ALLIANCE STRATEGIES OF CRUISE TOURISM INDUSTRY FOR CORPORATION DEVELOPMENT BETWEEN PHUKET AND SINGAPORE

Abstract

The purposes of this research were 1) to study cruise tourists’ behaviours; 2) to assess and compare the effectiveness of cruise tourism management between Phuket and Singapore; 3) to study the cruise tourism management factors affecting the cruise tourists’ intention to revisit; 4) to study the process to build an alliance for cruise tourism at the regional level in order to attract cruise lines to the region, and 5) to propose alliance strategies of cruise tourism for cooperative development between Phuket and Singapore. To obtain the data according to the study objectives, the mixed method was used by integrating both quantitative and qualitative studies.

An online questionnaire was used to collect the data from 400 cruise tourists who took the cruise trips along the Phuket-Singapore route, and purposive sampling was used to select the cruise tourist informants. The descriptive analysis was in frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation (SD), whereas the inferential analysis was performed with a paired t-test, exploratory factor analysis, and multiple regression. Moreover, the in-depth interview was also performed to collect the data from a particular population of small size but significant in terms of their opinions as to the key informants. There were 35 key informants relating to the cruise tourism of Phuket and Singapore, and they were officers in government and private agencies and cruise tourists. The interview data were analysed with the coding analysis. The study results are described below.

(1) The cruise tourists’ behaviours were classified into 3 parts. 1) The behaviours before taking the cruise trips: Most cruise tourists used to take the cruise trips 2 – 3 times with the purpose of holidays/leisure. Their cruise duration was mostly for 4 – 7 days during the annual vacation. Most cruise tourists made the decision by themselves to take the cruise trips, and travelling safety was their main motivation for taking the cruise trips. These cruise tourists received the cruise information from online media. Most of them made the cruise reservation through the websites of the cruise liners 3 – 4 months in advance, and they paid for the cruise trips by themselves. 2) The behaviours during taking the cruise trips: Most cruise tourists travelled with their families at every port of call due to the quickness and convenience of customs and immigration. Their average spending at each port was 100 – 200 USD, and most of them planned for their friends or relatives to take them on shore excursions. The most favourite onboard activity was a casino, whereas the favourite shore excursion activity was a cultural trip. 3) The behaviours after taking the cruise trips: Most cruise tourists told their cruise experience to friends or colleagues, and the channel for telling or recommending about the cruise experience was through Facebook/Page. Most tourists had the intention to revisit, and the reason for their intention to revisit was safety.

(2) Regarding the cruise tourists’ opinions on the effectiveness of the cruise tourism management between Phuket and Singapore, Singapore has shown readiness for cruise tourism in several aspects, especially in the port with the widest gap from Phuket. However, Phuket has slightly more inshore excursion activities than Singapore.

(3) Regarding the analysis of the factors affecting the cruise tourists’ intention to revisit, the factors with positive effects on the cruise tourists’ intention to revisit were the factors of port management, cruise tourism management, the image of tourist attractions, shore excursion management, and services, and port.

(4) In addition, the study results showed that the process of building the cruise alliance at the regional level to attract the cruise liners consisted of eight steps: 1) analysis of the motivation to build alliances, 2) selection of alliances, 3) formation of alliance structure, 4) negotiation and mutual agreements, 5) analysis of suggestions for improving the alliances, 6) establishment of the alliances, 7) business plan setting and implementation, and 8) follow-up, examination, and evaluation of implementation.

(5) Based on the above study results, the researcher proposes six alliance strategies for cruise tourism for the cooperative development between Phuket and Singapore: 1) expansion of the cruise tourism market both inside and outside the country; 2) development of ports, port management, and facilities; 3) development of the cruise tourism management process; 4) development of various tourist attractions, places, and activities; 5) formation of a good image of cruise tourism in the Southeast Asian region; and 6) promotion of understanding and participation among cruise tourism stakeholders.

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