Using ski destination choice criteria to segment Finnish ski resort customers

The purpose of the paper is to segment Finnish ski resort visitors according to ski destination choice attributes using data-driven segmentation. In addition, segments are compared in order to ascertain possible differences in personal (gender and age) and situation-specific (type of visitor and traveling companion) characteristics between customer segments. The data were collected from visitors to five different ski resorts in Lapland Finland during the years 2006 and 2007 by self-administered questionnaire. Altogether 1827 responses were collected of which 1529 were acceptable for use in this study. Six different customer segments were identified using the factor-cluster method: passive tourists, cross-country skiers, want-it-all, all-but-downhill skiing, sports seekers, and relaxation seekers. At the end of the paper conclusions are drawn and managerial implications discussed. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.