Lessons from an uncontrollable health crisis: intention to travel in the pre- and post-vaccine era

The Covid-19 crisis severely impacted consumer behaviours in the hospitality and tourism sectors, particularly cruise tourism. During the pandemic, many factors affected the tourists’ intentions to cruise. The study explores the drivers of tourists’ intentions to cruise during the pandemic and how massive Covid-19 vaccination has modified these drivers. This study tests hypotheses by applying regression analyses on a sample of 1,359 cruisers, divided into two subgroups that fell respectively within the pre- and post-vaccination. The results indicate that the most influential drivers of cruisers’ intention to travel are social motivation, familiarity, and trust. Corporate reputation and perceived health risk are instead significant only in the pre-vaccination scenario. Using a multi-group analysis, the study also demonstrates that, in the postvaccination, the presence of the vaccine has reduced cruisers’ risk perception, together with the role of the company’s prior good reputation. This research advances knowledge of the health crisis’ impact on the intention to travel, including the moderating effect of massive vaccinations. The study provides marketing and managerial implications for different service sectors.