, and the islands of Hvar and Brac as these offer excellent adventures and nightlife. As Greece and Spain lead the European market as students' party destinations during the summer and Belgrade and Bratislava lead as New Year party destinations, it is essential to promote Croatia's destinations as affordable spots for fun and adventure. The tour packages designed should be different from those for the first time travellers as the vast majority of those in the group are repeat visitors.
Regarding limitations, this study used a convenient sampling method and was distributed online. Therefore, the results obtained may not be general-isable to Slovene visitors to Croatia as a whole. Furthermore, the results may not reflect their actual opinions of Croatia's offer of tourism services and its image. In particular, not all respondents will have been able truly to reflect on the nostalgia factor measuring Yugo-nostalgia and the components concerning the transmission of memories as not all of them were old enough to remember life in Yugoslavia, and they do not yet have their own children. Therefore, we would suggest choosing respondents carefully when measuring the nostalgia factor in further tourism studies as younger populations may not be suitable for this type of research. It would be useful to examine the travel motivations of tourists from other emissive countries to compare and cross-validate the results of this study. However, the study provides strong indications for further research on the influence of Yugo-nostalgia among visitors from former Yugoslavian countries and the influence of historical events on tourism.
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