0 Interview 3 different people The following three people were interviewed as part of this project. Their profile and results are provided below.

3.1 Middle-Aged Asia Lady

This respondent spoken with has children in University and also helps to run the family's businesses in her hometown. She has a life of routine and responsibility and seeks to have a chance to relax and enjoy the natural beauty of Alaska at the same time. She also sees cruises as a worthy reward for her hard work on the families' businesses and also is interested in learning about Alaska's many natural wonders including the glaciers. Lastly she is interested to see what a cruise in Alaska is like, as there is often discussions she has with friends about the dinners, the social events and the incredible views of wildlife from the ship using binoculars. She sees the trip as an opportunity to unwind, reward herself, share companionship with people her own age and social status, and enjoy the trip.

This respondent is clearly passionate about wanting to experience as much of life as they can during their college years. Hitchhiking or taking the Eurail Pass through the Western European nations is a major priority as is the opportunity to do extreme skiing in Japan and also to hike the Rockies. They have little fear of the elements in fact welcome them as part of the experience. They also the most confident of the respondents spoken to in terms of their athletic ability and therefore has little fear of diving in Thailand or skiing in Japan. The issue for this respondent however is the budgetary concerns they have, as many are going to school on student loans.

3.3 Successful Business Man

Interviewing this respondent provided unique insights into traveling for holidays as a means to recharge through mildly to exceptionally risky activity that also provided a chance to glimpse part of the world they would never have a chance to see otherwise. Many of the successful businessmen who skin dive and also sky dive have a high level of risk tolerance, hence their success in business. The opportunities to skin dive in Thailand appears to this respondent because the vibrancy of undersea life, the opportunity to risk exploring entirely new coral reefs, and the encounters with fish and wildlife never seen before. The successful businessman says that these vacations sharpen his senses and make him feel more alive, and that the idea of sitting on a tour bus winding its way through Europe is exceptionally boring. He has to feel risk as part of his psychographic profile to feel alive, and exceptional risk of skin diving combined with its tranquility is very appealing to this respondent.

4.0 analysis and compare the responses of participants

The following is an analysis of each of the respondents along the dimensions of motivation, value, self and self-identity. There are an abundance of theories in these areas, and the following sections explore these theories and their results in greater detail as they pertain to the selection of travel destinations.

4.1 Motivation

All three respondents see the allure of travel as a means to learn more about the world while also getting their needs met. For the middle-aged woman the need for rewarding herself for working hard at the family businesses while raising her children is a powerful motivator to take a cruise. For the student, they want to immerse themselves in life and also have an element of risk in their travel lives as well. They are the most likely to take vacations where there are extreme sports including skiing for example. Of all respondents, the successful businessman sees travel as more of a means for gaining a refreshed sense of life by seeing things he would never see if he stayed in his normal routine without taking...

Each of these travelers is motivated by a different needs value or perception of the ideal experience given the preferences. The need for self-actualization, consistent with applicability of Maslow's Hierarchy of needs to the travel industry as studies previously have successfully done (Huang, Hsu, 2009) illustrate how powerful the need for self-actualization and peak experiences are in differentiating one travel experience form another. Segmentation of travel alternatives by the layer of the Maslow Hierarchy of Needs Model is critical for travel providers to be effective marketers and speak in terms their clients can understand and act on. The provider of Alaskan cruises would be wise to discuss how the cruise is a "trip of a lifetime to reward the decades of service to others" as the Asian women has most likely given huge blocks of her time and effort to her family and the family business. The self-actualization and "grand experience" of the Alaskan cruise is exceptionally successful as a marketing and messaging strategy that aligns to the Maslow Hierarchy of Needs Model, hence the very high participation rates on these events from senior citizens who are empty nesters.
Likewise the Maslow Model when applied to the university student and successful businessman has comparable analysis and results. For the university student the need is less on self-actualization, more on safety and psychological needs to challenging one's self against foreign countries and getting a glimpse into what traveling globally in freedom are. The university student may aspire for a self-actualized and exceptional experience, yet their focus the majority of the time will be on the development of their own self-confidence in tackling challenges of getting around and potentially staying in a foreign nation for a period of time. In studies that have applied the Maslow Hierarchy of Needs to travel programs and initiatives, insights have been gained into which demographic and psychographic groups have the greatest need for self-actualization, self-esteem, love & belonging & safety (Huang, Hsu, 2009).

While the Asian woman is clearly most interested in self-actualization and the sense of accomplishment and reward that comes from the cruise to Alaska, the students are looking for the esteem and confidence of being able to navigate through foreign nations. For the business man and the exotic diving trip to Thailand the need for esteem of conquering or mastering the specific region or waters of interest, combined with self-actualization of confronting uncertainty and risk underwater and still being able to see incredible sights, the businessman is unique in his mix of Maslow Needs Assessments. Yet for travel marketers to excel in their selection and marketing of travel destinations and experiences, these factors all must be taken into account and communicated with clarity and focus. This is in effect best practices in travel marketing today; the integrating of needs assessment of behavioral models including the Maslow Hierarchy of needs and the relative market positioning of travel experiences relative to potential clients.

The Herzberg Two Factor Theory that integrates Hygiene Factors and Motivators into the same model has also successfully been integrated into the travel industry's knowledge base of research (Chan, Baum, 2007). Specifically concentrating on how to most effectively satiate or satisfy travelers with the Hygiene Factors to meet minimum expectations of travelers has proven to be critically important in the development and fine-tuning of marketing messages. The aspirational values of the Motivators of the Herzberg Model are what the Asian woman and the businessman are looking for. Herzberg primarily completed research on